Migration season to the South
The lives of Southern families living in Northern Sudan are going through some radical changes. The voluntary repatriation program funded by the Government of Southern Sudan has prompted thousands of Southerners to pack their bags and return to their homeland to exercise their right to self-determination in the referendum on 9th January 2011.
The academic year is half way through and yet students are forced to leave their classes to go south, to a place they know nothing about. They have no choice but to obey the master of the house, who comply with the orders of political leaders, who in turn execute the orders of the Government of Southern Sudan. The Government of Southern Sudan has previously declared that it plans to repatriate around 1.5 million Southerners to the South in preparation for the upcoming referendum.
I had heard that many Southerners were setting off in buses from Sport City Square in Khartoum so at 9am I set off to find them. But to my surprise I did not
find the large number of people that I had imagined. I estimate there was about 200 people in total, sitting in buses. Parts of the Square was being used as a camp with makeshift tent in which tens of women and children had gathered. And yet the place was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
After a few minutes, I sat next to a woman making tea and coffee. She was surrounded by a number of young Southern people, who had been living in Khartoum and some of whom were the drivers of the buses bound for the South. The conversation with those guys started slightly cold and cagey, as I asked them about the trip coordinator that I had heard about, Abdulla Kam. They told me that he had not yet returned from Bentiu Area, Unity State Sudan, where he was supervising the reception of the first group that left few days ago. After a few minutes, the conversation became smoother and one of the young men spoke about his dream of going to the South, in search of better job opportunities. After a brief pause, he said in sorrow: \"when we get there we will see what we will do\". The other guys however showed no inclination to talk to me because of being a member of the press.
\"I am certain that a bright future awaits me in the South.\"
I left the tent to speak to another group sitting under the burning sun near their bags that were piled up next to them. They were more polite, and one of the children grabbed me a small chair and I noticed a young man selling falafel sandwiches. He told me that the Juba government had allocated 300 pounds (around $ 125) for each family returning to the South, in addition to covering travel expenses. I asked this group about the meals that will be provided, and a mother with her children denied that they would be receiving meals, but she hoped that they would be provided with food and drinks during the journey. The woman added that she is heading to the South not to receive financial aid, but because she hated working in the homes of others, despite having qualifications and a school certificate. She added: \"What is on my mind at the moment is the education of my little children. I want to enroll them in schools in Kenya, with the help of my brothers\". She concluded by saying that she will try to farm or raise a few cows owned by her family.
John, a 12-year old boy, spoke to Al-Sharq in proper English saying that he is currently a 5th grade student at a junior education center in Al-Amarat Av in Khartoum. John said that he and his family are heading to Bentiu after his father made the necessary arrangements for them to enroll in schools there in Unity State. He added optimistically: \"I am certain that a bright future awaits me in the South\".
A number of children gathered around me smiling and waving asking me to take their picture, but when I asked one of them about his name, he told me that he had no name, and when I assured him that knowing his name will not hurt him, he still declined. I then asked that kid about school and he replied that he is an 8th grade student in one of the schools of Kalakla in Khartoum, and that he will try to enroll in a school next year in the South. I then went to a woman in her forties asking her why she was leaving the North. She replied in an indifferent tone: \"The North will be difficult to us in case of separation, and the way we will be treated will be different, so it is better for us to leave to our country\".
\"It is very painful for us that they will leave.\"
I had been there three hours talking to the people and yet not a single bus had left teh Sport City Square. I went to Abdulla Abdel Ghani, the officer in charge of bus drivers, to enquire about the status of the trip. He replied that the person that should deliver the money to the drivers has not arrived yet, and they had no choice but to wait for him. The suffering of the people increased with the long hours of waiting, which prompted one of the women to shout out about the neglect of the organisers of the voluntary repatriation program: \"We are still in Khartoum and they are treating us like that! What will happen then when we get to the South?\"
When I was leaving the Sports City Squre I came across a Northern girl who asked me anxiously whether or not the group had left to the South. When I told her that they had not yet left, she breathed a sigh of relief and cried out loud \"Thank God\". Before I asked her any questions, she spoke in a low voice saying: \"I am not satisfied with what things have come to in Sudan at the moment. I came with my friend last week to bid farewell to the people leaving for the South.\" She described the scenes of recent days, describing how northern women were saying goodbye to their Southern friends, carrying gifts such as baby sheets and flashlights. One scene she remembered in particular was so touching: a Southern woman was a member of a society fund with her neighbors, and those neighbors followed her to the station assuring her that they will send her share of the fund to the South very soon. \"It is very painful for us that they will leave\", the women concluded.
