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Envisioning The First Foundation Stone Of The New Republic Of Southe

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  • Envisioning The First Foundation Stone Of The New Republic Of Southe

    ENVISIONING THE FIRST FOUNDATION STONE OF THE NEW REPUBLIC OF SOUTHERN SUDAN
    Written by Joseph Deng Garang, The New Sudan Vision (NSV),

    New Sudan Vision
    www.newsudanvision.com
    Feb 22 2011

    (OMAHA, Nebraska) - IT IS without a doubt the people of Southern Sudan
    will go through periods of healing after half a century of civil wars,
    the most decimating being the second war, which cost over 2 million
    lives. The journey to consolidate and translate the triumph of peace
    has just begun. And although the region is on a short wait to formally
    declare independence on July 9, 2011, the people have already witnessed
    a historic moment of the birth of Africa's newest nation.

    It is a moment that became magnified when the final results of the
    January 9-15 referendum were announced and made permanent on Monday,
    February 7, 2011. And, never in the shortest course of my human
    journey, have I seen so many people jolt into prestige as a result of
    the recent participation at the ballot box. I did not know the kind
    of respect that a single vote could command until I cast it last month.

    But in order not to be blindsided by the giddiness of the moment,
    I would like to turn a laser focus on the work that lies ahead of us
    by looking at the following recurring themes as we begin to lay that
    first foundation stone of the new republic.

    A watershed moment for Africa and the world

    Evidently, the world is waiting for July and for sovereign borders to
    be drawn before the new republic joins the community of nations. But
    the referendum vote has already bestowed international recognition
    upon South Sudan. The successful outcome of a January plebiscite is
    the subject of secession overtures by scholars across much of Africa.

    And of course it bears mentioning that many people are scrambling for
    clues as to what Africa and the world can teach the new republic of
    Southern and vice versa

    When asked about the impact of the French Revolution of 1789, former
    Chinese premier Zhou Enlai famously said: "It is too early to say."

    This was in 1972, 183 years after the said revolution took place. But
    time has a different way of capturing moments of eloquence
    for different generations. In 2005, the man who brought us the
    Comprehensive Peace Agreement best articulated that Sudan was not
    going to be the same. Six years later, the sweeping wave of human
    dignity echoed by the January 9 the self-determination vote is indeed
    one for the rivers of history.

    For some time to come, the world will learn many great things about
    the liberation movement that waged a relentless revolution in Sudan.

    For now, the 2005 peace blue print on power sharing and the fact
    that the war went on for over 50 years really stands out and the
    liberation struggle waged by the marginalized people of Sudan will
    be the talk and study of the century by realists and idealists, both
    in the global north and global south. The Sudan Peoples' Liberation
    Movement will not only be credited by history for its articulation of
    the liberation for the marginalized masses but also for being one of
    few if not the only guerrilla movement in the course of human history
    that allowed back into its rank leaders and members who turned on
    their own civilians after they had joined the enemy.

    As student of geopolitics of the Central Eurasia, I was also
    pleased to see the sacrosanct self-determination vote in Southern
    Sudan being cited as precedent by the top leadership in Armenia
    and Nagorno-Karabakh republic. They were the first to congratulate
    Southern Sudan when the preliminary results were announced in January
    and they are planning to bring up the case of self-determination for
    Nagorno-Karabakh, which was botched back in 1991 when it failed to
    win the recognition of the international community. The region had
    been a source of dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

    As I wrote in my last column, a new chapter is unfolding for us in
    Southern Sudan but it is not chapter 11. It is a chapter where we
    will have clashes of priorities as we try to build and provide for
    everyone. But it is one full of belief that children and women will
    have to come first. We will face many competing priorities when it
    comes to our approach to development. But I also get the sense that
    the one thing that our leadership will have in large supply is advice.

    They are poised to receive a torrent of free advice from Southerners
    and foreigners on how to build the new nation.

    By way of extrapolation, much has been said about the key lessons
    Southern Sudan must learn from African countries that have been
    plagued by pitfalls since independence. The list of things to avoid
    has ranged from anemic institutions to corruption to lack of solid
    policy projects on social, economic and political development. But
    there is one pressing observation I can also add: free expression,
    which is the least understood aspect of liberation in Africa. More
    on the need for free expression next.

    For those Southern Sudanese who love reading and are interested
    in reading up about political, and socio-economic development or
    philosophies of any given nation, I highly recommend three books
    for you: The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith; Democracy in America
    by Alexis de Tocqueville; and the most recent and my favorite book
    Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle co-authored
    by Dan Senor and Saul Singer. Building partnerships and a network of
    global solidarity will be critical at every turn for us in Southern
    Sudan. It will dictate how the new nation begins to build an educated
    workforce that will in turn create a 21st- century economy.

    Strategic communications as an effective tool of governance

    Free expression has struck me as the least understood aspect of
    liberation.Take for example the many countries in Africa, where
    majority of citizens cannot speak freely either for fear of reprisal
    or because they are not well informed on how to exercise. Too often
    those who speak out vocally either risk their own lives or get
    exiled for life. What is more, the military sometimes meddles in the
    politics of several states in Africa. And if history is any guide,
    the lesson we can quickly take away is that in nations where citizens
    are never fully vested or not involved at the outset, people have
    become disillusioned when expectations are not managed well.

