My journey of self-discovery through DNA tests, among other means...

I recently decided to do a DNA test. I'll talk about the reason at some point. I  will blog about this experience as I wait for the results, and after I get them. But this blog post is not only about my DNA results. It is one of my attempts to explore the aspects that make up my identity, believes, soul, thoughts, and sense of being. It is about what makes me Ozaz, Uzaz, or Azaz; depending on how you got to know me and what language you speak. The deferent spellings of my name is a whole nuther story!

PART 1

The short answer to “Who are you?” “ Where are you from?” And all other sorts of similar questions is: I am Nubian. An answer I’ve learnt to say since I learnt to make words and comprehend the world. Would that change now that I am waiting for my DNA results? I don’t know.

I was born in a small village called Gunnies. Yes. You read that right. Like the beer as my friends would say to tease me. My mom gave birth to me after several years of marrying my father. She wasn’t worried about her fertility as she had a daughter from another marriage and my dad had other four children from his first wife, too. So my arrival to this world was a matter of time. That’s all. 

My mom was washing cloths when I decided to announce my enthusiasm to come and join you all. My dad was visiting his first wife – don’t judge, please – when I finally made my first cry into the world. He came by in his way to catch his train back to Saudi Arabia where he was working at the time. Family and neighbors, who are family as well, gathered to celebrate my coming.

My parents didn’t know what to name me. A fact they don't mind sharing whenever they are asked why I was named Ozaz. You'd think they would be more prepared for me joining them. What should we name her, a question many expectant parents would ask. But mine didn't.  Apparently, they didn't care much about the name that would stick to me for the rest of my life. Thank you, mom and dad. So, to solve their indecision, they decided to write down names suggested by nieces and relatives in small pieces of papers, fold them, and pick that name that would my official name. I had no name until the 7th day of my birthdate, which is the day a newborn's official name is announced. Since I had no name, my nameless ass was called NuNu or Kononna, means babe, by everyone, including my mom.  

My naming ceremony was more like a raffle drawing. How inclusive and participatory! Zainab, Hajer, Ghada, Ivana, Dara, and Ozaz were among the suggested names. I am not sure who choose the folded piece that had Ozaz on it, but I thank her/him for that. This name is one of the pillars of my identity.

I really don’t know what name I would want if I was not Ozaz. It is a rare name. I only met a few girls/women named Ozaz and I didn’t like them for sharing my name! I was 6 years old visiting a relative whose daughter was named Ozaz. I cried when they called her twice and felt she’s taken something that belongs to me. I still feel the same in the very few occasions I met an Ozaz. I hope they’d considered finding another name and let me have it exclusively. Please.Thank you.

So, here was a little fuzzy Ozaz growing up in a remote and carefree village in Nubian land. I spoke Nubian language, played with goats, and ran around barefoot. The house where my dad was born was 500 feet away from my house. It was the same house that witnessed the birth of his father, too. My dad was born in 1909. I'd say that house and land around it belong to us for more than 200 hundreds years. You do the math. 

Growing up, I didn’t have games or TV to watch. The sky and nature were my entertainment source. I played house in the woods and raced with tin toy cars. My Barbie doll version was a bald stick doll dressed in rags. I went to bed with the backdrop of elders’ voices reciting Quran and drifted to sleep as I counted meteors falling in the sky above me. We didn’t sleep in rooms. We slept in the front yards. I didn’t sleep in a room until I was three. I still prefer sleeping under the sky more than 5 starts hotel room. I think my dreams then were more colorful and creative. I don’t know how I’d prove that though.

My staple of conception of fear, wrong, right, proper, and indecent were very much shaped by patrimonial anecdotes: a donkey's braying indicates it has seen the Devil, so I'd stick my fingers into my ears as I ran to find my mother to seek refugee behind her. Girls herd the cattle and men man the farms. Girls must be coy and polite in presence of men or even boys, a rule for which I never cared since an early age. Cover your moth when you laugh or smile. Dust swirls are dancing jinis. Good always triumphs over evil.  Sex is shameful. Children are sown in their mothers wombs by angels. Nomadic Arab tribes transiting though our stagnant villages in the Fall are thieves and not trustworthy. Twins turn into cats at night. God is called Nur and he is a touchable being that I can touch and hold on to; we actually have a phrase that translates to "I'm holding on to God." 

End of PART 1

‪#‎Sudan‬, the invisible county ... an appeal for international media

In case you don’t know what Sudan is, it is an African country- well, identity aside, this might be the only thing Sudanese people would agree on, its location. It shares boarders with Egypt and Ethiopia, among other countries, but you’d properly know these two countries if you live in the northern hemisphere, or anywhere to be frank. Our president, Omar al-Bashir, is the only sitting head of state wanted for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity for his crimes in Darfur. That might ring a bill.

This plagued country rarely makes it to the headline unless million of people die, a UN official issues yet another press release expressing concern about escalation of violence and calling on the Khartoum regime to bla bla bla, or a reporter manages to get his/her piece to print/wire for the lack of more worthy news ... only then, Sudan may make it to the news, and you’d see it in a shy corner under Africa affairs. However, more often than not, we are forgotten. We don’t exist. But the painful truth is, we do. And our live in Sudan is not that great and lack of media coverage exacerbates our agony.

