By Pal Chol Nyan*
"History is an event. It cannot be distorted whatsoever."
History
is an event. It cannot be distorted whatsoever. The first bullet for the war to
liberate the people of South Sudan from slavery and oppression was shot at
Torit Mutiny on the 18th of August 1955. This insurrection was
staged under the leadership of Gen Emilio Tafeng, Gbattala and Fr. Saturlino
Ohure among others. This led to a relative peace with the 1972 Addis Ababa
peace accord which had granted autonomy to Southerners but with landmark
decisions still being taken in Khartoum. Many Southerners then were dissatisfied
with the agreement and staged another war for total liberation of South Sudan
because they feel that it did not actually and basically addressed the fundamental
root causes of Southerners’ grievances against the Arabs in the North of the
country. The Northern Sudanese wanted to islamise the South, introduced and
applied Sharia Laws as a source of legislation.
The rebellion of 1975 was launched by Lt Vincent
Kuany Latjor and Sergeant Bol Kur, a Chollo. They joined ranks with Gordon
Koang Chol, the Anya-nya-2 C-in-C and were stationed at Bilpam. When the Anya-nya-2
and the SPLM/A disagreed on the objectives of the war coupled with the power
struggle or leadership crisis of 1983-4, the two camps clashed resulting in the
dislodging of the Anya-nya-2 and capturing of Bilpam with the support of the
Ethiopian troops under Mengistu Haile Mariam by the SPLM/A. Bilpam then became
the main headquarters of the SPLM/A. In
1982, the Veteran Lou Nuer Politician Gatjiek Wie, rebelled and walked all the
way to Ethiopia and settled at Itang. In his company were some notable Southern
Sudanese figures in the persons of Obieny Deng, a Chollo, Gatluak Doamai, Malow
Kulang, Par Golong, Dak Riek and Tut Gatpan to mention but a few. They had
about 9000 recruits mostly drawn from Lou Nuer and were undergoing military
training at Thowkoat with an objective of fighting for an independent South
Sudan. Aballa Chuol Deng and Lokurnyang Lado, a Murle (who’d later be summarily
executed by the SPLA using the jungle laws), joined Gatjiek in 1983. He was warmly
received by Gatjiek Wie. He was accommodated at Tielul 4, and Gatjiek gave him
2 AK 47 rifles with two soldiers to guard him. Pagan Amum, Nyachigak Ngachiluk,
Atali Okoth and Oyai Deng Ajak were stationed at Paket, an Anuak territory.
Around 1984-5, they joined the SPLA, attacked Boma where they reportedly took
hostages of some international mining workers and later released with heavy
ransom.
On May
the 16th 1983, the Bor mutiny was staged by the SAF soldiers over
unpaid salaries. It turned into an armed insurgency or rebellion. The first
bullet was fired by Sergeant Yusif Kiir Tang, a Moslem Nuer from Nasir. He was
later ruthlessly, without a remorse, murdered by the SPLA so that he
disappeared from the screen of the political history of liberation. Major
Kerubino Kuanyin Bol, then a SAF officer, by virtue of his seniority, took over
the command of the rebellious troops and as the fight ensued, he was wounded.
On 18, May 1983, Capt. David Riek Machuoc, a Nuer from Akobo revolted in Pibor
and in June Major William Nyuon Bany Machar, a Nuer from Ayod, revolted after a
fierce fight with SAF. Dr John Garang, who had expressed reservations on the
Addis Ababa Accord, took advantage of these rebellions. In July 1983, Col. Dr
John Garang, Chigai Atem, Gany Juc and Lt col. Francis Ngor left and joined the camp of Gatjiek and his lieutenants. The
veteran politician Gatjiek Wei hospitably accommodated his brother Dr John
Garang at Itang with his escorts which included Maker Deng Malow, Garang Akok
and Gany Juc. They were given two AK47
rifles for protection. They later assembled at Marol military post commanded by
Gik Lew of Anya-any-2. Samuel Gai and Akuot Atem, who were also with Salva at
Kur Mayom, reported to Marol village where they all proceeded to Adura. They
were then picked up by a helicopter from Adura to Itang. There and then, Thowath
Pal, the Security chief of the DERG regime picked them up to Addis Ababa to
meet Mengistu Hailemariam where they linked up with the veteran politician
Joseph Oduhu who went ahead of them.
Here,
after all the courtesies, the issue of the leadership was raised and there was
a deadlock on who will lead the Movement. Samuel Gai wanted Akuot Atem to be
the leader but with strong resistance from Dr. Garang’s camp covertly supported
by Mengistu. Dr. John Garang did not buy that idea. There were sharp
differences and they then came back to Itang and proceeded to Adura. The camp
headed by Akuot Atem and Samuel Gai clashed with Garang’s camp where Samuel Gai
met his fate in 1984 at Thiajak in the hand of the champions of the unity of
Sudan. His dead body was repeatedly and inhumanely subjected to beatings by one
of the most senior members of the SPLM/A. The people later perished in the same
way. It later transpired that many of these veterans, who did not or refused to
follow the teachings of Dr. John, died under mysterious circumstances. It was
being said that Garang hijacked the movement with the help of Mengistu, installed
himself at the helm of power as the Head. He named the members of his movement
as follows:
1.
Dr John Garang - Chairman and C-in-C
2.
Kerubino Kuanyin- Deputy Chairman and
C-in-C
3.
William Nyuon - he Chief of staff
4.
Salva Kiir as Deputy Chief of staff for
operation and security
5.
