Who’s behind Torhech massacre?
By Luk Kuth Dak
May 13, 2009 — Nuer –to- Nuer conflicts are not unusual, but rare. Growing up in Nasir well into my adulthood, and as a teacher at Nasir Intermediate School(NIS), I have never heard of any fights or wars between the Lou- Nuer and Gajiok- Nuer. In actual fact, the two peoples have gotten along beautiful that, in some instances, their accents were hardly detected. Inter- marriages were so common that, In the Ulang area of Nasir, it seemed as though the mothers of most of the intellectuals are from Lou. Indeed, as a host of the then only higher learning institution (NIS), Nasir was the educational Mecca for the Lou, Anyuak and Murle. And that explains why most – if not all, of the Lou’s intellectuals, have graduated from (NIS) including, of course, Riek Gai Kok.
Consequently, in the Nuer culture, there are a host of rules that are to be abided by and executed by the letter. I have learned that early on in life. My father, late Kuth Dak Mut, was a judge ( chief) armed with a Law Degree in wisdom and common sense. I remember quite vividly, just as if it happened yesterday, when he used to say that war( kor) should be the last resort. But when it must, the other side is informed with the decision well in advance, so that they can prepare themselves. No matter how vicious a fight might be, and the how large the number of casualties, children, women boys and more importantly elderly, are often off the menu. And in the rare cases when a boy who was thought to be in his manhood had to be killed, he must first and foremost receive facial marking (gaar) on his forehead before the killing takes place.
The Lou’s resent cold blooded massacre of the 49 innocent Gajioks, mainly woman and children, in the village of Torkech, and the gruesome nature in which it was carried out indicates that, either there were some foreign involvement in the massacre, or the Nuer nation has drifted and turned its back from the culture, which it believes distinguishes it from the others.
In addition, the sophisticated weapons used in the attack, raise some serious questions that may never be answered, in the absence of proper investigation. So, it’s more than likely that, the murderers of those 49 innocent lives will never be brought to justice for their horrific crimes.
Meanwhile, Riek Gai Kok continues to be the dirty laundry doer for his masters in the so-called National Islamic Front (INF). There is no shadow of a doubt, that his hands are all over the bodies of the victims of ( Torkech) massacre. He should be held accountable and prosecuted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), for crimes against humanity.
But where is the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement SPLM) during these difficult times? According to ( Sudan Tribune), the office of the Vice President of the Government of South Sudan (GoSS) has issued a statement expressing that the (SPLM) & (GoSS) are deeply disturbed and regrets the loss of innocents lives!
Well, that statement should not be accepted, and (SPLM) & (GoSS) ought to be ashamed of their actions in this case. This is a massacre and a tragedy all around, which should deserve more than a sorrowful statement, not by the Vice President himself, but by his office.
In conclusion, the question is: Where do we go from here? As we know, all of us know, that the ( INF’s) conquer, divide-and- rule policy in South Sudan is only going to intensify in the weeks and month ahead. And it will require a new approach and a new strategy from the (SPLM) to combat it.
Denunciation, alone is not enough.
The author is a former Juba Radio anchorman, and he can be reach at: [email protected].