The thing is, our stories are not sexy, and by that I mean they are not appealing to international media or audience. We are not ‘exotic’ enough, or at all. We fit the stereotype of an African country: poverty, inter-communal conflicts, kakistocracy government, and so many complex issues that no one has the time to unpack, or cares to do so. And for that, we are not making it to the headlines most of the time thus we circulate our miseries among us, Sudanese. We are consumed by tragedies; we enjoy interval moments of peace until the next blow. We have some uplifting stories from time to time but they too, go unnoticed.

Sudanese gathered at a graveyard burying a Student who was shot on April 27. Photo published on Twitter with little or no background info.

To be fair, we share some part of the blame. We, Sudanese, are not good at communicating with the world. We talk among us, we don’t think of non-Sudanese as audience. We often post photos with phrases only a Khartoumi or an urbanized Sudanese can decipher. We are insular; as a defense mechanism or as a copping one, it doesn’t matter, at the end of the day it keeps us out of the picture. And we are convinced that we are to face our daily promise of death alone. We’ve learnt that we are destined to mourn our victims alone. We learnt to express our sorrow in the most esoteric way for a foreign to understand what the hell is going on: fill our newsfeed with photos of young victims’ bodies covered with blood and faint phrases with no substance to tell the whole story; we share weeping poetry to refers to historical days or event, and you, non-Sudanese, will not know what we mean or what the hell is going on. We pay back for ignoring us by isolating you, which hurts us more than it hurts you. It gives us more reasons to indulge in our self-loathing rituals. 

We know that we have no Tahrir square to fill up with of thousand of energetic people holding funny signs that could go viral; we don’t’ have many savvy social media activists who have enough social capital to relay on to drag the attention. So we grew insular. We adjusted ourselves to the fact that we are left alone to deal with it on our own. We also think no non-Sudanese cares, so why bother to make our pain and stories accessible?

But we need international media to look our way; we need international media outlets to give us a line or two to tell our story. The few times our stories were heard, many lives were saved.[1] & [2]

3ayin Sudanese news website with focus on Nuba Mountains

Finding the right contact in Sudan might not be easy, I know. He or she might not have all the facts; but why don't you try to reach more than one person? I'm a journalist myself and I know tracing complex issue is hard, and we, journalists, function under tight deadlines and we tend to reach out to handful of names that we gathered over the years for each country. But, I hope you’d do more next time you cover Sudan. Spare an hour a week to follow some Sudanese social media. Believe me, one of the random photos with Arabic description might be your gate to a worthwhile story. Sudan has more to tell than what UN press releases or officials of other countries say about Sudan. Sudanese have a lot to share, and it will help you connect the dots. Try to reach out to them. Try. It will make our live better if our stories are heard. Just try, please.

[1] "An Idealist on Death Row," Foriegn Policy, October 3, 2012

[2] "Sudan 'apostasy' woman Meriam Yahia Ibrahim meets Pope," BBC, July 24, 2014

النظرة الدونية للمرأة في الخطاب السياسي الشعبوي السوداني

ميكافيلية يصنعها الرجال ويتحمل وزر اوصافها النساء

قرأت مؤخراً تعليقات غضبى تصف تلوّن السياسة الخارجية للسودان بالعُهر السياسي ووصفت احدها السودان بالعاهرة المُتسكعة في الشارع السياسي تبحث عن مُشتر ثري، وهو تعليق مُحمّل ومُثقل بقيم مُجتمعية عن القوة والقدرة والضعف والخنوع والنوع الجندري. أود أدناه توضيح الفرق البائن بين العهر وما تفلعه السياسة الخارجية السودانية.

الرئيس الايراني احمدي نجاد والرئيس السوداني عمر البشير عقب لقاء ثنائي لتوثيق العلاقات في ٢٠١١م مصدر الصورة  

تبّنت السياسة الخارجية للسودان في الفترة الأخيرة تحولات راديكالية وانتقال من ضفة لأخرى - من مُناصرة مُعلنة ومُسسترة لإيران إلى عداء سافر يتتبع خطى دول الخليج أينما ولّت وجهها في سعيّها لتصعيد الصراع مع الكتلة الشيعية. وما هو معلوم للكثير أن السودان كانت محطة تمرير للأسلحة الإيرانية للمقاومة الفلسطينية في قطاع غزة، وهو الأمر الذي لطالما أثار حفيظة دول الجوار وعلى وجه الخصوص السعودية، ناهيك عن استعداء اسرائيل التي اتهمتها السودان بقصف مصنع اليرموك في أكتوبر ٢٠١٢م. [1] وردت إيران بارسال فرطاقتين إلى السواحل الشرقية للسودان خلال أقل من اسبوع للتدليل على عمق العلاقة بين البلدين واستعداد إيران للزود عن السودان،[2] وخصوصاً بعد تدخل الأولى في الحروب الداخلية للأخيرة.

