my relationship with war started when us
just a few months old my mother sister
and I fled Juba to Uganda my father
refused to come with us because he was
scared of the unknown and that’s how a
small family that I just been started
was separated my country South Sudan is
the world youngest country born out of
decades of war to attain independence
from Sudan in 2011 when we attained our
independence we sang danced and screamed
at the top of our voices throughout the
all night
that is one celebration that all South
Sudanese will never forget most of our
South Sudanese have not known peace and
many are skilled in the ways of war my
country South Sudan has more than 64
tribes
yet with transition from fighting for
independence to fighting each other why
some for power some to control and and
some they just want to defend their way
of life and their sense of dignity they
say it takes a village to raise a child
I say it will take every South Sudanese
working together to change the story of
South Sudan from war and devastation
to hope and peace just two weeks ago I
was part of a group of peace activists
that traveled to Addis Ababa to support
the peace process we were not allowed in
the room where the peace talks were
actually taking place but we knew that
we could influence the process and
influence the people we talked to our
warring parties and all the participants
at every opportunity that we had we used
a drawing by a South Sudanese artist
called up where to illustrate what South
Sudan would look like if we all work
together on this side as you can see
this is reality
back home women dying before their
children children dying in the hands of
their mothers the country in chaos take
a look at the site and imagine if we all
assess the needs work together what
country would have would have a
beautiful country a prosperous country a
country where children are even going to
school I remember we use the same
drawing and I use this drawing to talk
to one of the men and when I showed him
this drawing immediately he was like
this picture is pushing some of us out
of the country but later he came back
and said wait they say a picture says
1,000 words and when I look at this
drawing I see a woman I see a man and I
see a soldier rolling and pushing away
all the ugly side and that could be a
South Sudanese if we all
work together that drawing was a
conversation starter I realized that
that man and I share the same dream I
despite that dream we all came out very
disappointed
why because once again those peace talks
did not bring the peace that were all
yearning for there have been so many
peace agreement signed in the past and
have all fallen apart since December
2013 2.5 million people have fled the
country 63 percent of those are children
and many sought refuge here in copmi
inside my country will impact every part
of our lives over two million people are
internally displaced the most affected
are women and children whoa is a psycho
but I believe just like any other cycle
it can be broken through hard work and
commitment when war happens in our
country many things take place
it destroys and separates families just
like a d2 mine
it destroys communities it also
devastates the country’s infrastructure
hospitals are almost non-existent
schools are destroyed and even though it
rains almost half their clean water is a
what happens to the country’s economy it
is completely destroyed but despite all
those horrible effects of war people
still choose to hope and some choose to
go back home the returned because they
want to rebuild what has been broken
very time because they want to bring
hope back to their country the return
because no matter how bad things are
they just want to go home the first time
I returned home was in 2004 we had
stayed away in Uganda for more than 13
years
I remember we travelled by rod for two
weeks I journey that now only talks
takes about 12 to 14 hours that was the
longest journey of my life we only
traveled when it was safe there was so
many checkpoints sometimes they would
stop us and other times though let us
through
when I arrived I was struck by the
devastation I saw an empty land I saw a
country that did not have proper
infrastructure
it was very dusty and very hot it just
looked ugly to me but that’s why that
ugliness I felt at home
I remember my uncle and his family had
so little but it’s not a chicken to
he also gave me a crate of troll sodas
commonly known as team back home to
celebrate my birthday
you can imagine what luxury that was I
felt so good and I felt at home but I
had to go back to Uganda to finish my
was finishing my final exams in the
university and after my exams I just
wanted to go home and since then I’ve
been working to rebuild my country I met
this amazing South Sudanese women we had
all struggle through life but we had a
passion for peace and equality and
together we found a women’s organization
called crown the woman South Sudan to
fight for women’s rights and empower
young girls forever the earth in their
schools in the displacement comes we
mentor these girls and teach them to
believe in themselves if you asked a
young South Sudanese school girl who her
role model is she may tell you Michelle
Obama elope it’s Onyango which is not a
bad thing at all because I personally
love those women but we just want to
show them that they are great South
Sudanese women doing amazing work right
there in their communities and they too
can we also work with women and our
message is this irrespective of our
tribe irrespective of our political
affiliations irrespective of our faith
and irrespective of our wealth we are
all at the bottom suffering together the
simple truth is being female in South
Sudan is dangerous it means you’re
facing threats of sexual violence
it means you being forced into marriage
I’m not going to school it also means
that your chances of dying in childbirth
are higher than almost anywhere else in
the world we are up against this
traditional culture that has told us
women and the men that women can do
nothing at all because they have no
power that men have all the same but
look where that has got us that is not
okay
that is not fine at all and we must
