INDIGENOUS (NATIVE, & ANCESTRAL) LANDS

Giir’s position:

I have read the article and I felt it is a tool that is geared to incite hatred of a collective tribes of Equatorians against one tribe, the Jiengs. The article is one sided. It avoided to answer the question of those Jiengs and other non-Jiengs who had to pay some Equatorian landlords and those who impersonate as landlords. Those were paid once, twice, three times even in order to finally obtain the same pieces of lands. Those should be called money grabbers and their act, too, should be considered unjust. Anyway, I’ll be one of those who will support our Equatorian brothers and sisters’ fight, through peaceful means, in order to bring about justice. If Equatorians feel that they have not been treated fairly and the majority of Jieng and non-Jieng know about this, the Equatorians’ fight should not be Equatorians’ fight against injustice. Jieng and non-Jieng should join that fight because, if Equatorians are not living in peace, no one should live in peace. It should be a fight against injustice. These cases are cases that should be discussed in Parliament and a policy applicable anywhere in SS should be arrived at. This will mean, the same procedures a non-Equatorians go through in order to obtain land in Equatoria should be exactly the same procedures that an Equatorian, who want to own land anywhere in SS, would go through. The expression, “ancestral land” is a toxic expression that is often used by those who want to incite tribal hatred. If it has some reasonable use, it should be if we were to drive non-African people out of Africa. As for us, the SS, any part of SS is our ancestral land. Anyone who is interesting in studying human history, will not fail to notice the fact that Africans have been moving around within Africa and even out of Africa. Period.

Girr’s Position

I’ll over look this error because it the kind of error a person who is blinded by emotions and hatred would often make. Again with this kind of language of generalizations, not only are you supporting a good cause of the Equatorians, you are also making enemies of people would otherwise have supported the cause. I’m one of those who spoke up concerning land issue as well as other issues some years ago. If you are interested, visit my page and read. But, according to you, I have no “balls” and “therefore, I must “shut up”. Well, you who have got “balls”, don’t wait a day or two. Go right now and show us what a person with “balls” can do. Action! Your fight, yours alone, will (is not) against Jieng people as you put it, but against SS government (the whole system of the governing body). Oops! I should shut up. Good luck, my brother, or, should I say, “my enemy?”

RESPONSE:

Dear Giir:

Thanks for your input!

I would like to answer you in the following fashion: article is one-sided; land grabs; illegal money obtained unethically from government coffer to purchased lands; land grabs; the rubber stamp Parliament;  corruption,  incite hatred; and ancestral land and provide some details to contextualized the argument advanced to validate Equatorians, Chollo, Fertit, Murle, and other grievances. I shall commence with one-sided point.

Please, for future references when you read any article dealing with grievances, make sure you read it with open eyes or in legal term called “legal eyes”. The piece is intended for Equatorians and addressing the problem of one-sided ruling system of Juba regime and therefore, it one-sided-from victims’ side. Similarly, to Equatorains are Chollo, Fertit, Murle and others who have experienced dehumanization, victimization, injustice, women and young girl rape and land grabs.

Like Equatorians  Chollo, Fertit, Murle and others have echoed major grievances in their respected areas to Juba regime and no resolutions till today. Please, see below links and please, listen but not just hear to Lt. Gen. Johnson Oliny carefully. Lt. Gen. Oliny’s main legal argument is Chollos’ land grabs.

https://www.facebook.com/879270061/posts/10160256504505062/

https://southsudannewsagency.org/index.php/2017/02/11/south-sudanese-army-general-resigns-cites-tribally-engineered-war/

This brings me to your own words “These cases are cases that should be discussed in Parliament and a policy applicable”. Do your really believe in the SS Parliament as the Third arm of government? If so, how could you called it Parliament if most of its members were appointed and not elected? This is a cheap way to try to establish argument on unsubstantiated legal ground.

In 2008, Hon. Dr. K. Mula, M.P., tabled motion to address problem of dumping of cattle which created insecurity in WES, the motion was rejected by majority of one ethnicity MPs and led to Dr. Mula to quick SPLM, stood an independent in 2010 General Elections and won against the SPLM candidate. What this means?

Today, most of communities in EES and CES are experiencing similar 2008 situation of WES-cattle dumping. Since Juba regime is not interested in forcing cattle owners to relocate their cattle to where they came from, cattle dumping may require local solutions. The SS Parliamentarians are the rubber stamps of Kiir and all were bought with $40K six months ago and recently with $25K while the rest of public servants working without salaries for over 4 months ($20K+40K is equal to price tag of one MP to support Kiir’s bad policy of Dinkanization).