تعمقت العلاقة السودانية الإيرانية عندما شاركت إيران بقدراتها العسكرية في الحرب الأهلية في السودان في مايو ٢٠١٣م،[3] وردّت الدبلوماسية السعودية في اغسطس ٢٠١٣م بمنع طائرة الرئيس السوداني من عبور الأجواء السعودية في طريقها إلى إيران لحضور حفل تنصيب الرئيس الجديد حسن روحاني.[4] وعبرت السعودية صراحة عن اسفها للتقارب السوداني الإيراني على إثر الضربة التي قامت بها اسرائيل ضد السودان عبر مقالة الرأي للصحيفة السعودية "الرياض"، والتي تُعبر عن رأي القيادة السعودية، حيث قال يوسف الكويليت في كلمته: "السودان يمر بحالة فقدان التوازن عندما فقد صداقته العربية وخاصة دول الخليج العربي التي تعرف دقائق تحالفه مع إيران عسكرياً وسياسياً." [5] إلا أن عُرى العلاقة بين السودان وإيران انفصمت لأسباب يطول ذكرها، وولت الخرطوم وجهها للخليج وخصوصاً أن الظروف الإقليمية كانت مواتية لقبول العائدين من "الغي".[6]

إلا أنّ الخرطوم لا تنأي عن بيع أي شيء في سبيل الحصول على تمويل وسيولة لتسيير شؤون الدولة المُتهالكة والمُنهكة. فالرئيس السوداني الذي وصفته مذيعة سكاي نيوز العربية [7]- المموّلة إمارتياً - بأنه ابن الحركة الإسلامية الذي جاء إلى الحكم، إلا أن ذات البشير تنصل من تاريخ انتماءه للحركة الاسلامية وبرر لدول الجوار ادراج التنظيم في قائمة الإرهاب،[8] وهي من ضمن محاولات مُهطِعة للتطبيع مع الخليج والتطهر من وُزِرَها بالتقارب مع إيران. [9] وفي ذات اللقاء، برر اقفال الحُسينات وقلل من اهمية التبادل التجاري الإيراني-السوداني والذي يُقدر بـ ١٥٠ مليون دولار للعام ٢٠١٤م فقط. والآن الخرطوم تُشارك بعتادها - وجُله من تمويل وقدرات إيرانية - في حرب بالوكالة في اليمن، وطردت السفير الإيراني على إثر التصعيد الدبلوماسي بين إيران والسعودية،[10] [11]وخصوصاً أن السعودية الآن الانت جانبها[12] للسودان لمشاركة الأخير بلواء مشاة في حرب اليمن.[13]وما تزال الساحة حُبلى بتنازلات أكثر لها تداعاياتها سنشهدها على مدار العام الحالي.

ماهي اشكالية وصف السياسة التي غالباً ما تكون صنيعة رجالية بالعُهر؟

إن الحديث عن بهلوانيات السياسة الخارجية السودانية - او الداخلية - حديثٌ ذو دهشة لا تنقطع، إلا أن الغرض من المدخل الأول اعلاه هو لطرح سؤال يتعلق بوصف سلوك السودان بـ "العُهر" وهو ما يعني ضمناً ان السودان "عاهرة" تذهب لمن يدفع أكتر. 

النمط السياسي أعلاه والعلاقة المتداخلة  love triangle بين السعودية وإيران والسودان هي أمر سياسي (رجالي) بحت. فالطريف في الأمر أن الدول الثلاث هذه تحديداً لا وجود للمرأة كصانع قرار في الشؤون المتعلقة بالسياسة الخارجية أو الأمن الوطني، والوجه النسائي الوحيد في الثلاث دول المملوكة بالكلية للرجال هي رضیة أفخم، المتحدثة باسم وزارة الخارجية الإيرانية في دولة الرئيس حسن روحاني، وهي أول إمرأة تشغل هذا المنصب في جمهورية إيران، إلا أنها ليست في موقع صنع للقرار وإن كانت ناقلة له. وعليه، لما تصف تبعات سياسات خططها ونفذها (الرجال) بوصف العهر المُقتصر ضمناً على المرأة؟ هل لأن مواعين اللغة عقرت عن إيجاد مُرادف للكلمة للرجل؟ أم لأننا مؤمنون تماماً بأن ادنى مرحلة يصلها الرجل هي وصفه بصفات النساء، وفي النساء العاهرات. الأمر بالنسبة لي متعلق بثقافة حقوق الإنسان ومدة اقتناعنا حقيقة بحقوق من يتعرضون للاستغلال الجنسي والاتجار بالبشر، وتعريفنا لماهية الاستغلال. فالمراة العاملة في مجال تجارة الجنس لا تملك بالضرورة قرارها بالانفلات منه، فهذه الصناعة يحرسها مُستثمرون يجعلون امر الفكاك من المواخير أمراً بالغ الصعوبة. أما السودان على الجانب الآخر، فمهما أهان نفسه بحسب الآراء، فلديه ما يعطيه ويمنعه، بعكس حال العاهرة التي لا تملك رفاهية المنع في أغلب الأحيان. 