change things last year I took part in a
groundbreaking remain silent piece much
that was organized by a coalition of
thousand is women we marched to demand
an end to this war
we also much because we wanted an end to
all this violence because we were all
tired on the day of the March I remember
there was a group of men playing
football where I was supposed to start
from most of them ignored us but one of
them came and asked what are all these
women gathering here for and we replied
we are having a silent march for peace
and to my surprise he immediately joined
and on his black hat he wrote we are all
man when it comes to ending war in South
Sudan progress is still very slow my
country South Sudan is still on fire and
given though Juba is relatively safe the
other parts are still under attacks and
people are still dying my message is to
our leaders that people are dying and we
are tired and this discourages me this
makes me feel like giving up sometimes
and all the times I feel like giving up
I recall an incident when I just come
back from the University I was
volunteering with this organization that
helped internally displaced people as a
civic education officer before a food
distribution I would talk to them to
choose peace over war I would tell them
that we can love one another we can
forgive one another and we can live
alongside one another I remember one of
those days an old woman who was about
eight years of age interrupted me and
said my daughter you are too young to
talk to us about peace and peaceful
co-existence those people have destroyed
us they have destroyed our funds they
have killed our children and husbands
and they are the reason as to why we are
in this displaced calm
I was so discouraged and I felt so bad
but somehow I listened to my inner voice
and replied haboob ah meaning
grandmother I hear all your concerns and
I do feel your pain so deeply but for
how long will you all continue staying
in this displaced camp waiting for hope
homeless and hopeless just imagine if we
all live together in peace would have a
country where our children would go to
school and would even sleep in
comfortable beds she was moved and
replied you are right my daughter
we need to forgive and live with one
another may God bless you and may you
continue to be our voice so as you can
see I’m not about to give up simply
because of hope that her booba had it
the girls and the women I work with have
it that man has a much had it and that
man are the peace talks in addis ababa
hadith and i believe today that all of
our message is to our leaders of South
Sudan to all South Sudanese and to the
rest of the world that we want more
women at the table not just negotiating
peace but also making decisions and
developing our country we want peace in
South Sudan we want a country where
everyone can thrive
we are fighting without guns and through
non-violence to heal a war-torn country
and I believe with all my heart that the
work we are doing will not only break
the cycle of war but you to help us
unlearn the decades of violence and we
will change the story of South Sudan thank you
just a few months old my mother sister
and I fled Juba to Uganda my father
refused to come with us because he was
scared of the unknown and that’s how a
small family that I just been started
was separated my country South Sudan is
the world youngest country born out of
decades of war to attain independence
from Sudan in 2011 when we attained our
independence we sang danced and screamed
at the top of our voices throughout the
all night
that is one celebration that all South
Sudanese will never forget most of our
South Sudanese have not known peace and
many are skilled in the ways of war my
country South Sudan has more than 64
tribes
yet with transition from fighting for
independence to fighting each other why
some for power some to control and and
some they just want to defend their way
of life and their sense of dignity they
say it takes a village to raise a child
I say it will take every South Sudanese
working together to change the story of
South Sudan from war and devastation
to hope and peace just two weeks ago I
was part of a group of peace activists
that traveled to Addis Ababa to support
the peace process we were not allowed in
the room where the peace talks were
actually taking place but we knew that
we could influence the process and
influence the people we talked to our
warring parties and all the participants
at every opportunity that we had we used
a drawing by a South Sudanese artist
called up where to illustrate what South
Sudan would look like if we all work
together on this side as you can see
this is reality
back home women dying before their
children children dying in the hands of
their mothers the country in chaos take
a look at the site and imagine if we all
assess the needs work together what
country would have would have a
beautiful country a prosperous country a
country where children are even going to
school I remember we use the same
drawing and I use this drawing to talk
to one of the men and when I showed him
this drawing immediately he was like
this picture is pushing some of us out
of the country but later he came back
and said wait they say a picture says
1,000 words and when I look at this
drawing I see a woman I see a man and I
see a soldier rolling and pushing away
all the ugly side and that could be a
South Sudanese if we all
work together that drawing was a
conversation starter I realized that
that man and I share the same dream I
despite that dream we all came out very
disappointed
why because once again those peace talks
did not bring the peace that were all
yearning for there have been so many
peace agreement signed in the past and
have all fallen apart since December
2013 2.5 million people have fled the
country 63 percent of those are children
and many sought refuge here in copmi
inside my country will impact every part
of our lives over two million people are
internally displaced the most affected
are women and children whoa is a psycho
but I believe just like any other cycle
it can be broken through hard work and
commitment when war happens in our
country many things take place
it destroys and separates families just
