The killers of Isaiah Abraham brought shame on South Sudan
- Details
- Category: Writing aboard the Kenya Airways: A story on coming to Rwanda for the first time
- Published on Monday, 10 December 2012 00:59
- Written by Kwai Akec Kwai, The New Sudan Vision (NSV), www.newsudanvision.com
- Hits: 2745
LOUISVILLE - Isaiah Diing Abraham Chan Awuol was one of the most significant writers of our era. His demise has deeply saddened me like thousands of his admirers and followers. He was such an intellectual and a great thinker for our nation. His assassination has brought shame to South Sudan.
Having read most of his works over the internet, I haven’t seen what he has done wrong that is equivalent to his extermination. He was a professional writer who always wrote with balance. Yes, he was all and sundry critic, he was critical of SPLM, government, oppositions and even his own tribe. He once wrote an article criticizing the Bor Dinka for not allowing other tribes to marry from them. That article prompted me to assume he was from other parts of South Sudan at some point. But I came to learn he was from Greater Bor. I concluded that the man was fashionable about telling the truth in black and white.
He was shaping history through his writing. This is exactly how the rest of the modern world was shaped up. If we beyond doubt dream of a modern South Sudan, we should encourage people to exercise their freedom of speech in whatever means they choose to. It was through power of writing that made United Kingdom, United States, Germany, Canada what they are in our contemporary days.
My questions would be, did his being critical of government deprive anyone of power they take pleasure in right now? Was he a threat to the national security? Was he a threat to the leadership? Absolutely not, he simply was doing what he believed in and wanted to instill the power of democracy in younger generation. The man understood well what the power of democracy could do through writing, if allowed, which was exactly what he has been exercising from the commencement of CPA to independence of South Sudan until he met his inopportune death on December 4th. Is this the beginning of a new era in the politics of South Sudan?
Now that he is mercilessly butchered in cold blooded, does that satisfy his killers? Whoever is behind his demise should know that what goes around comes around? You should learn from the history. Kaddafi of Libya was once powerful and fearful man, but did you see how died? Brutally, right? Same way he used to kill people. You should learn from this lesson.
I am calling upon my generation to save this nation. Among us the youth, don’t we have young people with a better vision for this nation?
When will we say no to our elders who called themselves liberators and untouchable? Yes, they are liberators and no one doubts that, myself included, but they have also spent part of their life during struggle fighting each other and now they are ready to force their swats against us and upon our throats. When are we going to say no to their manipulations and say ENOUGH to their tribal politics!
Where are the young men and young women of this great nation? We need to save this nation, not by rebellion, not by tribal politics, not by harming them, and of course not by causing danger to our nation, but by preparing, organizing, and of course by coming together and getting ourselves ready for 2015 to get rid of these folks in the government through peaceful means and the power of ballets not bullets.
As voters we have got the power of democracy to vote and kick all these morons out of our leadership positions! Period! But we can't just sit back to be tossed from here to there. This is dangerous to our future and the future of generations to come. We are grown-ups. Are we ready to take over the nation and save it from evil doers? Let us just bring in new and energetic ideas to save our nation.
Many generations before us fought for freedom of speech and expression including Isaiah Abraham himself and it cost them their dear life, liberty, and above all the pursuit of happiness. Their contribution is in vain now if South Sudan does not act to say enough is enough to the old school who wanted to be in power for life. This is unprecedented and South Sudan as nation needs to change the course now. And above all, we need to glorify them for their courageous contribution for laying the foundation of our great nation.
Far away from South Sudan, I mourned the death of our brave and courageous hero, Isaiah Abraham Diing Chan Awuol. Brother Abraham, we love you and your spirit will continue to live in us. You have inspired many! My condolences to your family and they should know you are admired by many!
The true meaning of our late brother’s writing was summed up below by one of the relatives who told Sudan Tribune:
“We have come out from external oppressors but the internal liberation is another struggle. You can see the failed system is resorting into killing heroes, the educated and war veterans for telling them look, comrades, what we are doing is not what we fought for. What you are doing is the same thing which led us into war with oppressors for the last 50 years and you cannot come and do it again. That you cannot cheat your own people that you fought for their rights and today you loot their resources. Killing freedom of expression is just killing the nation.”
Kwai Akech Kwai resides in Louisville, KY, USA. He can be reached @ This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