مصدر الصورة

لنفكك الأمر سوية لنصل لكهن الأمر. من هي العاهرة من الأساس؟ ولتفسير المفردة من الضروري تحديد السياق المُجتمعي لها، فنحن هنا نتحدث عن المجتمع الشرق أوسطي لا غيره، حيث حديث الجنسانية او المدارس الفكرية التي تؤيد حق المرأة في جسدها لا تُسهم بشكل مُباشر أو غير مُباشر في الوعي الجمعي. إذن من هي العاهرة التي نصف بها سلوك التأرجح السياسي للخرطوم، وهو التأرجح المعلوم للسياسة بشكل عام حيث تتبع الدول مصالحها أينما كانت ومع أي كانت، ولكن نظل هنا نصفها بالعهر، وبتعمد أو بغير تعمد، نقصد المحمول السالب الانثوي إن صح التعبير. سبق لي وان قمت ببحث مع عاملات في مجال الجنس، ولم يسبق أن اخبرتني احداهن بأنها كانت تحلم في صغرها بأن تكبر وتكون عاهرة تبيع في المتعة لمن يُريد. جُلهن قادتهن ظروف مُتباينة في ظاهرها وتتفق في جورها لتجارة الجنس؛ الفقر والنزوح والإجبار ظروف تتكرر وتربط بينهم بخيط لا مرئي. عقد مُقارنة بين التأرجح في المواقف السياسية، والتي كما سبق وذكرت أساس السياسة وتحكمها الضرورات السياسية دائمة التغيير، بسلوك العاهر التي هي في الأساس بائع (مجبور) لبضاعة من الطبيعي أن يذهب لمن يدفع أكثر، أمر بالغ الغرابة، إلا أن التفسير الوحيد لذلك هو رغبة من يستخدم الوصف في اسباغ الصفة الدونية على الموصوف وبالتحديد وصفه بالأثنوية الخنوع التي تؤخذ بقوة الرجل المالك لمبلغ الشراء. بالتالي المُشتري - الرجل عادة - هو الاقوى. ومن الجلي أن صفات الفجر الرجالية لا تروي غل الثائرين على تقلبات السياسات الخارجية فالوصف بالفجور للرجل هو وصف للفعل، أما وصف احدهم بانه عاهرة فهو وصف دوني مُركب، انت امرأة يبيعها رجل ويشتريها - أدنى مكانة مُتخيلة في الوعي الجمعي الذكوري.[14] 

أميل للرأي الذي يرى الدعارة كاتجار بالبشر واستغلال جنسي، ولا أرى العاهرة او المُتاجرة بالجنس سوى ضحية من نوع ما، وظروف عملها غير عادلة، وتقتطع من انسانيتها ما لا تُغطية كُلفة الليلة الواحدة مهما ارتفعت التكلفة. إن انحينا التعاطف مع عاملات الجنس جانباً، لم يُستثنى الرجل المتمتع بخدمات عاملات الجنس من الوصف وساء اللغة عليه بمفردة جديرة بالتداول؟ لما تحمل "العاهرة" وزر اختيارها واختيار طالب المُتعة؟ الاجابة ببساطة هي أن المقصود من الوصف هو التقليل المُرتبط بوضع المراة في الوعي الجمعي، وهو أمر لا يتقصر على ثقافتنا بالطبع بل سلوك مُتّبع في ثقافات العالم أجمع ترتبط جميعها بالمرجعية الفكرية التي ترى المرأة العنصر الأضعف المُهان ويسهل شراءه. 

ليست هذه المرة الأولى التي توصف فيها سياسات الخرطوم بالعهر، أو تُستخدم فيها صفات مُقللة للمرأة في سياق سياسي. فحسن اسماعيل، الكادر الخطابي المفوّه لحزب الأمة الذي انتقل حديثاً لكتلة الحزب الحاكم أجج مشاعر المُحتشدين في محفل معارض منتقداً فساد وزير المالية بقوله" ياهو يقعد واحنا نقعد في بيتونا نلبس طرح"[15] أو الخيار الآخر الرجالي الضمني الذي لم يقله فانطلقت الهتافات جُؤارُ رجالية بـ "حرية" "حرية"! دون أن يطرف لأحد منهم جفن. والهتاف المؤيد يستجمع كل التقليد الشعبي الذي يرى قمة الذل والهوان للرجل أن يكون امرأة - وان لبست طرحة - فناهيك إن كانت عاهرة! ولتكتمل الصورة، لابد أن ننظر لفكرة تناول المراة للسياسة التي تُرى بانها حكر على الرجل. وتتنازل المرأة العاملة في مجال السياسة عن حقها في التنافس على مواقع تنفيذية كمقعد رئاسة الجمهورية خشية استفزاز المُجتمع "التقليدي"،[16] وهو أمرٌ يُقرأ مع فتوى علماء السودان التي حرّمت ترشح المراة للرئاسة [17]- وانكرت صلتها بالبيان فيما بعد. وذات المرأة المُستخدمة كرمزية للتحقير هي ذاتها المرأة المُستخدمة لتحفيز الرجولة في الرجل والتفاخر بتقدير المهيرات والكنداكات، وهو احتفاء في نظري غير راسخ او مُستقر في الثقافة الشعبية بل احتفاء عابر ومرحلي كمدخل لرفع همم "الرجل"، بينما النظرة الدونية للمرأة وكل ما هو مُرتبط بها من تُقي (لبس الطرحة) أو فجور (العهر) مُتعمقة ومُتجذرة.

