History of Southern Sudan

There are four primary things the RebuildSudan supporter must know about Sudan:

One: The conflict in Sudan extends far beyond the imperially imposed borders of the modern day country.

Two: Sudan is locked in an ideological battle with only a zero sum reality.

Three: The Sudanese Lost Boys are the sad story of a larger history.

Four: A critical and historic moment for this tattered country looms ever closer with the 2011 referendum.

One: The North-Eastern regions of Africa have a deep history of Islam reaching beyond the imperialization of Africa in the nineteenth-century. For centuries before the white-man and his slave ships landed on African shores, the regions of Southern Sudan had been living in fear of slavery raids. Muslims from Egypt—the portal to the Middle East—had long established a slave market of black Africans to the whole Muslim world. For the Southern Sudanese people, Islam meant slavery. This historical consciousness forming the perspective of modern Sudanese, a country peacefully united with the Northern Islamic peoples would appear as nothing but an impossibility.

Two: Under British occupation the South had been promised tribal control and governance of their peoples. But when colonialism began to crumble, Britain reneged its promise of protection by entrusting governance to the North. Even before independence in 1956, the South understood the imminent oppression of a Northern governed country and an insurgency was already underway. A country born in war. At its core, the conflict has not changed (from the previous centuries, or even from the 50+ years of Sudanese independence): the North will settle only for the complete Islamization of Sudan. The South will consent only to a secular form of government that allows for religious freedom. Either side can only achieve their goal with the complete defeat of the other side—a zero sum reality.

Three: In 1983 Sudanese president Nimeriry officially abolishes the Addis Abba Agreement (an agreement that ended the first civil war and provided a brief peace) and begins a dramatic Islamization of Sudan. And thus began the second civil war in Sudan. Very quickly after these movements in the North, the government employed genocidal raids to sweep through villages across the South. It was during these raids that a unique group emerged in the South: the Sudanese Lost Boys. These boys, orphaned by the raids in their villages, banded together to make the epic journey to safety in either Kenya or Ethiopia. Facing starvation, wild animals, disease, enemy bullets, thirst, and fatigue, these boys saw some of the worst of the 20th century’s bloodiest civil wars. In 2001, after spending years in various refugee camps, 3800 Lost Boys were resettled in the United States, primarily to further their education. Since then many of these extraordinary men have passionately pursued helping their home become whole again. Peace rests at the heart of Michael Kuany’s vision for Sudan.

Four: In January of 2011 a referendum for Southern independence will be voted on by the Sudanese people. This referendum was part of the 2005 peace agreement. It will be held in Abyei (defined by the Permanent Court of Arbitration), in the central north part of Southern Sudan. But so far the logistics of making the referendum possible have been thwarted, primarily because of the census—a prerequisite for the referendum—which has been delayed three times since 2008 for a multitude of complex reasons. In 2009 it was decided that a valid referendum required 60% voter turnout, with a majority required for Southern independence. Without 60% voter turnout the voting will be postponed sixty days and then re-conducted. Much hangs in the balance.

Quick Facts:

  1. Independence (from UK and Egypt): January 1, 1956
  2. Of its fifty-four years of existence, Sudan has experienced only 14 years of relative peace; modern-day Sudan was literally born into war.
  3. There have been two prolonged civil wars in Sudan, which comprise most of its history.
  4. Sudan is one-quarter the size of the United States.
  5. Population: 34.5 million
  6. Currant constitution: established in 1998
  7. Current leader: President Lt. General Umar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir
  8. Current political groups: National Islamic Front (NIF)—North; and Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA)—South.
  9. Executive control over the judiciary and the conduct of the courts has seriously compromised the rule of law in Sudan.
  10. Two-million were killed in the second civil war (1983-2005)
  11. Industries: cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling, shoes, petroleum refining.
  12. In 2011 a referendum for Southern independence will determine the future of the country, as a united country, or separate entities.