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61-695: The Nathilani River, which starts from Nathilan hills in Loudo and flows through Loudo, is one of the Singaita's tributaries. The Murle people at one time lived in the Thingaita Valley, but were later displaced by the Toposa. The Toposa people now live along both sides of the Singaita and Lokalyen rivers. The post at Kapoeta on the east bank of the river was established by Captain Knollys, who reached

122-932: A Surmic ethnic group inhabiting the Pibor County and Boma area in Greater Pibor Administrative Area , South Sudan , as well as parts of southwestern Ethiopia . They have also been referred as Beir by the Dinka and as Jebe by the Luo and Nuer , among others. The Murle speak the Murle language , which is part of the Surmic language family . The language cluster includes some adjoining groups in Sudan , as well as some non-contiguous Surmic populations in southwestern Ethiopia. Murle in most cases practice

183-558: A United Nations report, an estimated 430 children were victims of sexual violence through military recruitment in South Sudan. USAID continues to work on educational initiatives, including granting 9,000 scholarships to boys and girls. They also have over a dozen educational projects and have constructed 140 primary-level schools and four secondary schools. Over 1.4 million students attend or are involved in USAID educational programs in

244-419: A blend of animism and Christianity. Elders and witches often function as trouble fixers. But they are pastoralists in a country where localized and unpredictable shortages occur in rain, drinking water, bush fruits and cattle grass. This necessitates a partly nomadic lifestyle over large distances. As a result, in times of shortages they have frequently come into conflict with numerically larger groups, including

305-461: A growing number of SPLA members became wary of his rule, and began to conspire against him. In August 1991, internal dissent among the rebels led opponents of Garang's leadership, most importantly Riek Machar and Lam Akol , to attempt a coup against him. It failed, and the dissidents split off to form their own SPLA faction, the SPLA-Nasir . On 15 November 1991, Machar's SPLA-Nasir alongside

366-565: A north–south conflict. The SPLA, DUP, and Umma Parties were the key groups forming the NDA, along with several smaller parties and northern ethnic groups. In 1995, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Uganda stepped up their military assistance to the SPLA to the point of sending active troops into Sudan. Eritrean and Ethiopian military involvement weakened when the two countries entered a border conflict in 1998. Uganda's support weakened when it shifted its attention to

427-554: A peace initiative for Sudan under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), but results have been mixed. Despite that record, the IGAD initiative promulgated the 1994 Declaration of Principles (DOP) that aimed to identify the essential elements necessary to a just and comprehensive peace settlement; i.e. the relationship between religion and the state, power-sharing, wealth-sharing, and

488-571: A rebellion is smouldering among the Murle, with civilians caught in the conflict. Civilians alleging torture by the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) claim fingernails being torn out, burning plastic bags dripped on children to make their parents hand over weapons and the villages of Laor and the Tanyang people burned alive in their huts because rebels were suspected of spending the night in

549-546: A small South Sudan Army unit. The Lou-Nuer blame the Murle for cattle raiding and have vowed to wipe out the entire Murle Tribe on the face of the Earth. An estimated 3,000 people were killed, mainly children, women and the elderly. More than 1,000 people were killed in ethnic clashes within South Sudan in 2012, with Jonglei being one of the states worst affected by the violence. Thousands more civilians have been displaced from their homes. Along South Sudan 's border with Ethiopia ,

610-592: A vast territory, Murle, Dinka and Nuer raid each other equally, unlike the more widespread notion by the Dinka and Nuer in the Government that only the Murle are the offenders.[no cite, and the contrary has been held true by at least one anthropologist who has studied the Murle] The Murle have a historical tradition of migrating over the years in a clockwise direction around Lake Turkana (Arensen 1983). In