الثقافة الراسخة هذه ليست وليدة اللحظة وتتبعها ليس بالأمر السهل، فهي تراكمات التعاملات اليومية، وما تحوية من محمول ثقافي متوارث منطوق أو ملموس، يكرس لتفوق الرجل على المراة وبالتالي اعتبار وصف خصم بما بتتصف به المرأة انتقاصاً يليق بحجم الخطأ (الكبير عادة). هي ثقافة ممزوجة في الأغاني، والطقوس، وتوزيع السُلطة في اي حيز حتى لو كان مكان عام. أذكر أن صديقاً نشر على صفحته الشخصية على الفيسبوك عن تصرف سائق لحافلة في الخرطوم كال فيها السباب لفتاة على تمشي في الشارع المُقابل للحافلة لأن طرحتها سقطت عن رأسها - بعمد أو بدون قصد، ووصفها بأقذع صفة تُلطلق على امرأة في مُجتمع مُحافظ. والمؤلم أكثر أن الفتاة رفعت طرحتها ولم يُبد أي شاهد على الموقف تذمره من الفعل، فالسائق هنا وكّل نفسه بأن يكون وصياً على قيمة العفة المُجتمعية، وهي سُلطة لا يملكها إلا الرجل على المرأة، فلن تسمع عن أمرأة قوّمت سلوكاً لرجل على الملاء ونجت بفلعها من المُخطئ أو الحضور.

وعليه، فهذه المنظومة السياسية المرهونة للثقافة المتوارثة عن النوع، تطل برأسها من حين إلى آخر في خطاب الرجل المُثقف، فوعيّه القريب والعميق نتاج لكل ما يراه ويُشاهده ويسمعه في مُحيطه القريب.

وختاماً، سلوك السودان مع دول الجوار مُتفق مع الأعراف الدولية في السياسة الخارجية، وهي ذاتية وميكافيلية ولا تخضع للحسابات الأخلاقية الطوباوية، ومن ظنها كذلك يحتاج أن يتلمس ثقافته السياسية. إن المأخذ الحقيقي على السودان في تلوّنه السياسي والتحالفي هو تبعات هذه التلوّنات على المدى البعيد والقريب كذلك، وهي حكمة تفتقرها حكومة الخرطوم فهي تسيّر أمورها بمنطق "رزق اليوم باليوم".

-------------------------------------------------

الهوامش

[1] "الخرطوم: 4 طائرات إسرائيلية قصفت مجمعاً عسكرياً" العربية نت، ٢٤ أكتوبر ٢٠١٢م http://goo.gl/7zQJgC
[2] "الخرطوم تعلن وصول فرقاطتين إيرانيتين.. وتجدد النيران في مصنع اليرموك الحربي،" الرياض، ٣١ اكتوبر ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/2227Oc
[3] "إيران تدخل رسميا فى حرب الخرطوم ضد متمرديها،" الوطن العربي، ١١ مايو ٢٠١٣م http://goo.gl/Bm6ufe
[4] "السعودية تمنع مرور طائرة البشير وإيران تأسف،" الجزيرة، ٤ اغسطس ٢٠١٣م http://goo.gl/n15lU9
[5] "كلمة الرياض : سقوط الأقنعة بين السودان.. وإيران.." الرياض، ١ نوفمبر ٢٠١٢م http://goo.gl/OfZVQH
[6] "3أسباب دفعت السودان لتفضيل السعودية على إيران،" الخبر، ٢ مايو ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/jpx2pn
[7] فيديو| بصراحة.. مع الرئيس السوداني عمر البشير، قناة سكاي نيوز عربية، ٢ ديسمبر ٢٠١٥م https://goo.gl/3yN5xC
[8] "الرئيس السوداني عمر البشير لـ «الاتحاد»: علاقاتنا مع الإمارات متينة ومتواصلة منذ عهد زايد،" الاتحاد، ٢٣ فبراير ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/O8RA1H
[9] للمزيد عن تاريخ النظام الحاكم مع التنظيم الدولي للإخوان المُسلمين "البشير نحو صفقة جديدة: ترك الإسلاميين مقابل دعم اقتصادي،" العربي الجديد، ٢٨ فبراير ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/9Whgwq
[10] السودان ينضم للبحرين ويقطع علاقاته الديبلوماسية مع إيران،" Deutsche Welle، ٤ يناير ٢٠١٦ http://goo.gl/yas6Jm
[11] "السودان يؤكد قطع العلاقات الدبلوماسية مع إيران تضامنا مع السعودية ضد "المخططات الإيرانية"، سي. إن. إن، ٤ يناير ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/gt7TZ9
[12] "الاتفاقيات السعودية السودانية.. هل تنعش اقتصاد السودان؟"، الجزيرة، ٦ نوفمبر ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/kLhjmB
[13] “قوات سودانية تنتشر في (عدن) اليمنية مدعومة بالأسلحة والمدرعات لتعزيز قوات التحالف،” سودان تريبيون، ١٧ اكتوبر ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/s7lNxT
[14] فيلم وثقائقي "في الليل يرقصن" يُسلط الضوء على تجارة الجنس في مصرhttps://goo.gl/ZUXHlV
[15] فيديو يوتيوب لحديث حسن اسماعيل| https://goo.gl/gJstMt
[16] “المرأة تتخوف من الترشح لرئاسة السودان” الشروق ٢٩ اغسطس ٢٠١٤م http://goo.gl/pC4Pr0
[17] "بعد ترشح سيدتين: هيئة علماء السودان: لا يجوز تولي المرأة لرئاسة الجمهورية،" مُحيط، ١٥ يناير ٢٠١٥م http://goo.gl/V2u7Px

