A History of South Sudan

Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information A HISTORY OF SOUTH SUDAN South Sudan is the world’s youngest independent country. Established in 2011 after two wars, South Sudan has since reverted to a state of devastating civil strife. This book is the first general history of the new country, from the arrival of Turco-Egyptian explorers in the upper Nile, the turbulence of the Mahdist revolutionary period, the chaos of the “Scramble for Africa,” during which the South was prey to European and African adventurers and empire builders, to the Anglo-Egyptian colonial era. Special attention is paid to the period since Sudanese independence in 1956, when Southern disaffection grew into outright war, from the 1960s to 1972 and from 1983 until the Comprehensive Peace of 2005, and to the transition to South Sudan’s independence. The book concludes with coverage of events since then, which, since December 2013, have assumed the character of civil war, and with insights into what the future might hold. o/ y st e i n h . ro l a n d se n is a senior researcher at the Peace Research Institute in Oslo. He has written extensively on the history and current affairs of the two Sudans, as well as on the eastern African region. m. w . dal y has held academic positions in the USA, the UK, and the Middle East. He is the author or coauthor of many works on Sudan, including (with P. M. Holt) A History of the Sudan, 2011, now in its sixth edition; Darfur’s Sorrow (Cambridge, 2010), now in its second edition; and Imperial Sudan (Cambridge, 1991). © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information A HISTORY OF SOUTH SUDAN From Slavery to Independence ØYSTEIN H. ROLANDSEN M. W. DALY © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information University Printing House, Cambridge cb2 8bs, United Kingdom Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence. www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org © Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly 2016 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2016 Printed in the United States of America by Sheridan Books, Inc. A catalog record for this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication data Rolandsen, Øystein H., author. A history of South Sudan from slavery to independence / Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 978-0-521-11631-2 1. South Sudan – Politics and government. 2. South Sudan – History. 3. Sudan – Politics and government – 1985– I. Daly, M. W., author. II. Title. dt159.94.r65 2016 962.9–dc23 2015036420 isbn 978-0-521-11631-2 Hardback isbn 978-0-521-13325-8 Paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Contents Preface Chronology List of abbreviations and Arabic terms Map page vii ix xvi xviii 1 Introduction: the land and peoples of the upper Nile 1 2 Ivory and slaves: the nineteenth century 10 3 The second Turkiyya, 1898–1953 32 4 The curse of colonial continuity, 1953–1963 65 5 The first civil war, 1963–1972 79 6 Regional government: from one civil war to another, 1972–1983 93 7 Eclipsed by war, 1983–1991 105 8 Factional politics, 1991–2001 120 9 Making unity impossible, 2002–2011 133 10 Independent South Sudan 151 Bibliographical essay Index 160 168 v © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Preface A History of South Sudan addresses several audiences and a wide variety of issues. We have chosen a conventional chronological approach, but a number of themes recur. Above all, we aim to illuminate two questions in the history of this new country: How did South Sudan become a political and administrative entity? And why did it separate from Sudan? Answering these questions requires a new look at standard versions, for the historiography of South Sudan reflects entrenched and often diametrically opposed political views. Some nationalists’ mission to create a South Sudanese national identity has led to the invention of a “natural” and timeless political and cultural unit. But we know remarkably little about what most people even today think it means to be South Sudanese. Although this book is not a “history of an idea,” we examine some processes and events that contributed to shaping one. When South Sudanese voted, in January 2011, the proffered alternative to separation from Sudan was confederation and considerable autonomy: South Sudan would be recognized as a political and administrative unit within Sudan. Yet the vote went overwhelmingly for independence. How deep, and with what particular ramifications, was the sentiment for separation? After all, the history of South Sudan over the past two centuries is of steadily increasing interaction between