671-750: Is also needed. Also, South Sudan, with its enormous agricultural potential during the rainy season, needs to be connected to regional and world markets, so that through agriculture and cattle breeding, the economy can be based on something else than tit for tat theft. Second Sudanese Civil War Stalemate [REDACTED] Sudan [REDACTED] SSDF [REDACTED] SPLA dissidents [REDACTED] Nuer White Army [REDACTED] Ugandan insurgents: [REDACTED]   Zaire (1994– 1997 ) [REDACTED] al-Qaeda (1991–1996) [REDACTED]   Iraq [REDACTED]   China [REDACTED] SPLA [REDACTED] Tens of thousands The Second Sudanese Civil War

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732-611: The Addis Ababa Agreement . Part of this agreement gave religious and cultural autonomy to the south. Despite this a number of mutinies by former Anyanya took place in 1974, 1975, and February 1976 with the March 1975 mutiny at Akobo seeing 200 killed, 150 soldiers executed, and 48 more sentenced to imprisonment for up to 15 years. The accords of the Addis Ababa Agreement had been incorporated in

793-642: The Constitution of Sudan ; the violation of the agreement led to the second civil war. The first violations occurred when President Gaafar Nimeiry attempted to take control of oil fields straddling the north–south border. Oil had been discovered in Bentiu in 1978, in southern Kurdufan and Upper Blue Nile in 1979, the Unity oilfields in 1980 and Adar oilfields in 1981, and in Heglig in 1982. Access to

854-464: The Dinka and Nuer . The Murle (like the Dinka and Nuer) have a tradition in which men can only marry when they pay a bride wealth of several dozens of cows. Education and jobs are almost absent and there are very few possibilities to earn money by producing for domestic or foreign markets. As a result, the only way to acquire cows for marriage, quicker than through breeding them, is by stealing. With roads absent and normal policing almost impossible in

915-640: The Popular Defense Forces (PDF) were used to attack and raid villages in the south and in the Nuba Mountains . Sudan's governments have a long history of using proxies in southern Sudan, and the north–south border areas, to fight their wars and preserve their regular forces. These militias were recruited locally, and with covert ties to the national government. Many of the Khartoum-aligned groups were created and then armed by

976-542: The Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation (RCC) , a military junta of 15 military officers (reduced to 12 in 1991) assisted by a civilian cabinet. Now a General al-Bashir became: president, chief of state, prime minister, and chief of the armed forces. The RCC banned trade unions, political parties, and other "non-religious" institutions. About 78,000 members of the army, police, and civil administration were purged in order to reshape

1037-682: The "Gathering"—the military council appointed an interim civilian cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Dr. Al-Jazuli Daf'allah . Elections were held in April 1986, and the transitional military council turned over power to a civilian government as promised. The government was headed by Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi of the Umma Party . It consisted of a coalition of the Umma Party, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) (formerly

1098-677: The 1930s, they negotiated small pockets of 'homeland' in Pibor, where they are always allowed to graze their cattle and grow crops, even when in conflict with neighbors. This homeland is far too small for their survival, so they have a common interest in maintaining peace with Dinka and Nuer so that they can graze their cattle over wider areas. But the small size of their homeland and the near absence of police protection make them very vulnerable when conflicts do occur. When doubts arise that there will be peace and sufficient water and grazing rights, survival instincts align with 'bride hunger', sometimes driving

1159-791: The Dinka and Nuer domination in the South Sudan government and as well as in the State level, most problems are blamed on Murle; therefore it is difficult for journalists and researchers to check any claims against the Murle. Some conflicts could be prevented by sinking more wells. Also, a national conference on drinking water, land use rights and land redistribution, might help, if Murle survival needs and all their arguments are taken seriously. State intervention in bride wealth culture (moving it away from virtual slave trade to an exchange of intentions and nominal tokens) and strong state action against illegal taxation by local leaders in Nuer, Dinka and Murle society