** الشكر العميق لمحمد عثمان لاقتراحه عنوانا مُلائما واقصر للموضوع. 

The general in his labyrinth or should I say denial?

I have written this article in response to the interview of the Sudanese President with Kevin Sieff of the Washington Post published on December 23, 2014. My response was published in Sudan Tribune, on January 5, 2015.

First of all, I should congratulate Kevin Sieff not only for  having the opportunity to meet with our bloodthirsty President , but also for escaping the fate hovering over most journalists in Sudan i.e. detention and intimidation.  I hope he makes it safe after all; you cannot trust the Sudanese government, that I know for certain.

The online edition of the interview welcomes the reader with a photo of the Sudanese President, Omer Al-Bashir, smiling sheepishly with wandering eyes that are not directed at the camera.  I went back to photo after reading the interview and I reckon that his evasive look suits the fallacy he had told in the interview.

What is intriguing about this interview is that the President bluntly told sated lies and artlessly twisted facts.  He was deeply indulged in self-victimization and blamed all his victims for their own misery.  It was the Southerners Sudanese who did not fulfil their end of the CPA agreement, the Darfurian refugees who like the easy life in camps and do not want return to their intact homes, Rapid Support Forces existence is a military necessity and a product of asymmetric conflict with fluid rebels, and finally Sep 2013 demonstrators were terrorists and the government was forced to react.

I must admit that I admired how much the President tried not to use his usual jingoistic slur he generously offers in Sudanese media.   But I wished if he had shared his genius conclusion he recently claimed that Sudan Call is orchestrated by the CIA and Mossad, who are instigating Sudanese political oppositions' dissention from the government-sponsored national dialogue.  The President assured the interviewer of the oppositions' soon return to the government national dialogue, although his security forces detained two significant signatories of Sudan Call, Chairman of the opposition National Consensus Forces Faruq Abu Issa Abu Issa and Amin Makki Madani .

So, let's take a look at the black comedy play our president staged on Washington Post pages:

Nonsense # 1: UNAMID Is Not Needed, Darfur is Safe Now

Cartoon by Sudanese cartoonist Nayer 

My nonsense tally is not in order of the questions the President had answered but rather based on relevance to current affairs.  Therefore, I will start with the  answers he gave in the third question about demanding the depart of United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID). Sudan has taken a habit in disrespecting the international community every time it feels cornered. It was first UNAMID Human Rights Office in Khartoum, and then  expelled two senior U.N. officials on Dec 24, one day after the Washington Post interview was published.  

As for the claims that UNAMID is incapable of providing protection, Mr. President seems to act as if he is not an integral part of the conflict that necessitated the presence of UNAMID, and limiting its ability at the same time.  Albeit our criticism of UNAMID performance, we cannot turn a blind eye to the governance lack of respect of the UNAMID’s mandate or its rule.  The government decision to evict UNAMID is part of its ongoing attitude towards conflicts. Prolonging them.

Mr. President yet gave a false statement about the peace process in the region and claimed that the peaceful areas in Darfur are expanding.  The President, who expressed his concerns about the Internally Displaced People IDPs, did not know that they are not only hundreds of thousands.  As of December 2013, and according to the UN, there are  2.9 million IDPs in Sudan. Mr. President, please check your facts.  

And Mr. President cannot actually understand that IDPs are not migrating birds and their transition from IDP camps to their villages is not a picnic or enjoyable road trip. Those IDPs, whom the President accused of loving ‘easy life in camps’ and aid dependent, actually have no place to return to, and their villages are burnt down with no sign of any public services.   Many refugees in Chad,  had taken then step voluntarily to return, as they did in 2012, only to lose once again what they had hoped for: peace, and they went back to Chad in influx that the international community still dealing with its ramifications.  Let’s assume that today all IDPs repatriated to their homes, and for the sake of the argument we will hypothetically assume that their houses are still standing.  How easy it is for war survivals to return to normal life? what about the trauma? what about the economic well-being and rebuilding? What guaranties that catalysts for the past conflicts are now resolved? For one, the governance style has not change.

The President lightheartedly said “they went back and it was safe and they farmed their lands.” I wish life was that simple Mr. President. IDPs returnees, if we were to shake a magical wand and return them to their homes, won’t find the ability to farm or the sense of security to do so. And farming takes more than a man and fertile soil.