Arok Thon Arok as the deputy Chief of
staff for administration and logistics.
Justice
Majier, later executed mysteriously, became the legal affairs secretary and
Joseph Oduhu for political affairs. The first five later became known as
permanent members of the SPLM/A Political Military High Command. In the
following years, he [Garang] also appointed 12 officers as Alternate Members of
the Political Military High Command as follows:
1.
Cdr John Kulang Puot,
2.
Cdr Dr Riek Machar,
3.
Cdr Dr Lam Akol,
4.
Cdr James Wani
5.
Cdr Kuol Manyang
6.
Cdr Nyachigak Nyachiluk
7.
Cdr Daniel Awet
8.
Cdr Lual Diing
9.
Cdr Yusif Kuwa
10. Cdr
Martin Manyiel Ayuel,
11. Cdr
Galerio Modi
12. Cdr
Gordon Koang Chol.
The
SPLM/A Manisfesto on penal code and disciplinary laws was drafted and enacted. The
war started in earnest. Many South Sudanese from all walks of life voluntarily
joined the movement en masse. Concisely, the first two battalions, 104 and 105,
increased with elements from Gatjiek’s Nuer recruits, under the command of
Major William Nyuon, shot the first bullet of armed struggle against the Arab garrison
at Malual Gahoth in 1983-84. Major Kerubino Kuanyin commanded Jamus battalion
which was mostly students and civil servants. With the death of Samuel Gai, the
Anya-nya-2 became a bitter foe of the SPLM/A which they wrongly considered to
be Dinka’s. Their differences turned into the bloodiest war ever until the
merger of 1988 brokered and mediated by James Hoth Mai in 1988.
It is important to note that that the Bahr el
Ghazal group also known as Anya-nya 2, which was commanded by Kawac Makuei, Malong
Awan, Lual Diing Wol among others, joined the movement. The war of liberation
was prosecuted and reached its peak with many towns falling in the hands of the
SPLM/A. Later the question of arbitrary arrests and detention, extrajudicial
killings, unexplained disappearances of politicians, lack of democracy, human
rights abuses, dictatorship, and lack of functional structures, became a point
of discontent among senior members of the movement. In 1991, three Alternate members
of the SPLM/A political military High Command decided to raise these issues
with the Chairman of the Movement in a bid to democratize the movement and release
the political detainees (this referred to those detained because they differed
with Dr. John Garang). This did not augur well with him and he called for an
emergency meeting of the High Command in Kapoet. It was said to be the first of
its kind. In his book, the African Issues, the Historian Douglas H Johnson said,
Garang, who had limited democratic credentials, was using disorder to retain
himself in power. The abrupt call for this meeting was seen as a trap to arrest
those who took issue with Garang especially the three members. In a move to
deter and foil Garang’s clandestine plan, Dr Riek Machar, Dr Lam and Cdr.
Gordon Koang announced a coup to depose Garang but failed to jettison him out
of the movement. There was just a split of the Movement into factional entities.
It became known as the Nasir Declaration headed
by Dr. Riek Machar and Torit faction, SPLM/A Mainstream headed by Dr. John
Garang. The Nasir declaration came as a result of ideological differences over
how the movement was run in an autocratic and dictatorial manner by one man in
the words of Dr. Lam Akol, the author of the ‘Nasir Coup’ position paper “Why
Garang Must No Now.”
The
Nasir faction gained massive support amongst almost all the commanders and
intellectuals of the movement from all tribes and communities of South Sudan
because there was now a laid out clear objectives of the war. This split, in
all honesty, had disastrous impact on the government and those towns captured
were retaken by the Government of Sudan. However, to give the person his due, the
Nasir faction in 1992 revived the issue of the self-determination, abandoned
since 1963, for the people of South Sudan in a draft agreement negotiated and
signed in Frankfurt, Germany by Dr. Lam and Dr. Ali Al Haj Mohammed. The Torit
faction still pursued the course of fighting for a united, secular and
democratic Sudan and in the words of Dr. John Garnag,” the Nasir split was the
stab in the back when the Movement was scoring major victories against the
chief enemy. Having brought into the political discourse, the right of
self-determination for the people of South Sudan, the war turned into
secessionists (Nasir) against unionists (Torit). In Abuja one and two, self-determination
was, faute de mieux, unanimously adopted
by both factions of the splintered SPLM/A and the Government of Sudan.
Having
shed light on the brief history of the wars of liberation, the intention is to consciously
set the record straight. Some disgruntled and tribal-minded politicians, who
may be suffering from undiagnosed complexes, took it upon themselves to
historically misinform the South Sudanese and misrepresent the facts that there
is only one tribe which has fought for and brought the liberation of this
country. This is quite misleading and it is sheer ignorance. All the people of
South Sudan have participated and offered souls or sacrifices for us to be
where we are today. It is neither Nuer nor Dinka who fought the wars as this
history speaks volumes. When people switch sides, it is due always to the lack
of political directions which others do not want to have it corrected. Now, the
people of South Sudan will know where the credit belongs in reference to the
history and in the context of South Sudan politics.
***
*Pal Chol Nyan is an opinion writer and columnist for Stance English Daily, an independent newspaper which advocates for peace and reconciliation.
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DISCLAIMER:
Editorial Note: The opinions expressed in this article are solely of the author. "The Philosophical Refugee" [www.kuirthiy.com] cannot attest to the veracity of the historical facts cited by the author. For questions, contact the author at palcholnyan@yahoo.com
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