1220-644: The Islamic fundamentalist NIF. In February 1989, the army presented Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi with an ultimatum: he could move toward peace or be removed. He chose to form a new government with the DUP, and approved the SPLA/DUP peace plan. A constitutional conference was tentatively planned for September 1989. On 30 June 1989, however, military officers under Col. Omar Hassan al-Bashir , with alleged NIF instigation and support, replaced Sadiq al-Mahdi's government with

1281-466: The Khartoum agreements that ended military conflict between the government and significant rebel factions. Many of those leaders then moved to Khartoum where they assumed marginal roles in the central government, or collaborated with the government in military engagements against the SPLA. These three agreements paralleled the terms and conditions of the IGAD agreement, calling for a degree of autonomy for

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1342-516: The NIF in a deliberate 'divide and rule' strategy. The widespread activity of insurgent and pro-government militants and increasing lawlessness in southern Sudan resulted in the militarization of many communities. Ethnic violence became widespread, and all sides targeted civilians to destroy the power bases and recruitment centers of their rivals. Those who could formed self-defense groups, and these were often based on familial and tribal links as these were

1403-617: The National Unionist Party), the National Islamic Front (NIF) of Hassan al-Turabi , and several southern region parties. This coalition dissolved and reformed several times over the next few years, with Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and his Umma Party always in a central role. In May 1986, the Sadiq al-Mahdi government coalition began peace negotiations with the SPLA led by Col. John Garang . In that year

1464-694: The Nuer White Army carried out the Bor massacre , killing an estimated 2000 Dinka civilians. In September 1992, William Nyuon Bany formed a second rebel faction, and in February 1993, Kerubino Kuanyin Bol formed a third rebel faction. On 5 April 1993, the three dissident rebel factions announced a coalition of their groups called SPLA United at a press conference in Nairobi , Kenya . During 1990 and 1991,

1525-493: The Nuer. Many Murle elders argue that often if the Dinka and Nuer are facing hunger or drought, they sell their children to the Murle in exchange for cattle, then later report to the authorities that their children have been kidnapped by the Murle. In December 2011, about 6,000 Nuer Youths Army marched on the remote town of Pibor in Jonglei state, home to the rival Murle people, burning homes and looting facilities after overtaking

1586-485: The SPLA and a number of Sudanese political parties met in Ethiopia and agreed to the " Koka Dam " declaration, which called for abolishing Islamic Sharia law and convening a constitutional conference. In 1988, the SPLA and the DUP agreed on a peace plan calling for the abolition of military pacts with Egypt and Libya , freezing of Sharia law, an end to the state of emergency, and a cease-fire. However, during this period

1647-535: The Second Sudanese Civil War. In May of 1983, the 1st Division's 105th Battalion in the Sudanese military mutinied in the towns of Bor, South Sudan and Pibor . Government soldiers moved to suppress the mutiny but were repulsed by the rebels. The Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) was founded in 1983 as a rebel group , to reestablish an autonomous southern Sudan by fighting against

1708-504: The Sudanese government supported Saddam Hussein in the Gulf War . This changed American attitudes toward the country. Bill Clinton 's administration prohibited American investment in the country and supplied money to neighbouring countries to repel Sudanese incursions. The US also began attempts to "isolate" Sudan and began referring to it as a rogue state . Since 1993, the leaders of Eritrea , Ethiopia, Uganda , and Kenya have pursued

1769-461: The central government expanding and dominating peoples of the periphery, raising allegations of marginalization . Kingdoms and great powers based along the Nile River have fought against the people of inland Sudan for centuries. Since at least the 18th century, central governments have attempted to regulate and exploit the undeveloped southern and inland regions of Sudan. Some sources describe

1830-469: The central government. While based in southern Sudan, it identified itself as a movement for all oppressed Sudanese citizens, and was led by John Garang . Initially, the SPLA campaigned for a united Sudan, criticizing the central government for policies that were leading to national "disintegration". In September 1985 the Government of Sudan announced the end of the state of emergency and dismantled