like a d2 mine
it destroys communities it also
devastates the country’s infrastructure
hospitals are almost non-existent
schools are destroyed and even though it
rains almost half their clean water is a
what happens to the country’s economy it
is completely destroyed but despite all
those horrible effects of war people
still choose to hope and some choose to
go back home the returned because they
want to rebuild what has been broken
very time because they want to bring
hope back to their country the return
because no matter how bad things are
they just want to go home the first time
I returned home was in 2004 we had
stayed away in Uganda for more than 13
years
I remember we travelled by rod for two
weeks I journey that now only talks
takes about 12 to 14 hours that was the
longest journey of my life we only
traveled when it was safe there was so
many checkpoints sometimes they would
stop us and other times though let us
through
when I arrived I was struck by the
devastation I saw an empty land I saw a
country that did not have proper
infrastructure
it was very dusty and very hot it just
looked ugly to me but that’s why that
ugliness I felt at home
I remember my uncle and his family had
so little but it’s not a chicken to
he also gave me a crate of troll sodas
commonly known as team back home to
celebrate my birthday
you can imagine what luxury that was I
felt so good and I felt at home but I
had to go back to Uganda to finish my
was finishing my final exams in the
university and after my exams I just
wanted to go home and since then I’ve
been working to rebuild my country I met
this amazing South Sudanese women we had
all struggle through life but we had a
passion for peace and equality and
together we found a women’s organization
called crown the woman South Sudan to
fight for women’s rights and empower
young girls forever the earth in their
schools in the displacement comes we
mentor these girls and teach them to
believe in themselves if you asked a
young South Sudanese school girl who her
role model is she may tell you Michelle
Obama elope it’s Onyango which is not a
bad thing at all because I personally
love those women but we just want to
show them that they are great South
Sudanese women doing amazing work right
there in their communities and they too
can we also work with women and our
message is this irrespective of our
tribe irrespective of our political
affiliations irrespective of our faith
and irrespective of our wealth we are
all at the bottom suffering together the
simple truth is being female in South
Sudan is dangerous it means you’re
facing threats of sexual violence
it means you being forced into marriage
I’m not going to school it also means
that your chances of dying in childbirth
are higher than almost anywhere else in
the world we are up against this
traditional culture that has told us
women and the men that women can do
nothing at all because they have no
power that men have all the same but
look where that has got us that is not
okay
that is not fine at all and we must
change things last year I took part in a
groundbreaking remain silent piece much
that was organized by a coalition of
thousand is women we marched to demand
an end to this war
we also much because we wanted an end to
all this violence because we were all
tired on the day of the March I remember
there was a group of men playing
football where I was supposed to start
from most of them ignored us but one of
them came and asked what are all these
women gathering here for and we replied
we are having a silent march for peace
and to my surprise he immediately joined
and on his black hat he wrote we are all
man when it comes to ending war in South
Sudan progress is still very slow my
country South Sudan is still on fire and
given though Juba is relatively safe the
other parts are still under attacks and
people are still dying my message is to
our leaders that people are dying and we
are tired and this discourages me this
makes me feel like giving up sometimes
and all the times I feel like giving up
I recall an incident when I just come
back from the University I was
volunteering with this organization that
helped internally displaced people as a
civic education officer before a food
distribution I would talk to them to
choose peace over war I would tell them
that we can love one another we can
forgive one another and we can live
alongside one another I remember one of
those days an old woman who was about
eight years of age interrupted me and
said my daughter you are too young to
talk to us about peace and peaceful
co-existence those people have destroyed
us they have destroyed our funds they
have killed our children and husbands
and they are the reason as to why we are
in this displaced calm
I was so discouraged and I felt so bad
but somehow I listened to my inner voice
and replied haboob ah meaning
grandmother I hear all your concerns and
I do feel your pain so deeply but for
how long will you all continue staying
in this displaced camp waiting for hope
homeless and hopeless just imagine if we
all live together in peace would have a
country where our children would go to
school and would even sleep in
comfortable beds she was moved and
replied you are right my daughter
we need to forgive and live with one
another may God bless you and may you
continue to be our voice so as you can
see I’m not about to give up simply
because of hope that her booba had it
the girls and the women I work with have
it that man has a much had it and that
man are the peace talks in addis ababa
hadith and i believe today that all of
our message is to our leaders of South
Sudan to all South Sudanese and to the
rest of the world that we want more
women at the table not just negotiating
peace but also making decisions and
developing our country we want peace in
South Sudan we want a country where
everyone can thrive
we are fighting without guns and through
non-violence to heal a war-torn country
and I believe with all my heart that the
work we are doing will not only break
the cycle of war but you to help us
unlearn the decades of violence and we
will change the story of South Sudan thank you
Please follow and like us: