Two major Nuer communities reconcile in Upper Nile state
By James Gatdet Dak
February 11, 2009 (ULANG, Upper Nile) – A two-day peace and reconciliation conference conducted in Ulang County of Upper Nile state between the Lou-Nuer and Jikany-Nuer communities concluded on Tuesday with the communities pledging to keep peace between them.
A number of clans or sections of the two major Nuer communities, who predominantly inhabit the two respective states of Jonglei and Upper Nile and share common borders, in the past used to experience deadly clashes as a result of competition over water points and grazing areas during the dry season.
Some population of the Lou-Nuer community, the largest single community in Jonglei state, used to cross northwards into the territories of Jikany-Nuer in Upper Nile state with their cattle in search of water points and pasture.
Some of the community pastoralists also used to move westwards into Duk County for the same reason which sometimes resulted in armed clashes with the Dinka community.
As the dry season is in sight, reducing the Lou-Nuer water points, commissioners of the neighboring counties of Akobo, Nyirol, Nasir, Ulang and Baliet in addition to some of their respective members of parliament, traditional chiefs and elders converged in the conference to resolve their differences ahead of the seasonal migrations.
The conference did not however include the other five Nuer-inhabited counties of Uror, Ayod, Pangak, Maiwut and Longechuk in both states because of distance and non-participation in the conflict.
The conference was attended by the Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan, Riek Machar Teny, accompanied by the Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Gabriel Changson Chang, SPLA Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Major General James Gathoth Mai, among other Juba-based officials.
In his remarks during the conference, Machar urged the two communities to abide by the administrative boundaries of 1956 which define their respective territories.
The conference resolved on the peaceful movement of some Lou-Nuer cattle herders, without guns, into Jikany-Nuer territories in search of water points and grazing lands during the dry season.
Machar also told the neighboring Nuer communities to live in peace and harmony with their neighboring non-Nuer communities in both states of Jonglei and Upper Nile.
He reiterated the Government of Southern Sudan’s policy to continue disarming the civilian population in order to significantly reduce inter-community armed clashes.
Government of Southern Sudan earlier passed a resolution recommending intensification of peace and reconciliation conferences and disarmament of civilian population in the region.
Also the highest executive organ of the ruling political party in the South — the Political Bureau of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) — in its recent meeting in Juba urged the government to step up efforts aimed at reconciling the warring communities and disarming them.
The Vice President also left Upper Nile state for Unity state on Tuesday to conduct similar peace and reconciliation conferences among various communities, making it the fourth state he has visited in the last two weeks of his peace and reconciliation missions across the region.
However, the war mentality inculcated in the minds of communities during the 21 years of armed conflict proves to be far from over. Violence continues in terms of raids, murders and abductions by various still armed communities, despite participation in previous peace and reconciliation conferences.
(ST)
TRUEMAN
Two major Nuer communities reconcile in Upper Nile state
Nuer or chaoes will not live in harmony with themselves and their neighbours as long as their primitive mentality and Ngundeng prophesies obsess their minds.
This chaotic community will not wake up for modernization until their prophet Ngundeng resurrect to live to apologise and re-direct the Nuer community to the right path.
Nuer who are well known for their chaotic manners are a curse to SouthSudan.
God help them!
Nuer
Two major Nuer communities reconcile in Upper Nile state
All these idiots dumb ass Dinkas do not know what they are talking about. Nyadeng running around in southern Sudan after Kuol Manyang got tired of fucking here. You guys should find Nyadeng a man before going after the greater naath nation.
Stealing money of southerners and land grabbing in the Equatoria should not be tolerated anywhere in southern Sudan. All Dinkas Bor should move back to their jungle bor where they belong. They cannot occupy other people land by force and think that they will be forgiven. Dinkas Bor!! Move back to your land. Gatmachar will never apologize for nonsense.
Why uncle Garang is decaying in the tomb as he serve his 99 years sentence in the underground prison. I’m happy that he dies that bastard for committing genocide in the Gatjaack nation in 1985. He will not come back alive. Let him decay. I think Nyadeng will follow soon as well.
Mounyjang
Two major Nuer communities reconcile in Upper Nile state
Dear brothers
I don’t agree with anybody who calls Nuer a curse in South Sudan. No, Nuer is a great community and with its strength and weaknesses like any other community.
THe only weakness Nuer has and any intellectual and diplomat like Wiyual should know is that they lack the phrase “hold-on” which is “Kon chuong” in Nuer and “kon kooch” in Dinka.
Dinkas have another weakness, which is that they rarely change their minds when they have agreed to something.
Both have disadvantages and advantages as traits.