1891-510: The conflict as an ethnoreligious one where the Arab - Muslim central government's pursuits to impose Sharia law in 1983 on non-Muslim southerners led to violence, and eventually to the civil war. Douglas Johnson has pointed to exploitative governance as the root cause. When the British governed Sudan as a colony they administered the northern and southern provinces separately. The south

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1952-547: The conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo . By 1997, seven groups in the government camp, led by former Garang lieutenant Riek Machar , signed the Khartoum Peace Agreement with the NIF, thereby forming the largely symbolic South Sudan Defence Forces (SSDF) umbrella. Furthermore, the government signed the Nuba Mountains , and Fashoda agreements with rebel factions. These included

2013-404: The country still awash with machine guns from the north-south war , 'cattle rustling' quickly runs out of control, killing dozens or hundreds of people in tit for tat escalations. Many Nuer reason that Murle are the grand children of immigrants with much less rights to use land and graze cattle. So Murle cattle, argue some Nuer, were raised on stolen grass, so most of their cattle actually belong to

2074-702: The edge of the Sahara desert, which is unsuitable for agricultural development. Oil revenues make up about 70% of Sudan's export earnings. Due to the numerous tributaries of the Nile river and heavier precipitation in the south of Sudan, it has superior water access and more fertile land. There has also been a significant amount of death from warring tribes in the south. Most of the conflict has been between Nuer and Dinka but other ethnic groups have also been involved. These tribal conflicts continued after South Sudanese independence. The first civil war ended in 1972, with

2135-402: The emergency courts but soon promulgated a new judiciary act, which continued many of the practices of the emergency courts. Despite Nimeiry's public assurances that the rights of non-Muslims would be respected, southerners and other non-Muslims remained deeply suspicious. On 6 April 1985, senior military officers led by General Abdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab mounted a coup. Among the first acts of

2196-471: The government. In March 1991, a new penal code, the Criminal Act of 1991 , instituted harsh punishments nationwide, including amputations and stoning . Although the southern states were officially exempt from these Islamic prohibitions and penalties, the 1991 act provided for a possible future application of Islamic Sharia law in the south. In 1993, the government transferred most non-Muslim judges from

2257-553: The independence of South Sudan 6 years after the war ended. Roughly two million people died as a result of war, famine and disease caused by the conflict. Four million people in southern Sudan were displaced at least once, normally repeatedly during the war. The civilian death toll is one of the highest of any war since World War II and was marked by numerous human rights violations , including slavery and mass killings . Wars in Sudan are often characterized as fights between

2318-579: The infamous "White House" – the Giada barracks in Juba – alone. At the same time, the SPLA ruthlessly crushed all internal and external opposition as far as possible, including other rebel factions such as the Anyanya II insurgents and critics in its own ranks. Garang became infamous for his authoritarian leadership style, and ordered the torture and execution of several dissenting SPLA commanders. Over time,

2379-478: The joint initiative because it neglected to address issues of the relationship between religion and the state and failed to mention the right of self-determination. Some critics viewed it as more aimed at a resolution among northern political parties and protecting the perceived security interests of Egypt over the unity of Sudan. Peace talks between the southern rebels and the government made substantial progress in 2003 and early 2004, although skirmishes in parts of

2440-587: The most damage is the agriculture sector. The conflict forced many farmers to escape the violence and abandon their farmland. Agriculture projects that were meant to improve cultivation methods, some that were funded by the United Nations , were terminated because they were destroyed or people stopped working; such projects include a pump-irrigation system. Additionally, the "animal wealth" of the farmers significantly decreased. Over six million cows , two million sheep , and one million goats were killed during

2501-463: The new government was to suspend the 1983 constitution, rescind the decree declaring Sudan's intent to become an Islamic state, and disband Nimeiry's Sudanese Socialist Union . However, the " September laws " instituting Islamic Sharia law were not suspended. A 15-member transitional military council was named, chaired by al-Dahab, in 1985. In consultation with an informal conference of political parties, unions, and professional organizations—known as

