SPLM must respond to popular aspirations

By Majok Yak Majok *

January 30, 2008 — Reading the article of Mr Bona Malual on the future of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement has ignited an intense interest to let me pose some questions and make comments.

The advent of peace to the Sudan and signing of CPA has ushered in a new era of stability, socio- economic and cultural development. The road is long, tortuous and marred with uncertainties towards CPA implementation. Let me pause a bit here and define Nationalism. By simple English Dictionary definition, it is the desire by a group of people who share the same race, culture, language and others to form an independent country or simply the love and wishing of well-being to one’s country.

What shaped the southern Sudanese Nationalism during the pre- and post independence period; was their desire to rule themselves and their region but was denied. In August 1955, just a year before independence in 1956, southern soldiers mutinied in the town of Torit. They sacrificed their lives there and the rest fled to the bush. The seeds for the long struggle were sown. In the immediate post independence period, sudanization of the civil service posts after departure of the British, were dominated by Northerners even in Southern Sudan.This created great suspicion as to the intentions of North towards the South. Southern politicians began campaigning vigorously for federation.The few schools in the South at the time became restive. The Northern elite, realizing the situation would spin out of control, handed the then civilian government to the military in 1958, the Aboud’s Military Regime.

A dark dawn had set in for the people of Southern Sudan as the fascist regime began to institute repressive policies in the Sudan in general and in the South in particular. No dissenting voices were permitted. An Islamist, Arabist agenda was unleashed on Southern Sudan. The medium of learning was changed from English to Arabic, Koranic Schools cropped up all over South Sudan, with the dreaded northern merchants controlling trade in the South. The Missionaries, who were running the few schools in the south, were expelled in 1962, leaving a critical vacuum in education and evangelical work. In 1960, eight Southern Sudanese intellectuals, seven from Equatoria and one from Bahr El Ghazal, William Deng Nhial, deserted their positions and entered Uganda, the war of liberation had thus began.

I will not dwell much on details of this war, the Anyanya Movemnt, than to say it lifted the case of Southern Sudan even further.In 1972, the war came to an end after signing an agreement, called Addis Ababa agreement granting autonomy to people of Southern Sudan.It was a reasonable accord that gave the region a relative peace for ten years but it also had its weaknesses. President Numeiry who helped bring about the accord, set up a government in Juba but sat by its shadow. Political wrangling, party rivalries, the rising discontent at the time, and the domineering attitude of the North, essentially helped reduce the life span of that government. He [Numeiry] provided music to this government to which they danced and danced to his tune.He enjoyed it all. In the end, he abrogated the agreement.It died and the scavengers took the coffin to unknown destination.

The SPLA war and the concluded CPA is the pinnacle of Southern and the marginalized people struggle. Is it through bashing the North that qualifies Southerners as nationalists? Our people have fought, sacrificed their lives for their country in order to regain their rights, dignity and freedom. Taking bashing as one of the components of nationalist expressions, then the armed struggle is a stronger component of nationalist expression that renders bashing per se simplistic.

Concerning rocking of the boat, major wars that have been fought either ended in defeat or in victory or arrival at negotiated settlement.During the SPLA war, there was an internal, armed opposition of local forces, supported by the North and Northern onslaught on the Movement for 22 years. Natural laws taught to us indicate that a force equal to and opposite to the one above must have been exerted by the SPLA, thereby reaching a threshold enabling it to survive up to Naivasha. Suggesting mercy on the side of NCP or other internal, armed groups on the SPLA is an idea hard to entertain.

The SPLM Walk Out From GONU

Sensing the mood of the people here in Southern Sudan, it was the most popular move after signing of the CPA. It was a general concern about the slow pace of CPA implementation, delayed ministerial changes in GONU and SPLM performance and discipline of its members. The war in Darfur, and conduct of policies especially international politics, on Darfur, headed by Dr. Lam Akol, an SPLM member needed much to be desired. The SPLM, posing as championing the cause of the marginalized in Sudan, should be seen working towards that vision. The awes of Dr. Lam are not about his abilities and capabilities, but should be seen in the light of party adherence and keeping with its guidelines. The walk out from GONU signified a revisit to the grass root. The SPLM must work according to the aspirations of its base.Loss of touch will affect SPLM show in the upcoming polls in the year 2009 and that will have political consequences. The SPLM must keep its vision, provision of strategic plans, stewardship, guidance, unity, CPA implementation and democratic transformation.

The Abyei Problem

The area of Abyei, known as the area of nine Ngok Chieftainships, is very well known to its neighbours to the south and west. In the not too distant past, cattle herders from Aweil East area, some parts of Gogrial and Twic, used to migrate to Ngok, using its western corridor every year around October, avoiding seasonal flooding behind them. They roamed the whole length and breadth of Ngok, they had known the names of Ngok cattle camps, including the boundaries of their Chieftainships Their songs are rich with names of these cattle camps. When we used to go to schools in Khartoum, in late sixties and seventies, we knew where we came into contact with Messiria villages. Messiria nomads come to Ngok every year in search for pasture for their animals. The drought of the seventies and beyond made the area of Ngok even environmentally vulnerable and they extended their search of pasture further southwards into deeper swamps. Armed grazing by the Messiria, became the norm upsetting power balance in their favour vis-à-vis the peaceful, unarmed, local population. When did the Messiria have permanent interests in Ngok? The contemporary history of Ngok cannot be cheated. Any Sudanese has rights of citizenship anywhere in any part of the country. Expansionist drive cannot be defended to mean rights of citizenship. The Marahlin who used to come to Twic for grazing, marked trees and called places funny, expansionist names.

