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DiggCan You Name Africa's Newest Country?
Correct – it’s South Sudan. But one month before independence, new fighting threatened the peace process. The story of how telecommunications grants from Trinity Wall Street played a behind the scenes role in bringing South Sudan to its independence day follows.
By Benjamin Musoke-Lubega and Sarah Grapentine
On June 6, 2011, the Sudanese Army attacked the city of Kadugli in South Kordofan state, on the northern side of the border with what would become independent South Sudan. Though black African and supportive of the independence movement, South Kordofan state was not included in the independence referendum and remains part of the north. The army’s goal was clear: assert the northern government’s control of the area through intimidation, violence, and displacement of the local population.
The Diocese of Kadugli & Nuba Mountains, along with the rest of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, had worked tirelessly to educate people about their rights, help them navigate the voting system, and tell the stories of violence against local communities. From the very first day of the conflict, the Anglican Diocese of Kadugli & Nuba Mountains was a target.
On the first day of fighting, the Sudanese army ransacked the diocesan office searching for the Bishop, who was abroad, and specific members of the clergy. Some were arrested and tortured. Despite this intimidation, the diocese was among the first to get word out about the crisis, using telecommunications equipment funded by the Trinity Grants Program. Emails from diocesan staff to the Archbishop of Sudan reached up to the Archbishop of Canterbury. The army returned in the following days, first destroying the telecommunications equipment and later the cathedral itself, but the message had already been sent and the eyes of the world were watching. In the first days the reports from the Episcopal Church of Sudan were a key source of information for reporting on the crisis around the world.
Despite the violence and intimidation against the clergy and staff of the Anglican Diocese of Kadugli & Nuba Mountains, The Most Reverend Daniel Deng Bul, Archbishop of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, insists that the telecommunications equipment Trinity provided to dioceses across the Province has saved lives. It did so by providing a communication channel to the international partners that support their ministries of peace-building and community development during the quiet days, and in the chaos, by helping call attention to violence against their people.
This article will be printed in the year-end issue of Trinity News. Sign up for a free subscription here.
The Rev. Canon Benjamin Musoke-Lubega is Deputy for Anglican Partnerships. Ms. Sarah Grapentine is Senior Program Office for Anglican Partnerships.
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