President Salva Kiir was smart to avoid Equatoria regionalism
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By James Okuk
April 22, 2011 — In reaction to my article “Regional Representation
Breeds Tribalism in South Sudan” published a week ago, I got flowers
from some readers as well as crosses from others. This shows that at
least the article was fair and some-how objective in its conclusions.
For example, an Italian who is involved in humanitarian affairs work
in the Sudan wrote to me:
“I just read your article on Regional Representations on SSNA website.
It is a very well written and full of concrete thoughts.
It is with some sorrow that I look back at my country (Italy) and I
see that despite the blessings received in terms of wealth from its
unity, people do still try to base their politics on regionalism and
disunity as well.
This results in bad relations among brothers and incapacity of
successfully cooperate to build a better future for our sons.
Some separations are necessary, but unity should be the supreme value
to guide a people to achieve development and prosperity.
Regionalism indeed is a vicious circle that could end up in having
each household against each other and make them unable to build
anything.
Unity is indeed more difficult, like marriage, but way too fruitful
than the easier separation. The only way we can develop ourselves is
through dialogue and unity. As the good old greek philosopher Socrates
was saying: the dialogue that stem out of a meeting between identities
who deeply know themselves is the only way to pursue common good.
I enjoyed reading your article and I do hope that it will have an
impact on the few motivated south Sudanese politicians.”
Also a South Sudan Equatorian Intellectual wrote to me this:
“It is the failure of the tribal regime in Juba which, I am afraid,
pushed them to take such an awkward position: a position I personally
do not agree with. But if you evaluate their position in the context
of the current GOSS government, you will understand why they said what
they said. I am just glad that they said it in Nyakuron, inside Juba,
rather than somewhere in the forests of Equatoria with their AK47
leaning against tamarind trees. These governors understand democracy
more than those now playing the dangerous game of hide-and seek in the
flatlands of Jongolei and Unity State with sophisticated weapons.
Should you need to educate anyone at all in liberal democracy,
Jongolei and Unity State would be an ideal place to start from; we
will take care of Equatoria.”
In any case, I would like to thank those who took their time to read
and digest my article. Some intolerant people may think that it was a
wrong debate as it was fested with hot emotions about regional
backings in South Sudan, especially the Equatoria.
Of Course the debate did not pop up out of blue but from underlying
social stereotypic behaviors in South Sudan, which does not even
exempt our PhD holders and other intellectual together with the common
people. Revisiting the reaction and overreaction of many Equatorians
to article you can by yourself see where South Sudan came from, where
it is standing today and where it is heeding in breeding tribalism
that emanates from condoning regionalism in the process of governance,
security, rule of law and development as they were generally discussed
in the Equatoria Conference with scapegoating. Surely, with such
stereotypes we still have a long walk with sweat on the path of our
dear South Sudan independence and freedom.
It is said in behaviorist social psychology that if you want to
unearth cultural stereotypes just provoke the targets to the maximum,
and you will get amazed of the wrong informational reactions that will
flow to you from them.
However, let’s go back to the scene of the crime of regionalism
committed by the Equatorians for trying to exclude themselves from
other regions of South Sudan, and with illusion that they are better
because they have not run wild with machine guns against the
government in the South, and that they are the only strength for the
survival of South Sudan as a non-fragile state in future. Wonders
never cease in the human world!!!
First of all for some participant Equatorian intellectuals to deny
that the vice of regionalism (Kokora if you like) was never
re-enforced in that wrong Equatoria Conference shows that might be
sleepy for our realities in South Sudan. Unless, they were snoring
perfectly during the speeches of the dull Governors of Equatoria
during that wrong conference, they better ask for voice record of what
was said. If many parts of their speeches have not appeared in the
resolutions and final Communiqué of the conference, then they should
get it well that the critics of the conference (including some
enlightened Equatorians themselves) really might have shaped the final
outcome of the show.
But do these Equatoria intellectuals know why H.E. the GoSS President
Salva Kiir Mayadit declined to either open or close the proceedings of
that wrong Equatoria Conference of Regionalism though he authorized
payment of some money for its conduct? And do they really understand
why H.E. the GoSS Vice-President Dr. Riek Machar and Hon. GoSS
Presidential Advisor Telar Ring were very happy with the outcome of
that Conference?
In my analysis, H.E Kiir might have avoided the conference simply
because of its enforcement of vice of regionalism in South Sudan. If
the conference was about the good of all South Sudan why was it done
in the name of Equatoria only? Why was it not done for all regions of
South Sudan?
Also it could be that H.E. Dr. Riek and Hon Telar were happy with the
conference outcome because its demands did not touch the posts of the
President that Mr. Tealr advices and also the post of the 1st
Vice-President. The Equatorians in the Conference felt coward to aim
highest but they were courageous to lie low below the king-makers in
South Sudan. This is where I sensed that Equatoria did not liberate
itself yet despite the overwhelming vote of its residents in the last
conducted referendum for self-determination and independence together
with other regions of South Sudan.
The South Sudanese Equatorians may argue and defend themselves that
the strategy is "little by little we catch a monkey", but still I will
not get optimistic until they really catch the monkey. Do they mean
that they will hold another conference of regionalism to aim highest?
Even they were behaving in the conference as if Equatoria should
belong to SPLM political party alone, and thus it should respect the
SPLM/A bush hierarchy of power distribution. What a lie and illusion!
Dr. James Okuk is a PhD holder from University of Nairobi. He can be
reached at [email protected].
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