The Messiria and the Rezigat, who seasonally move to Southern Sudan for grazing, in the dry season, were asked by the SPLA to leave their guns behind and come for grazing. They refused to lay down their arms. They wanted to come with their guns and disturb the local population who are unarmed. They are now fighting the SPLA with government support.

The SPLM is not defending Ngok due to the presence of the so-called influential members of Ngok within it.The banner for emancipation of Ngok will still live on even when those members are gone. It is a collective responsibility of Southern Sudanese and the marginalized to see to it that expansionism is not rewarded. I failed to get the context of reference to Ngok as small in size geographically and in population.Is it so small that the NCP can be left to play games until elections of 2009 and eventually the referendum of 2011 and finally nothing happens and the pieces are swallowed in their entirety? Yes, the Abyei protocol is number five. This by no means makes it less important.It is important like other protocols and its non-implementation can likely take people back to war.Is history repeating itself? During negotiations in Naivasha, Mr. Bona Malual accused the SPLM, the underdog, of not negotiating in good faith. It is him now saying some protocols are less important and should not take people back to war.

What prevented the administration of Abyei not to take shape? Is SPLM not negotiating with NCP three years since signing of CPA?.What I see here is hatred and envy which one philosopher called, “unhappy admiration”, that can have the resultant effect of clouding sound judgement.

Performance of Government of Southern Sudan

Southern Sudan, a region of known underdevelopment and emerging from war, can face many development challenges. Institutional capacity building, identifying cadres that can be trained to undertake effective responsibilities of running government machinery, is quite a daunting task. Provision of services, health, education, roads, infrastructure, availing essential commodities and the list is long, are major challenges.

Systems development is a process and the process can be very long and requires a lot of patience. Southern Sudan cannot start like Uganda, Ruanda or Etghiopia, for example, for reasons of its underdevelopment by the past Sudanese regimes since independence in 1956. Inadequate financial resources, revenue incomes, yet to be streamlined are handicaps to quick realization of development outcomes.

The government of Southern is grappling with much talked of corruption. The president of the government Sudan has declared time and again, zero-tolerance to corruption. It ought to be arrested. For the government, it is a matter of prestige and application of rule of law. What are the development indicators Mr. Bona has developed to judge the performance of government Southern Sudan in the last three years of its tenure? Why is he so upbeat about the failures, knowing the immense difficulties the South is under? Who is calling the southern Sudanese displaced to Khartoum black Arabs? When the late hero, Dr. John Garang came to Khartoum for inauguration, masses of Sudanese people turned up estimated at six million people. Were these masses drawn from SPLA controlled areas? The SPLM will never forget that event and their deep love for the Movement.

They will never be betrayed. When again John Garang died, how many died in Khartoum and in Juba? The people of Southern Sudan will be the last arbitrators of their government performance. The social contract bestowed on SPLM by the masses, during the war still continues, as the factors that led to the war loom. Wedge-driving between the masses and their leaders is doomed to failure. The long march to lean freedom has begun.

Denial of Other Parties Political Compaigning

In June 2006, barely a year after signing the CPA, a big delegation led by Mr. Bona Malual, came to Akoc Payam, one of the six Payams of Twic county Warrap State. The delegation included Mayom Kuoc, a State Minister in GONU, who hails from Akoc like me. He introduced him as a member of his party and a strong supporter since the sixties thesixt especially in elections to the constituent Assembly in Khartoum. He talked about Dr. Justin Yac, as one of his supporters and is a minister in the government of Southern Sudan. He praised H. E. Salva Kiir Mayardit very highly and that he [Kiir ], could count on his support. I do not know if that included SPLM which Salva leads.

I will not enter into some sensitive issues he mentioned, as that is unnecessary now. Is that not political campaigning? To date, I have not seen any summon by SPLM on his political sermon.

SPLM is a mass movement. Fighters fought the war on nationalist appeal and other contributing, compelling factors. With peace, political leanings and persuasions, other than SPLM are emerging but prefer a subterranean posture. This position advantages and benefits them as it will manifest itself in the near future, especially in elections.

At one time, just before the start of SPLM campaigns to States, senior SPLM officers involved with the campaign, asked me to recommend a person who could be SPLM officer in Twic county Warrap State. I did in writing and the letter was taken to the head office in Juba. One so-called SPLM activist snatched the letter from the file at gun point, the activist claimed. What a poor SPLM? I mentioned in the letter that SPLM faces an uphill struggle in Twic. That is the crime. The document was photocopied and distributed to sympathizers by the so-called SPLM activists. We were branded as spoiling Twic.This became part of the campaign in Twic. In this scenario, are we all committed SPLM? Why are we opposed to one another?

That the letter was taken at gun point is smokescreen. It was accomplished through a “human gun” so to speak, implanted at strategic, sensitive position, exploiting structural and managerial weakness of the SPLM. I am relating this story just for the lessons to be learned. The SPLM as an organization is complacent. As the strength of any government is predicated on structural and managerial capabilities of the party, hierarchical accountability plays a role in ensuring success.

The walk out from GONU according to Mr. Bona Malual was a mistake which he condemned, that SPLM is not cooperating with NCP but threatens war, that SPLM supports foreign intervention and Abyei protocol should not take people back to war.This is clearly a pro NCP stance. For SPLM, the CPA is dear but pushing only for its implementation in order to prevent war.

The author is Under Secretary of the Ministry of Health in the Governmen of Southern Sudan. He can be reached at [email protected]