RSS
Midwife to a New Nation
Praise be to Almighty God for having kept me and my fellow brothers and sisters to see the joy of this day and exercise our constitutional and democratic rights. I will praise Him forever.
With these words, the Rt. Rev. Alapayo Manyang Kuctiel, Bishop of Rumbek Diocese, expressed the profound sense of elation his parishioners and fellow countrymen and women felt at the success of the referendum creating Africa’s 54th state — Southern Sudan.
Aided by Episcopal Relief & Development and other organizations affiliated with the Anglican Communion, the Episcopal Church of Sudan (ECS) played a central role in an election process that has paved the way for the founding of a new nation. But that is only the beginning. In the coming months and years, ECS and other faith-based and civic institutions will have an even larger responsibility in building a functioning, peaceful society almost literally from scratch while navigating a myriad of challenges.
The January referendum culminated a five-year peace agreement that marked the end of Sudan’s decades-long civil war that ravaged the country and left millions of people destitute and displaced in its wake. The people of Southern Sudan turned out in droves to cast their ballots, with an overwhelming majority backing independence. Bishop Alapayo described it as “a celebration day rather than voting. People are shedding tears and shouting for joy.”
The referendum’s success was preceded by hard work and planning. In the months leading up to the election, ECS and Episcopal Relief & Development conducted numerous training sessions explaining why voting was so important, walking through the steps of how to cast ballots properly and discussing the effects of both possible outcomes. In a country where 60 percent of the population is illiterate, this was no simple task. Once word of the trainings got out, hundreds of people showed up to ensure that they would be prepared to make their voice heard in the referendum.
The vote was also successful because in the week before the polls opened, ECS Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul helped broker a cease-fire agreement between a militia leader and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in the southern state of Jonglei. This greatly diminished the threat of violence. Except for the border region between North and South, peace largely prevailed.
Voting was far from the only issue in which ECS, Episcopal Relief & Development and other organizations were involved. A flood of refugees returned from the North, both to vote on the referendum and to escape persecution in the wake of the South’s independence. Most of these refugees had little more than a tarp in their possession, so the church cleared land and set up a camp. There they provided shelter, food, water cans, blankets and sleeping mats, as well as tools and seeds so they can begin to work the land and grow grains and vegetables.
Now that the people of Southern Sudan have voted for independence, the hard work really begins. Southern Sudan is one of the poorest regions on earth — one in ten children do not survive their first year, and 80 percent of the population has no access to clean water and sanitation. Only 1 percent of children finish primary school. The most basic elements of infrastructure — roads, school buildings and health facilities — are scarce. Moreover, as home to 200 ethnic groups with their own distinct cultures and languages, the new country is potentially fractious.
It is in this context that ECS is indispensable. The Episcopal Church is one of the largest and fastest-growing denominations in this predominantly Christian nation and it represents a vital part of civil society. More importantly, the ECS provides one of the few existing on-the-ground infrastructures and delivery agents of social services in the region.
Episcopal Relief & Development will continue to support and strengthen ECS as it works to build communities, partner with government in providing health care and education, prevent conflict in the volatile border regions and help resolve thorny issues such as who will control the country’s vast oil fields. In this process, ECS is collaborating with other non-governmental organizations to complement each other’s efforts, avoid duplication and achieve everyone’s shared objective of a peaceful, harmonious Southern Sudan where people can meet their needs and gain opportunities for a better life.
While much uncertainty remains and many hurdles stand in the way, there can be no doubt that the joyous spirit in which Southern Sudan’s citizens helped give birth to their new country gives ample reason for hope.