its peoples and the outside world. And since the mid-twentieth century, South Sudanese have migrated (or fled) in millions to Sudan, to neighboring countries, and beyond. Today, there are South Sudanese communities in most corners of the world. Some have impacted the places to which they have moved; many have returned to South Sudan with new allies and ideas. Thus, patterns of interaction have varied considerably over time and from place to place. So also have South Sudanese responses, their motives, and the opportunities for exchange and transformation that interaction opened up. This book aims to present at least broad outlines of how these opportunities came about and to what uses South Sudanese put them in pursuit of their own goals. vii © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information viii Preface The term “South Sudan” has also become associated with war and human suffering. As yet another large-scale conflict unfolds, it is important to emphasize that this is not senseless violence or the result of incompetent politicians’ miscalculations, but the outcome of historical processes restricted and shaped by external and institutional conditions. The history of South Sudan is, in part, not only a product of violence, systems of oppression, and patterns of resistance but also a story of resilience and of the harnessing and mastering of the geographical, climatic, economic, and social contexts in which the people of this new country have found themselves. In a brief and sweeping book like this, abbreviation and omissions are inevitable. Our goal is to present a fair and balanced account of the interplay between the broader structural forces of history and the chief agents of politics and warfare, that is, governments, political parties, armed groups, community leaders, and businessmen, which drove South Sudan toward independence. By this, we hope to correct (and indeed to analyze) the tendency in foreign source materials to depict outsiders as agents of change (however defined or characterized) and South Sudanese as passive (or irrational, or subversive) receptors. Beyond what we can learn from oral tradition and archeology, South Sudan’s precolonial history remains obscure. In consequence, the book is divided into two main eras: that of colonialization and colonialism, and the period from 1956 to 2011 when South Sudan was part of the independent Sudan. The years since South Sudan’s independence are briefly discussed in Chapter 10. The bibliographical essay at the end gives a rudimentary introduction to the historiography of South Sudan and lists references to pioneering works which offer in-depth analysis and information concerning aspects of this country’s history. But much still remains to be done, and if this book can inspire or provoke such endeavors we will consider our mission accomplished. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Chronology 1839 1881–98 1899 1930 January 1930 1946 June 1947 July 1947 February 1953 November 1953 October 1954 October 1954 July 1955 August 18, 1955 First Egyptian expedition to the upper Nile. Mahdist revolution ends Turco-Egyptian rule in northern Sudan (1885) and overwhelms remaining outposts in south. Establishment of Anglo-Egyptian Condominium. End of “Nuer settlement” and armed South Sudanese resistance. “Southern Policy” adumbrated. “Southern Policy” officially revoked. First Juba Conference: South Sudanese to send representatives to National Legislative Assembly. Striking workers in Juba demand pay equal to Northerners’. Anglo-Egyptian Agreement stipulates end of colonial rule within three years. First national election. “Sudanization” outcome announced; Southerners win six posts of district commissioner and assistant district commissioner. Second Juba conference: chiefs, civil servants, and politicians demand federalism. Nzara protest violently suppressed. Torit Mutiny sparks weeks-long “Southern Disturbances”; subsequently put down by SDF. ix © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information x January 1956 1957 February 1958 November 1958 February 1960 Early 1962 October 1962 November 1962 July/August 1963 September 1963 January 1964 February 1964 November 1964 March 1965 April 1965 July 1965 May 1969 February 1972 October 1973 1974–7 Chronology Republic of Sudan established. Nationalization of missionary schools. Second national election. Coup overthrows Sudanese government, beginning six years of military rule. Southern schools closed after student protests; grievances include replacement of Sunday with Friday as day of rest. Sudan African Closed Districts National Union established in exile. Southern students strike; thousands