Nonsense #2: September 2013: We Only Killed 80 People, Not 200

As for September 2013, the President blamed the victims, as usual.  First, he dehumanized the victims and shortened them to numbers, by referring to them as “number of people who died.” “Who died”?  They were killed.  Using the past tense "died" suggests that those armless protesters died of natural causes not police intentional "shoot to kill" conduct.   He was so fixated on the correcting the number more than answering the way in which those number were counted as causalities.   When finally he decided to answer the question of their dead circumstance, he claimed that the 80 people who 'died', died of their clashes with the police.   This what the president is promoting in his self-victimization campaign: Unarmed people lost their mind and clashed with heavily armed police. They attacked the police therefore they deserves to meet their demise for trying. I am relieved he did not say they were high or stoned to justify his allegations. The interesting thing is that he pictured the demonstration as a scene in a si-fi movie. Demonstrators attack police stations and courts.  All courts mind you in Khartoum. But only 80 died? how many courts and police stations do you have in your capital Mr. President? The President went on claiming that the “people who died” killed people and destroyed property with no mention of number of victims as he was very meticulous about the number of demonstrators “who died.”

Another fascinating analogy the President made is comparing Sudan with the U.S. The funnier analogy was describing the demonstrators as terrorists, who are Qaeda ally, which is quite interesting if we reflect on the reasons that put Sudan on U.S. sanctions list in the first place.

Nonsense # 3: Sudan-South Sudan Conflict is Patrimonial

Answering a question about the impact of the American sanctions on Sudan, the president answered another question he heard in his head.  The question specifically asked about the impact of U.S. sanctions on Sudanese people and Sudan’s economy.  The answer had no mentioned of Sudan people or their economic well-being for the matter.

Al-Bashir claimed that lifting sanctions was contingent to ending war with the South, which he thinks had been delivered. Nevertheless, the president got touched by a historical fairy and said that the conflict actually, which he just claimed ending it with diligence and willing to compromise, tracks back to the mists of time for which he blamed the British Colonization. First of all Mr. President, Sudan-South Sudan conflict might had been inherited from colonization, but all consecutive governments reproduce the same tactics of exclusions. The two decades wars during your reign were international and ideological. The South war and the ramifications of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), and its ramifications in form of the South Sudan independence in 2011, fulfilled the Sudanese government's quest for “purging” the country from all aspects of diversity, in race or religion. Evidently, you, Mr. President, wanted the secession to happen.  Demanding lifting sanctions in return for what in fact serves your ideological goals, is dishonest and distortion of truth.

Nonsense # 4: We delivered peace, therefore, we should be rewarded

Answering the same question about the sanction, the president  went on in lamentation about how the U.S. had tricked them into signing many agreements to end conflicts with the promise of lifting the sanctions. I am not sure if the president has a PR person or someone sensible to advise him on how to portray himself.  All I know is that argument made him sound like a toddler mad at his teacher for denying him his perks for not cleaning his desk.  It is your desk. You made it dirty. Take reasonability.  Hello?! Mr. President, you should not demand or need an incentive to end conflicts you have started and fueled for years. Period. Get over yourself.  Conflict in Darfur had been, and still is, a pressuring  card for the Sudanese regime. It is money-generating conflict in which the governments keep reselling to different stakeholders for different prices.  So, Mr. President, please!

Nonsense # 5: When Revenge Is Actually not a Revenge at All

Do we remember the question about the sanctions' impact on Sudan’s people and the country’s economy that the president turned it into tears bond on unfulfilled promises? Here how he concluded his irrelevant answer, which I consider a masterpiece and indicative of the political and intellectual capacities, or the lack thereof, of our President:

"And, of course, we need to see very clearly the loss incurred on the United States by the economic influence of china. It is a loss. That’s why we say the sanctions hurt us. But they also hurt the United States."

Amazing! Right? How could the president think that he made the U.S. tastes it's own poison, and that Sudan and  inflicted any economic losses on America by establishing a partnership with the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt i.e. China, which owns more about $1.2 trillion of U.S. debt.

There is much more to this interview than what an op-ed could handle. But I hope the facts are checked and people get to hear the many sides to the story.

Racism in Sudan: The Elephant in the Room

Reading  "Americanah" by  Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie prompted me to write this blog. If you hadn't read it, please do so! **

________

Since my move to the U.S. in early 2012, the issue of race has always been present.  I hear it in radio/TV talk shows, stand-up comedies, movies, grad school classes, and open mike events. I read it in newspapers and books, and it is always present when Obama’s name comes up. I have walked in several marches pertinent to police cruelty against black and listened to African-American speakers sharing their thoughts and demanding change. But does that make America a better place now for blacks or colored people? of course not, and indeed there is much more to be done.  But at least the topic is not a taboo or avoided by the colored themselves.  Social change is a process not a destination.  We become what we aspire for as we proceed. So you find “race” right there front and center wherever you find a black person, even if many would like this topic to be left behind in the past.  But people still do talk about race and racism, and the discussion should never stop. Never. Otherwise, laws, and people could easily slack and go back to the world of white supremacy.

Sugarcoating: Is it racism or tribalism in Sudan? 