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2562-536: The oil fields meant significant economic benefit to whoever controlled them. Islamic fundamentalists in the north had been discontented with the Addis Ababa Agreement, which gave relative autonomy to the non-Islamic majority Southern Sudan Autonomous Region . The fundamentalists continued to grow in power, and in 1983 President Nimeiry declared all of Sudan an Islamic state , terminating the Southern Sudan Autonomous Region and starting

2623-809: The only ones most southern people could still rely on. In this way, groups like the Nuer White Army and Dinka Titweng ("cattle guard") militias came into existence. Even though they were originally intended to just defend civilian communities, they often became brutal gangs which targeted civilians of other ethnicities. The government and rebel groups exploited these tensions and self-defense groups, using them to destabilize their enemies. The Sudanese Armed Forces became infamous for brutally suppressing all civil dissidents. People suspected of disloyalty or rebel sympathies were arrested and taken to prisons and barracks, where they were tortured and executed. Hundreds, perhaps even thousands of people were murdered at

2684-480: The region. Historically, disputes in Sudan have been over fertile land and water. Oil became a point of dispute following its discovery in Sudan. However, despite the availability of oil, Sudan experiences the paradox of the plenty , a phenomenon that occurs when a country has plentiful natural resources—in this case, oil—but struggles to fully compete economically. Because of displacement, refugees who fled their destroyed homes cut down forests to survive. They used

2745-558: The right of self-determination for the south. The Sudanese Government did not sign the DOP until 1997 after major battlefield losses to the SPLA. In 1995, the opposition in the north united with parties from the south to create a coalition of opposition parties called the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). This development opened a northeastern front to the civil war, making it a Sudan wide conflict rather than simply

2806-639: The river in January 1927. Near Kapoeta the river is about 150 yards wide, and normally has a sandy dry bed, but heavy rainstorms in the Didinga Hills can turn it into a raging, impassable flood overnight. A 125-meter drift was built to cross the Thingaita River at Kapoeta with USAID funding in 1983. This article related to a river in South Sudan is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Murle people The Murle are

2867-564: The same year, only 35 percent of the teachers in South Sudan had a primary-level of education. An additional obstacles students face is the forced recruitment into armed militias and state military. According to a United Nations report, 50 percent of South Sudanese children do not attend school. Boys and girls, who are in schools, are abducted by soldiers and forced to join the military or armed rebel groups. When they are taken, most girls are raped by their captors and those who resist are killed. Boys are "castrated and sexually mutilated". According to

2928-467: The second civil war intensified in lethality, and the national economy continued to deteriorate. When prices of basic goods were increased in 1988, riots ensued, and the price increases were cancelled. When Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi refused to approve a peace plan reached by the DUP and the SPLA in November 1988, the DUP left the government. The new government consisted essentially of the Umma Party and

2989-576: The south and the right of self-determination. Nevertheless, the SPLA made major advances in 1997 due to the success of Operation Thunderbolt , an offensive during which the southern Sudanese separatists seized most of Central and Western Equatoria from the government. In July 2000, the Libyan/Egyptian Joint Initiative on the Sudan called for the establishment of an interim government, power-sharing, constitutional reform, and new elections. Southern critics objected to

3050-424: The south continued. A Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed on 9 January 2005 in Nairobi . The terms of the peace treaty were: The status of three central and eastern provinces was a point of contention in the negotiations. According to the SPLA, about 2 million people had died in southern Sudan alone due to the war. The Second Sudanese Civil War destroyed many sectors of economic activity. The sector with

3111-412: The south to the north, replacing them with Muslim judges in the south. The introduction of Public Order Police to enforce Sharia law resulted in the arrest, and treatment under Sharia penalties, of southerners and other non-Muslims living in the north. The Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) was in control of large areas of Equatoria , Bahr al Ghazal , and Upper Nile provinces and also operated in

