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Category Archives: Sudan

Unity vs. Secession: thoughts on the Sudanese Referendum

25 Tuesday Jan 2011

Posted by nubiaNomad in Sudan, thoughts

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Referendum, Sudan

Over the past few months I have been continuously asked about my impressions of the Southern Sudan Referendum. As the days drew near and the week-long voting ended the questions changed to what are my thoughts of eminent division of Sudan. Preliminary results show overwhelming support for secession, which comes as no surprise. I can’t say I didn’t see it coming. It was evident many years prior to this vital decision point. Frankly I am a bit aghast by those who are grieving the eminent division of the country. Honestly the notion of unity crashed, burned and died along with the late Dr. John Garang. The late Southern Sudanese SPLM leader was probably the only one with a visionary view of united Sudan. To many in power it was $$$ that dictated their decisions, both North and South. In focusing only on the last 5 years post the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement it is evident Northern powers that be failed to make unity a viable option for the South and Southerners failed to adequately engage with a government that was half heartedly (if that) supporting their cause.

For me secession is a decision that I have easily come to accept and for the most part many young Sudanese of my generation probably share the same sentiments. The decision to secede in the South is unanimous. For those in the North,some  sympathize with the Southern cause and can understand their desire for self-determination after decades of neglect. Others are tired of constantly hearing blames from the South that it was the North/ Northerners who kept them down, given that Southern Sudan has its own myriad of internal regional issues. It was easy for most Southerners to unite against one common enemy “Northern Sudanese government”. It those who are part of an older era from the North who are lamenting this event. To them their identity is somehow intertwined in Sudan that is known as the largest country in Africa, in a Sudan that represents more 500 ethnic groups and over 200 dialects.

In looking ahead, Southern Sudan faces tremendous hurdles to self governance. The region is desperately in need of development. Many in power today were part of the decades-long civil war, making the transition from war to politics can be a challenge. There are too many external influences and too many internal problems between various tribal groups that can destabilize the process of formulating a new nation. The North isn’t in the greatest shape either, standing to lose more than 80% of its oil revenues it has embarked on various austerity measures, which have sparked tensions and riots, well before the Tunisian revolution hit the airwaves. The events that unfolded in Tunis served as a stark reminder to Northern Sudanese governing powers of their precarious position and unstable foundation, that has made them fairly weary. With secession, we stand to see 2 very weak and fragile states that have a very tough uphill battle. The hope is that the oil, which is seen as a “black curse” in many African nations, could be the cure to insuring stability in the region. Both the North and South are starting to realize regardless of the outcome of this secession, they are economically intertwined and need to maintain cordial relations in order to sustain their economies.

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Journey to the motherland: part I

04 Saturday Apr 2009

Posted by nubiaNomad in Sudan

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Al Shamalia, Northern State, Nubian, Sikot, Sudan

Still reeling and trying to internalize the events from my last trip to El Gadarif and the Ethiopian border, I got the chance to go to the tiny island of Arnata, where my mother’s family is from. It was an opportunity I had been chasing for sometime but lacked the motivation as no one was keen on accompanying me. Luckily for me my aunt had a preplanned trip to the region to report on the progress of the Al Seleim-7alfa-Gustul, Egypt road that is currently in development. I jumped at the chance and packed my bags within hours of the news eagerly anticipating the journey. To give you an idea of the regions traversed during this trip, take a look at the map below:

The timing for this trip couldn’t be better as, I pleaded with various family members to take me, many gave me empty promises and my trip was never realized. In addition to all the other work trips, I didn’t have much time to take long time off and the journey is arduous so by the time you make it there, you better stay at least a month in order to adequately get the stress from the trip out of your system. Routes to far regions of northern Sudan have always been described as difficult. But I never grasped “difficult” it is one of those routes that you need to see to believe. Road conditions have drastically improved with the ongoing progress on this new route. Prior to the new highway in place, a trip to Abri (and then Arnata) would take 2 full days if no breakdowns occurred. Passengers often camped out in the middle of the desert and awoke the next morning to continue the journey. An alternative route was to travel by railroad via Abu Hamad on route to Halfa and then disembark to take a lorry south to Abri.

The first leg of the journey from Khartoum to Dongola (roughly 500km) was a breeze thanks to a relatively new paved highway that connects the 2 cities. The five hour journey led us into Dongola right around lunch time. We made a pit stop to eat, rest and accompany my aunt on some work related meetings. Up until this point the topography of the region validated my mental image of the deserts of northern Sudan. Large breaks of sandy dunes with a solemn mountain/ rock formation in the distance. For the most part it resembled regions of River Nile State, similar to what I saw along the way to my trip to Abu Hamad. (and the island of Mougrat). The paved road passed Dongola extends a few more kilometers to cover Al-Seleeim region. Beyond that point we entered new territory.

I was taken aback by the city of Dongola. To be honest I really didn’t expect it to resemble a city at all but instead had the image of a large village in mind. I was pleasantly surprised to enter a meticulously organized city with particular care from local authorities to keep the maintain the greenery that adorned its streets. My stay in Dongola was brief, so there isn’t much I can say about the people as I did not have much time for interaction.

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