Between 2018 and 2022, Sudan underwent one of the 21st century's most dynamic yet underrecognized revolutionary transformations. This revolution was thwarted by a counter-revolutionary military coup in 2020, leading to a brutal civil war between two factions of the military junta starting in the spring of 2023. The conflict, ongoing to this day, has created the world's largest refugee crisis.
Abyei, a territory bearing the brunt of this counter-revolution, spans 4,072 square miles along the border between South Sudan and Sudan. The 2004 Protocol on the Resolution of the Abyei Conflict, part of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement ending the Second Sudanese Civil War, accorded Abyei “special administrative status.” Home to the Ngok Dinka tribes, an “African” identified population, Abyei is claimed by both South Sudan and Sudan, with ultimate sovereignty remaining unresolved.
The Missiriya, a large community of semi-nomadic pastoralists, occupy the southern fringes of the Arab world directly to the north of Abyei in present-day Sudan. They are a mixture of African and Arab heritage, a product of the military slavery of the Anglo-Egyptian colonial regime, which assimilated African blood into an Arab slave industry. Unlike slavery in America, where the offspring of a European slave master and African enslaved woman were treated as chattel, such offspring among the Arabs were born free, recognized as sons of their fathers in the case of boys, and often placed in military capacities. As members of Arab militias, they often became the slavers. Over time, an expansive community of powerful people, the Missiriya, with largely African blood, Islamic religion, and an Arab-leaning self-identification, was fashioned. As said by one of their scholars, a culture of "abhorring their African foremothers and adoring their Arab forefathers" developed because the Arab identity still ruled Sudan.
Chevron discovered oil in the Abyei region in the 1970s. The government in Khartoum then started instrumentalizing the local conflict between the Ngok Dinka, who had resisted the slavers and their policies of Islamization and Arabization for over a thousand years, and the Missiriya, by arming the Missiriya and supporting them to depopulate the area of Abyei. Eventually, due to sanctions and conflict, Chevron pulled out, and China seized control of Abyei's oil in partnership with the Sudanese government.
We will explore the complexities of this struggle in detail in two discussions with Daniel Deng.
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Daniel Deng was born in 1975 in Washington, D.C., to an American mother and a Sudanese father from the Ngok Dinka community. While Daniel grew up in the United States, his adolescence was enriched by his deep ties to Sudan, rooted in his lineage as the grandson of the legendary paramount chief, Deng Majok. His father, Francis Deng, immortalized this legacy in the book, The Man Called Deng Majok: A Biography of Polygamy and Power.
Upon graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1997, Daniel embarked on a career in international development. For over 25 years, he has lived and worked across Africa, from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Zimbabwe, South Africa, Uganda, South Sudan, and Kenya, where he currently resides. His diverse experiences span government, the private sector, UN agencies, and non-governmental organizations, reflecting a lifelong commitment to social and economic justice for African people.
The sons and daughters of Chief Deng Majok played a significant role in the founding of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) and the eventual establishment of the independent country of South Sudan. This close connection has deeply influenced Daniel's mission and perspective. Both his American upbringing and his Sudanese heritage make him a compelling advocate for African-centered solutions to global challenges.
Join us for a two-part interview series with Daniel Deng as we delve into the complexities of Abyei's struggle for self-determination, peace, and regional development. Through Daniel's insightful lens, discover the intricate history, ongoing conflicts, and resilient spirit of the people of Abyei.
15 сен 2024