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3172-572: The southern portions of Darfur , Kordofan , and Blue Nile provinces. The government controlled a number of the major southern towns and cities, including Juba , Wau , and Malakal . An informal cease-fire in May broke down in October 1989. In July 1992, a government offensive seized many parts of southern Sudan, and captured the SPLA headquarters in Torit . Both the government regular armed forces and

3233-602: The transitional period in the 1950s. In the post-colonial government of 1953, the Sudanization Committee had only six southerners in its 800 senior administrative positions. The second war was partially about natural resources. Between the north and the south lie significant oil fields and thus significant foreign interests (the oil revenue is privatized to Western interests as in Nigeria ). The northerners wanted to control these resources because they live on

3294-565: The village. On August 18, 2011, to retaliate and retrieve cattle stolen from previous conflict, several young Murle sacked and burned the air strip village of Pierri and a dozen surrounding hamlets, killing over a hundred people, abducting dozens or hundreds of children and stealing up to tens of thousands of cattle. One explanation might also be the drought: Pierri has one of the very few functioning dry season drinking water wells, often with thousands of people queuing for its water. Nuer have often excluded Murle from using this water. Because of

3355-522: The war. A different sector that was affected by the conflict was the industrial sector , which consists of manufacturing and processing. Manufacturing facilities were unable to produce essential materials, including soap , textiles , sugar , and processed foods . Processed-foods facilities include the preservation of foods , such as canning fruits and vegetables, and vegetable oil production. Poverty continued to climb and significantly impacted people in rural areas. The destroyed agriculture sector

3416-903: The young men into risky cattle rustling adventures against their larger neighbors. In the north-south war since, the Murle were mainly underrepresented and neglected by the SPLA. They sought protection by forming an armed group to protect themselves from the former rebel SPLA and the Northern Sudanese Militias. In most South-Sudanese cattle cultures, the bride-wealth system, and illegal taxing by some unscrupulous local leaders stimulates young men to find excuses to steal cows from their own cousins. Local leaders then sometimes try to quell or prevent intra-tribal fighting, by directing that aggression outward, to other tribes. Also, Murle are feared and seen by surrounding larger tribes as having strong magical powers, and therefore they are often blamed for outbreak of diseases, theft and arson. With

3477-583: Was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army . It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originated in southern Sudan, the civil war spread to the Nuba mountains and the Blue Nile . It lasted for almost 22 years and is one of the longest civil wars on record. The war resulted in

3538-419: Was held to be more similar to the other east-African colonies – Kenya , Tanganyika , and Uganda – while northern Sudan was more similar to Arabic -speaking Egypt . Northern Arabs were prevented from holding positions of power in the south with its African traditions, and trade was discouraged between the two areas. However, in 1946, the British gave in to northern pressure to integrate the two areas. Arabic

3599-568: Was made the language of administration in the south, and northerners began to hold positions there. The southern elite, trained in English , resented the change as they were kept out of government. After decolonization most power was given to the northern elites based in Khartoum , causing unrest in the south. The British moved towards granting Sudan independence, but did not invite southern Sudanese leaders to participate in negotiations during

3660-438: Was reduced and reallocated to military and security forces. Sudan's military spending increased from 10 percent to 20 percent, while reducing education spending and other areas. Following the war, education was less likely to be funded, less educators were available due to death or injury, and education facilities were destroyed. As of 2015 42 percent of South Sudan's budget is allocated to military and security expenditures. In

3721-545: Was the primary source of income for about 8 out of 10 households. Living in a rural region is also associated with a lower quality of life because residents lack access to basic services and economic opportunities and job opportunities. Before the war, Sudan did not have a comprehensive infrastructure system. It lacked roads, bridges, and communications, and led to the existing infrastructure being destroyed. Critical infrastructure, like waterways and canals, were destroyed by airstrikes . When Sudan entered war, education funding

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