* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Six months ago to the day I stood in a line for five hours with friend and colleague Pasquale Ongwen, IRC’s Field Manager for our program in Torit, Eastern Equatoria. With thousands of others, he waited to cast his vote in South Sudan’s Referendum which would determine whether or not it would split from the north. The vote was almost 100% unanimous to split.
Fast forward six months and I was with Pasquale again, not in an orderly queue of several hundred people, but in a vast crowd of tens of thousands, to witness the birth of the world’s newest nation – the Republic of South Sudan. Around Juba, the capital of South Sudan hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to celebrate. Parties started as early as last night.
I met Pasquale at the John Garang Memorial. We made our way to a large field next to it. After a stringent and thorough security check we made our way through the masses and found a spot to stand and listen to the proceedings. People were dressed in traditional costumes, some wore suits and party dresses. Young women had painted their faces in the colors of the national flag. Many people wore tee-shirts with slogans and flags emblazoned on them, “Free At Last” and “Happy Birthday South Sudan” were a popular ones. I saw little boys in tiny three piece suits and several little girls dressed in bright pink frilly dresses.
The crowd was so thick that we couldn’t really see or hear anything. A man near us had a radio that was broadcasting the proceedings. I asked Pasquale whether he minded not being able to see a thing, “Of course not!” he said, “Even though I can’t see, it doesn’t matter to me. I just felt like I had to come here and witness everything and to be a part of it all. It’s the first of a kind. It’s history and I am here to see it happening,” he continued. From what we could hear, there were speeches, dances, singing and various presentations taking place in the main part of the stadium.
As the sun moved higher into the sky, sporadic dancing and marching would take place by various groups who had come from all over the country representing their various ethnic backgrounds, religious affiliations, youth groups and women’s groups. As I tried to take pictures a very very tall Dinka young man called out that I was too short and was only taking ‘half’ pictures, to that there was an outburst of laughter. I then raised my camera higher into the air, almost to his height and took a picture of something nearby. Satisfied he cried out “That’s better!”
The atmosphere was truly buzzing with excitement and anticipation. A little later a group of soldiers made their way to what looked like a statue that was covered with the Sudanese flag. We had been wondering what it was. They made a line in front of it and in front of us, or rather the people who were in front of the people who were in front of us – we were four lines back. We soon realized that the statue was that of the late ‘Father’ and leader of the southern Sudanese, John Garang who died in July just a few months after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the north and the south was signed. He was in a helicopter that crashed and there are still suspicions that it wasn’t simply an accident. Someone in the crowd excitedly said that President Salva Kiir was going to walk passed us to unveil it. A whoop of applause and cheering went up around me and both Pasquale and I realized that we had inadvertently stood in probably one of the best vantage points.
We all had flags in our hands. The more creative had made hats from them. Some ladies pinned them into their hair. When the President finally walked passed the flags went up into the air in unison and stayed there waving to and fro, back and forth. Shouts and cheers went up in unison too. I tried to take a picture at which point another young man, who was also much taller than me offered to take it for me as I was jumping up and down with my arms stretched high into the air. I thankfully gave him my camera and he took a couple for me. Unfortunately, none of them have the president in, but it doesn’t matter.
The seven foot statue of John Garang is extremely striking. He is holding a stick in his right hand and is pointing with it. I noticed that he was pointing at a very tall and at that point, empty flag pole. I told Pasquale that this must be the flag pole that they are going to raise the new flag on. He mentioned this to those around us who immediately started to laugh and clap with excitement – confirming that yet again we had inadvertently stumbled upon one of the best vantage points.
Flags are extremely emotive to many people throughout the world. The national flag itself is a powerful symbol of nationhood. So, imagine what it must be like for a new nation and its people to see its flag being raised officially. Words truly cannot describe it. But I will try. As the flag was slowly raised high up the pole, the shouts, cheers and screams were almost deafening. People around me cheered too, they took pictures with their cameras and mobile phones, they hugged and kissed one another and most, if not all, cried. One woman fell to her knees, tears streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks, arms outstretched above her, raised in prayer and praise to heaven. She shouted out at the top of her voice, “Thank you Jesus. Thank you Jesus. Thank you My God and my Father that we are free! We are free! We are free!” It was one of the most emotional experiences I have ever witnessed. At that point her friends gathered round her saying in chorus, “Amen! Amen!” As I dried tears from my own eyes, a lady came up to me, arms outstretched and hugged me close.
Later, Pasquale told me that after the Referendum most people would say, “Let’s just raise the flag then we will see what will happen.” “We know there are many wishes that cannot be filled in a day,” he said, “But we just wanted to get passed the raising of the flag,” he continued.
No one can begin to imagine what the people around me have gone through and as a writer, I’m intrigued by people’s lives and stories. I know that each of them has a story to tell. From 20 years of working and campaigning on behalf of South Sudan, on and off, I know that behind every tear of joy, there is also sorrow – sorrow at the loss of loved ones, the sorrow of having to flee one’s homeland because of war. However, I also know that those tears were also filled with hope. Later, I asked Pasquale why he too had cried, “When I saw our flag being raised it took me back to the history of our country, of our struggle. Many people lost their lives for this day. I was paying homage to our fallen heroes who fought because they made this day possible,” he said. “As a child I had always known that Sudan gained independence from the British in 1956. But I was not born then to see it. Soon after, the first war with the north started and lasted until 1972 when peace was signed in Addis Ababa in January. But I still wasn’t there to see it. I was born in the April of that year,” he laughed. “Those were two significant days in our history. And now, today is another significant day when we can see that we have gained a new nation – a nation that we will try our best to make it realize good democracy, governance and development for our people.”
In January I also spent time talking to Pasquale’s father Alexander, a retired teacher. He sadly died a few months ago – his presence today was greatly missed. Pasquale describes him as a man who was full of great optimism even at the height of the war when he and his family fled across the border into Uganda, he would say, “One day we will be free from the north.” “My dad was always optimistic. When we voted in January he told us all that our independence has come and we are going to see a new nation.” At midnight last night (Friday night) he and his family lit a candle, “We wanted to remember those who had passed away and were no longer with us. They didn’t get the chance to see this day. Margaret, my wife said that she wished my dad was here because he wanted to see this new nation and even though he suffered, he always hoped that his grandchildren would get a better life. We really miss him,” he said.
Pasquale is carrying his father’s optimism for his children, although he does have this advice for the fledgling government, “This is a new experience for our leaders. It is my hope that they direct the country in a good way where we will have equal opportunities for jobs, education and development. If this happens then our children will have a good chance to go to school and have a brighter future,” he said. “It won’t be like before when we struggled to at least get ourselves educated. Even if your parents were earning it still was very little and a big struggle. This time we are hoping for the best for our children.”
I know it’s a cliché, but on this occasion I am unashamedly going to say it – this is a day I will remember for the rest of my life! I had the privilege and honor to experience the birth of the Republic of South Sudan with ordinary South Sudanese people, young and old, from all walks of life. I saw what independence looks and feels like – something I will probably never experience again in my lifetime and for that I am truly grateful.