Please, educate us why government pays one sector of employees and not others with medical expenses and transportation allowances.

As stated earlier that, you missed the main legal argument in the piece, the article discusses problem of land grabs and not land purchased by illegal money obtained unethically from government coffer to occupy Equatoria ancestral lands. The question you may wanna answer and  educate readers with is-how could one ethnicity in the country is the only one group that has access to money to purchased lands with Quadruple price in a time public servants received no wages for over 9 months? The readers would be happy to know your take. Is this not the corruption in day light. How comes non-Dinka cannot buy lands in Bor and Aweil and Warrap?

Let me help you with some corruption examples and you can provide us with more in your next response with solutions to put an end to it.

1.    Hospitals remained sustained by international organizations, while constitutional post holders and senior government officials seek travel to India, Jordan, Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Germany, and UK for even common non-referral illnesses, costing millions of dollars!

2.    In 2008, Dura Saga: Fake business contractors delivering ghost grains to hungry states and the case despite being widely exposed, remains not investigated to date. The Audit of 2008 notes contracts to purchase some $2.3 billion worth of dura Johnson, 2016, p.37.

3.    The Ministry’s purchase of 400 Land Cruisers, without tender was one of the first corruption scandals of the era (PAGSSNA, for the Year Ended 31December, 2008, p.13.

4.    On Aug 2012, the president did accuse 75 of his government officials of stealing USD $4 billion from the world’s newest country (McClatchy Newspapers).

5.    Nile Commercial Bank 'List of Shame'! A list of high-profile debtors causes a public-private bank to go bankrupt, gets exposed, but nobody is unnamed until now! Former Central Bank Governor pointed a finger at someone at the top and nothing happened!

6.    3. Two Ministers of Finance implicated in squandering millions of US Dollars, got exposed, but got out and continued with their lives!

The article was not advocating for hatred rather than putting ink on the letters-grievances of Equatorians and calls for them for unity of purpose. There is nothing wrong for Equatorians to unit because they always co-existed peacefully for many years until 2006 when bullying, victimization, dehumanization and land grabs policy were instituted by Kiir and his associates to drive them out of their ancestral land using state resources and by abusing his authority.

Kiir is the only person in the country who inciting hatred. On August 20, 2015, Peter Moi Julius was shot dead by unidentified gunmen.  The death of Peter Moi Julius was popularly attributed to President Salva Kiir’s threat to kill journalists for reporting against the country (Sudan Tribune online newspaper). You need get your facts rights specially on public domain and provided evidences to support your unfounded claims.

A similar argument was made by Kiir in his remarks in Juba on October 20, 2016, that Equatorians had not participated in the liberation of South Sudan, and therefore, the Dinka and Nuer alone, held the right to centralize political power, monopolize and dominate all national public services, and subjugate other ethnic groups in controlling resources and revenues under a “Dinkocracy” project.

The Ancestral land in British English not SPLA English, it means inherited (belong to) by established legal rules such Chief, patrimonial, hereditary, or transmissible tradition. Pay attention to the active verbs. Based on this definition it is false, illegal and crime for anyone to claim that Dinka should or have right to grab lands in Equatoria, Bhar Al-Ghazal, Upper Nile or elsewhere where they are not part of tradition of the locals inhabitants. forced migration and relocation and movement does not make Jieng/Nuer member(s) of hereditary communities. This is just sample logic requires no Ph.D., or rocket sciences. In sample English- have traditional ties to land.

The main problem here is ancestral land taken by force, abused of power, abused of of organized forces uniform. Example. Prof. Taban Lo-Liyong’s first class piece of land by Airport occupied by Jieng Gen. and threatening him- kill him. There are many such cases pending in court. There is list compiled and documented all land grabs crimes-time will come for justice to serve.

Question for you to provide readers with rational- Why Abyei is called Ngok Dinka land? Ngok Dinka land has equal meaning to Equatorian ancestral land. Why are you objecting to Equatoria ancestral lands and accepted Ngok Dinka land? See 2011 South Sudan Constitution- this is a legal document and The Man called 1988, Deng by Francis M. Deng.

Another Question:  Why Lt. Gen. David Yayu keep defecting? Is it not because of land grabs or what?

I hope this provides you and those who think they entitle to grab lands by force using the power of their authorities, and abuse of organized uniform in Equatorain, Raja, and Chollo on false grounds.