The first sign that this topic is a taboo in sudan is that it is not called in its real name.  It is mitigated and called  gablia قبيلية  [Arabic for tribalism]. While tribalism is indeed a toxic ingredient that jeopardizes social harmony and social justice,  it is not the same as racism or Arab supremacy in Sudan.  Why? Because tribal characteristics of Arab tribes, albeit their difference, at the end of the end of the day, they collectively, triumph over African tribes. And this is the case in Sudan.  Jaalai [ جعلي] and Sahigi  [شايقي] might scuffle about each one's avarice or  temerity stereotypes,  but they are still considered awlad Arab اولاد عرب [Arabic for Arabians], which has positive connotation  thus spontaneously place them on the top of social hierarchy compared to those less Arabs.

Illusion

By Sudanese cartoonist KhalidAlbaih [1]

I often hear people say that old Sudanese people were never racist.  Or that they if they were racist, they never explicitly acted on their racism. That people were race-blind so to speak.  I find it hard to believe that race was not an issue until the current government came to power.  Or that racism in Sudan is just another manifestation of the present global wave of tribalism.  Nor that I think the government is innocent of instigating differences along racial lines.  But I rather suggest that the regime is using what is already latent and implicit within the social setting.  Racism, prejudice, and the notion of Arab supremacy do/did exist in Sudan.  Why am I so fixated on saying that we are racist? Because you cannot tackle what you think it doesn’t exist. So, first we need to admit the existence of racism to be able to embark on a journey to find its root, and to address it eventually.

Race has always been an issue in Sudan, and it will also be as long as Sudanese people are in limbo about their Africanism.  Race was always there, but we try to sweep it under the carpet.  If you need to know how race is significant in our collective conscious, please read the history of slavery in Sudan, and it  might shed light  on this reality.  

Reading kitab al tabagt by daifallah [2] طبقات ود  ضيف الله,  one would find profuse contents to get a feel of the presence of race long before the creation of the modern state in Sudan.  In page 108 of the fifth edition, the biography of one of the scholars indicates that his mother was Sudnaia سودانية, which was explained in the footnote that the name was the prevalent references for the indigenous people of the land i.e. the blacks. Two things caught my attention: one, the maternal lineages gained significant due to its ties to negro race. I did not find another reference in the book that mentioned a mother from the Arabian background. Two: the origin of the country's name "Sudan" should had given supremacy to the black race since they are the indigenous, but this is not the case as we all know.

Avoidance

I rarely heard any candid  discussion about race or racism among Sudanese.  Those who are on the receiving end of prejudice prefer not to talk about it with the racially-charged knowing how sour the conversation could go. In more than one occasion, I was in social settings where the Arabized Northerners entertained light discussions form the position of the privileged, charged with more vanity than sympathy. They share anecdotes of so and so marrying form the “others” and how they see it as an indication of the collapse of racial barriers. I usually do not fancy telling them that this is an oversimplification of racial issues in Sudan. Intermarriage could be a result of socioeconomic reconfiguration not the ebbing of racism.     

Sometime it seems to me that people resorted to unspoken codes of race/class classifications, of who is who, and who belongs where. The privileged enjoy their privileges and those in the lower ranks of social hierarchy either accepted their position and admired the inherent  privileges the privileges enjoy, or resented the unfair racial compartmentalization, however, they still could not change it.  

Can we change it?

Changing the perception of race and prejudice works in multiple levels and dimensions. First, it requires a state that is not a patronage system. Because a patronage system needs social classification to sustain loyalty, therefore, it enacts adequate regulations to keep a tap on who belongs to what. Also, fear is necessary for people to endure a corrupt regime. What is best than making one fear the “other” whose image is systematically portrayed as an inferior and ambush to attack his master? Second, changing perception of race needs a change in power dynamics, which cannot be accomplished under totalitarian control. Third, racism should not be treated as a myth, it needs to be brought up and disarmed. There should be enough foundation of deep understanding of what racism means and its impacts on people’s live. Racism is not only calling someone A’ab عب [Arabic for slave]. Racism is thinking that some’s life is not as worthy as yours.  Whatever that entails, including the right to “be” free of prejudgment and limitation to power or opportunities based on race.

I am always delighted when the topic of racism is brought up in a cognitive context for it makes people relate.  Recently,  youth started to bring those topics up in poetry or on stage.  It is a good start to build the foundation of understanding although  the privileged indeed opt to look the other way when the word onsoriah عُنصرية [Arabic for racism] peeks its head in conversations.  

________

** It was hard for me to finish the novel in one week due its richness in topics and its complex plot.  While the topic I will highlight in this blog is race, I was moved by other aspects the writer brought up about what African women face when they come to the U.S.: sexuality, identity, African-American v.s American form Africa, belonging, fitting, interracial relationships, and redefining oneself, among other issues.  Maybe I will get to write about those issues someday!

[1] Two Sudanese people calling one another 3ab (Slave or black)  -  by KhalidAlbaih

[2] The author of the book, Mohamed Alnour bin DaifAllha  said to be born in 1727 and died in 1810. The book is considered one of the major primary references to the Fung Sultanate, (also known as the  Black Sultanate). The book was aimed to be an encyclopedia of religious scholars of that era.