The fact that Nuers are easily agreeable to something makes them the best fighters but at the same time makes them undependable because they can be changed anytime(It might not be all Nuers but majority). This is not good for someone in the position of leadership.
On the other hand, inflexibility of Dinkas has an advantage in the sense that they weigh the outcome of their deeds before they implement them. This results in ignoring some issues out of a higher agenda which helps a lot especially when in a position of leadership.
But this is disadvantageous in the sense that when a compromise has to be reached after some painful bruises, it will take a dinka a generation to accept it while it only takes Nuer a month or even less to forget the past.This may end up causing more pains or so. Am a dinka and I have a lot of Nuer relatives both in Upper Nile, Jonglei and Unity state snd I respect them.
But as a dinka who takes time to forget the past issues, it may take me the whole of my lifetime to forgive Riek Machar for what he did in 1991.
Maybe because am a dinka but the difference between Garang and Riek because most of my colleagues on this site have always compared them is that, Garang used an institutional slogan and mechanisms to kill Nuer.In that sense, those who participated in killing Ka-jaaks included/ or mostly led by Nuer officers.
It is like when Riek killed all Dinka officers in Nasir who refused to pay him allegiance to his movement. Those guys died at the opposition of institution but not an individual.
But Riek used tribal rhetorics(cha jang lai) to kill civilians in Bor: this is a genocide or tribal cleansing.
That same logic explains why Darfur case even only 300,000 pple died is classified as genocide but not that of South SUdan where more than a million have died. In the SOuth, El Bashiir used institutions and even a lot of Southerners were on his side of the line while that of Darfur uses tribal identification as guilt.
I know it may not make sense to someone who absolutely believes in Riek, but the best compromise intelligent Nuers should strike if Nuer needs leadership is to bring someone who can be a uniting figure other than Riek who stands no chance of even forming a Southern government leave alone managing it. There is a very high population of people who believe that they will rather die than to see Riek ruling South Sudan.THose people have mechanisms and ability to bring South down to its knees as Riek did in 1991. His current position is being viewed as a compromise to bring about the unity of people of the South but not that he deserves it. This is a genuine advice from a dinka who has the peace at heart and has a concern of both side.I actually lost a cousin(Deng Paul Door) in 1991 who was an SPLA officer but just be because he was a nuer. I mourn him upto date because we grew up together as kids and he was a gentleman. So, no one gains in the event of division.
Gatwech
Two major Nuer communities reconcile in Upper Nile state
History: Nuer and Dinka with one ancestor!!!
People have been asking why is so much hatred between the Nuer and the Dinka who share their ancestor (Deng)?
Here is a historical clue of the fact! Deng had two children (now represented by Nuer and Dinka). The Dinka was the elder child while the Nuer was the younger child of Deng (their common ancestor). The family had only one old cow and its small calf by the time their father, Deng, died. When Deng felt that he was near death, he called his two children Dinka and Nuer. He told them that he was dying. Dinka’s behaviour was reckless, cunning, weak but abusive and would bully the younger Nuer! Nuer was fair, strong, obedient and trustworthy in the eye of their father.
Knowing the behaviour of the Dinka who would mistreat the young Nuer after his death, Deng decided to divide the old cow and the calf between the Dinka and the Nuer so that each of them can go his own way. He called them to his hut and told the Dinka to take the old cow and the Nuer to take the calf.
Dinka was not happy with the arrangement because he knew that the old cow was soon going to die and could no longer produce another calf. He knew the calf given to Nuer was growing and would soon begin to produce more cows. When they finished talking with their father, the Dinka, in the cunning and lying style, called the Nuer again and told the Nuer that their father had changed his mind and given him to calf instead of the old cow. The Nuer could not believe the Dinka part of the story.
The Nuer decided to inquire the cancellation of the previous arrangement from their father. When he told the story to their father (Deng), he was so angry and called in the Dinka immediately. He cursed the Dinka for disobeying his last breath arrangement with them. He told Dinka to remain cunning and lying, but when the Nuer finds out about the Dinka lies, the Nuer would punish the Dinka until the Dinka submits to Nuer authority. He told the Dinka that his old cow would produce him milk which the Dinka would enjoy for a short time, but the Nuer’s calf would grow up and produce more cows that would produce and provide endless milk to the Nuer.
That wass the beginning of how the two tribes who happened to share their ancestor are hating themselves to the point no body would believe.
Joseph
Two major Nuer communities reconcile in Upper Nile state
Congratilation to nuer leader and politicial for bring nuer togather to reconcile this will be axample to other tribes or communities.
Guys, you are all out of the topic. non of you is leader, you just congratulate nuer for their reconcilation.