    As ethnically diverse as Southern Sudan is, it is true we have not
    learned how to openly and honestly describe ourselves as a people
    given how busy we were dealing with the north. Let's face it, this
    is the one area that remains worrisome and we will have to think hard.

    The only thing that kept us united during the war was the rallying
    cry of marginalization. Now that we are free, we have the daunting
    task of defining who we are. It is true much of the post-referendum
    challenge will fall to our leadership who will have to shoulder the
    heavy duty of strategic communications---making sure the message,
    all channels of communicating and the audience are in line.

    In Southern Sudan, there are xenophobic talks that relate to different
    groups. And Southern Sudan, sincerely, of all places, given its epic
    struggle for freedom, where people are still hungry for change, must
    not be a place where people are advised to talk cautiously because
    of fear. So for us who are about to build a new nation, this must
    give us pause and ask ourselves the question: what role will free
    expression play in rebuilding Southern Sudan?

    After decades in which we were virtually allowed no role to play in
    determining the course or direction of the country, times during which
    our voices were categorically marginalized in the decision-making
    process, I believe the best and precious gift this new independence
    must give every Southerner is the ability, the right and responsibility
    to speak his or her mind freely, because doing otherwise will serve
    to bring back the vestiges of a system we have fought to replace.

    The citizens must be allowed to speak without fear provided what
    they speak is reasonable and devoid of treasonous acts. Of course no
    society or nation can let the right to speak go astray into the realm
    of speaking without any basis in facts, which is why it is going to
    demand each person's responsibility to stay well informed. Speaking
    freely does not mean dealing in wholesale rumor mongering. Ditto
    for irrelevant schools of thought supported by outdated world views
    or prophecies.

    Maybe if we are not too fearful, the conversation can be made easy
    given the way information technology has revolutionized the way
    societies do things. Our new government can partner with all sorts
    of media on matters of positive cultural programming as well as
    disseminating key policy information to our society.

    Free expression can accomplish for us a few things. For example, we
    can learn to hold ourselves accountable and demand that of our leaders
    regardless of whether or not we are related, because protecting members
    of one's tribe either through condoning of their scandals or by failing
    to correct or point out their leadership weaknesses just because of the
    relationship or loyalty is tantamount to promoting gross incompetency.

    In matters of self-governance, Southern Sudanese can find an agreement
    that improper defense of leaders has nothing to do with true patriotism
    and everything to do with blind patriotism. It cannot serve our new
    nation well. Leaders, too, must learn to resist temptation that seeks
    unquestioning obedience from their subjects because that, too, will
    not do us any good. If anything, leaders must not lead by fear but
    rather through moral example.

    The terap phenomenon

    Terap is the word our leaders drilled into us when we were little. It
    is an arabic word for seed, used a lot during the struggle to refer
    to children as future of the liberation movement. The bulk of nation
    building agenda will require that we all commit by developing a sense
    of national consciousness---a shared responsibility to forge a national
    character---the collective embrace and a true sense of citizenship,
    where all the young people will be called upon to play their part. The
    youth will build bridges of understanding for the postwar society.

    Before we tap into our vast natural resources,and indulge the talk of
    all the grand buildings or wealth, our leadership must enshrine basic
    rights for everyone and develop a capacity to communicate all the core
    values to the post war society: ensuring there is fairness in public
    sector and that climbing all the social and economic ladders is done
    through meritocracy. It is the cheapest policy project I can think of.

    It costs nothing. It just requires leadership and a change of
    attitudes. It is one that can serve us well for generations.

    As I previewed on Martyrs' Day last year in an article published by The
    New Sudan Vision, Southern Sudan needs a 21-for-21 national project,
    where we will commit to another 21 years of hard work, the same number
    of years it took to bring about liberation. It is the only way we will
    make the fallen heroes proud. It is the simplest, most meaningful
    and lasting honor we all can give our late leader John Garang and
    all the martyrs who will always guide and lead us from their graves.

    For his upcoming major speech in July, President Salva Kiir should
    talk to us and the world, in declarative terms, by calling for the
    rule of law, one that is anchored by a national constitution and an
    independent branch of Southern Sudan judiciary, where every person
    shall be treated equally under the law. His recent promise to take
    up the gauntlet with those who threaten misuse of public resources
    is a welcome break.

    So to all those who would like to start making careers of these great
    causes on behalf of educating our new nation, the time is ripe to
    get to work. Let's make sure the dream of an independence is fully
    expressed---let's envision the day when Southern Sudan will become the
    most welcoming place to live---a society that accommodates the views
    of minority---where all citizens are encouraged to be assertive and
    able to question their business and political leaders without fear
    whatsoever. And when that day arrives, we all will proudly say in
    unison: ode to all the imaginings and the triumph of peace.

    Joseph Deng Garang is the President of The New Sudan Vision

    http://www.newsudanvision.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2327:envisioning-the-first-foundation-stone-of-the-new-republic-of-southern-sudan&catid=5:columns&Itemid=14




    From: A. Papazian
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