flee to neighboring countries. “Regulations for Missionary Societies” restrict foreign missionaries; expulsions ensue. Anya-Nya founded in Kampala. Attacks in the Upper Nile and Equatoria spark civil war. Anya-Nya attack Wau; war engulfs southern provinces. All foreign missionaries expelled. Military regime falls; Southerners join Transitional Government; Southern Front emerges in Khartoum. Round Table Conference on South held in Khartoum. National elections return traditional parties to power. Government soldiers carry out massacres in Juba and Wau. Coup overthrows government; Col. Jaafar Nimeiri emerges as leader, rules until 1985. Signing of Addis Ababa peace accord. First election to Southern Regional Assembly; Abel Alier becomes president of HEC. Former Anya-Nya soldiers mutiny in Juba (1974, February 1977), Akobo (1975), and Wau (1976). © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Chronology December 1977–February 1978 1979 1980 February 1980 June 1980 November 1980 October 1981 April 1982 May 16, 1983 June 1983 July 1983 September 1983 April 1985 March 1986 April 1986 June 30, 1989 May-June 1991 xi Second election to Regional Assembly; Joseph Lagu becomes HEC president. First significant discoveries of oil announced. “Anya-Nya 2” commences hit-and-run attacks in the Upper Nile. Nimeiri dissolves Regional Assembly. Third election to Regional Assembly; Abel Alier returns as HEC president. Khartoum redraws provincial boundaries; oil fields removed from Southern region. President Nimeiri dissolves Regional Assembly, appoints Gismalla Abdalla Rassas to govern South pending elections. Fourth election to Regional Assembly; Joseph Tembura becomes HEC president. Army moves to suppress mutiny at Bor; 105th Battalion escapes to Ethiopia, followed by 104th battalion from Akobo. Khartoum abolishes Regional Assembly, divides South into three “regions.” Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/ Army founded in Ethiopia. Nimeiri regime promulgates Sharia law for Sudan, including the South. Army ousts Nimeiri after mass demonstrations; Transitional Military Council takes power. SPLM/A and National Alliance for National Salvation signs the Koka Dam Declaration. National elections return civilian government in Khartoum. Coup overthrows government; Revolutionary Command Council established, with strong Islamist influence, under General Omar Hassan al-Bashir. SPLM/A evacuates Ethiopia after fall of Derg regime. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information xii August 28, 1991 January 1992 May 1992 September 1993 July 1994 April 2–13, 1994 June 1995 September 1995 December 1996 April 1997 January 1998 March 1999 July 1999 August 1999 Chronology Nasir Declaration by Riek Machar, Lam Akol, and Gordon Kong splits SPLM/A; factional fighting ensues. Khartoum regime and Nasir faction sign Frankfurt Agreement conceding referendum on special status for South. Abuja peace talks between Sudanese government and SPLM/A factions; latter demand self-determination for South. Beginning of IGAD attempt to mediate between Sudanese government and SPLM/A. Joint Declaration of Principles, rejected by Sudanese government, reaffirms SPLM/A commitment to Southern selfdetermination and secularism. First SPLM/A National Convention at Chukudum. NDA endorses Southern self-determination and concessions over border regions. Sudanese government implicated in attempted assassination of Egyptian President Mubarak. Chinese and Indonesian state oil companies form consortium with Sudan. In Khartoum Peace Agreement with Southern militias, Sudanese government accepts referendum over South Sudan’s future status. High point of SPLM/A counter-offensive with capture of Wau; severe famine in Bahr al-Ghazal. Wunlit peace agreement signals start of grassroots reconciliations of warring factions in South. NDA and Sudanese government endorse Joint Egyptian–Libyan initiative rejecting self-determination for South. Export of Sudanese oil commences. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Chronology November 1999 January 2000 September 6, 2001 January 2002 March 2002 July 20, 2002 October 2002 April 2003 July 2003 September 2003 January 2004 May 2004 January 9, 2005 July 30, 2005 January 2006 October 2007 xiii In the USA, Sudan Peace Act allows direct assistance to SPLM/A. President Bashir wins power struggle with Islamists, whose leader Hassan al-Turabi establishes Popular Congress Party. John Danforth appointed US special envoy for Sudan. Riek Machar reunites with SPLM/A. Sudan and Uganda sign appeasement agreement; Ugandan forces invited to combat Lord’s Resistance Army in Sudan. In Machakos Protocol, SPLM/A concedes Sharia law in northern Sudan; South to exercise self-determination after six-and-a-half years. Government and SPLM/A reach agreement on cessation of hostilities. Low-intensity conflict in Darfur escalates into civil war. IGAD peace talks break down. Vice-President Ali Osman Taha and SPLM/A Chairman John Garang start direct talks on security arrangements and reach an agreement. Taha and Garang reach agreement over wealth-sharing. Agreement reached on power-sharing and contested areas of Abyei, Nuba Mountains, and the Blue Nile. Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in Nairobi. John Garang dies in helicopter crash. In August, Salva Kiir becomes vice-president of Sudan and SPLM/A chairman. Juba Declaration signed; militias of Paulino Matip and other commanders to be absorbed into SPLA. SPLM withdraws in protest from Government of National Unity; rejoins in December. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information xiv May 2008 March 2009 December 2009 April 2010 July 2010 January 9–15, 2011 May 2011 June 2011 July 9, 2011 September 2011 January 2012 March–April 2012 September 2012 July 2013 Chronology Factional disputes disrupt SPLM’s second National Convention; fighting erupts at Abyei. International Criminal Court issues arrest warrant for President Bashir over crimes against humanity in Darfur. After demonstration and arrests of leading SPLM members, Referendum Law passed by National Parliament in Khartoum. Bashir wins presidential election; Salva Kiir elected president of Southern Sudan. Some state elections violently contested. Commencement of negotiations between NCP and SPLM over post-referendum arrangements under auspices of African Union High Level Panel. Southern referendum over independence or regional autonomy results in almost 99% vote for secession. Sudanese government forces occupy Abyei following refusal to hold Abyei referendum. New rebellion in South Kordofan/Nuba Mountains following contested gubernatorial elections. Republic of South Sudan declared. Reignited civil war in the Blue Nile. South Sudan stops oil production after Sudan confiscates an oil shipment. Skirmishes between Sudan and South Sudan in the border states of South Kordofan and Unity. Agreement between Sudan and South Sudan on bilateral relations and payment for South Sudan’s use of oil pipeline and port facilities. President Salva Kiir dismisses cabinet and Vice-President Riek Machar. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Chronology December 2013 January 2014 xv SPLM leadership crisis quickly escalates into civil war. SPLM factions reach Cessation of Hostilities agreement, which is subsequently ignored. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Abbreviations and Arabic terms ANC AU CAR CMS CPA DC DUP/NUP E£ EPLF hakuma HEC IGAD(D) Jallaba/jallabiya JIU KAR Khalwa NCP NDA NGO NIF NLC OAU OLS RAF SACDNU SAF African National Congress African Union Central African Republic Church Missionary Society Comprehensive Peace Agreement District Commissioner Democratic/National Unionist Party Egyptian Pounds Eritrean People’s Liberation Front Ar.: government High Executive Council Intergovernmental Authority on [Drought and] Development (in 1996, “Drought” was eliminated from its name, hence IGAD) Ar.: peddlers/gown worn by northern Sudanese Joint Integrated Units King’s African Rifles Ar.: rudimentary village school National Congress Party National Democratic Alliance Nongovernmental organization National Islamic Front National Liberation Council Organization of African Unity Operation Lifeline Sudan Royal Air Force Southern African Closed Districts National Union (1962–3) Sudan Armed Forces xvi © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information List of abbreviations and Arabic terms SANU SDF SOA SPLA SPLM SPLM/A Nasir SSLM sudd TPLF UNMIS/SS zariba xvii Sudan African National Union (1963–) Sudan Defence Force Sudan Open Archive Sudan People’s Liberation Army Sudan People’s Liberation Movement SPLM/A faction during the 1990s South Sudan Liberation Movement (c. 1970–2) Ar.: “barrier”: vast flooded area in South Sudan Tigray People’s Liberation Front UN Mission in Sudan (from July 2011: UN Mission in South Sudan) Ar.: “enclosure,” palisaded camp erected by slave traders in South Sudan © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information Maps © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Map of South Sudan, United Nations, Map No. 4450 Rev.1, October 2011 Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11631-2 - A History of South Sudan: From Slavery to Independence Øystein H. Rolandsen and M. W. Daly Frontmatter More information © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org