« Philip and the Cultural Question | Main | Brawl at Lotuke »

January 27, 2005

Tausi Meeting

After we picked up Philip we headed over some difficult terrain and rolled into New Cush. the sky was dark blue and I could see the first sparkling of stars. The Dinka SRRC met us and gave a few Tukus to crash in. We unload bags, and then split two chicken legs and a box of biscuits for dinner around a single candle. The next morning we awoke to meet the Tausi who had received news of our coming three days earlier. News always travels fast when you have something to give. Twenty Tausi men gathered in the SRRC compound and we chatted with them about where they lived, what were their needs, and how we can get back to them.


(TAUSI MEN AT MEETING IN NEW CUSH)
Godfrey, who works with IAS, was also on a mission to assess physical needs of the people for future projects through IAS, so hence he spent sometime asking about needs. At this point it is good for me to give you an insight to the tribes of the area.

First you have the Toposa who are cattle keepers and armed to the teeth with old British rifles and AK’s. The Toposa are a fierce people who conduct raids on other tribe’s cattle across the border in Uganda, Kenya and even in country in Sudan. They love their cows and do not eat (Unless is dies naturally) or sell them. The Toposa diet is blood of the cow mixed with milk and a sort of kasava. Decorative markings made by knives and razors, along with the lack of clothing, save a blanket wraped around the waste, give the Toposa a very stereo-typed look that most westerners think of when they hear the words, “African tribes”. Wealth means—cows, and guns mean—power.

Next are the Dadinga. Feared by everyone. We even received and ominous warning from a Dinka boy when we told him we were on our way to New Cush as he said, “The Dadinga live on those hills, they will finish (kill) you quickly.” Like the Toposa cows and guns rule life and they also are know for their raiding abilities. Darker skin and less tribal markings than the Toposa help one to identify them quickly.

Dinka: Well the Dinka’s are a different story. They aren’t from these parts in the Torit region, but found themselves settled here as they were displaced from the 21-years of fighting. The Dinka are well educated were as the other tribes still remain without schooling. The Dinka’s make up on a whole 70% of the SPLA/M fighting force in Sudan and to say that they have complete control of the government is accurate. The Dinka despise the Toposa and Dadinga for past betrayals during the heavy fighting in the mid 90’s. The betrayals being that when thousands of faminized Dinka’s fled the fighting in Bahr El Ghazal (Their traditional homelands) they passed through the Torit region (Eastern Equatoria) to find safety in Kenya, they became targets of Dadinga and Toposa snipers. The Dadinga and Toposa would sit in trees and pick off the stick figured Dinkas for no apparent reason, other than, “they are in our land”. Stories of Toposa’s killing Dinka’s for drinking from their wells is common. Well now that a peace accord with the Northern government has been signed the Dinkas, who control the government are now calling the shots. Shockingly, however, the Dinka have not struck back in force and the issue seems to have simmered down to only sporadic killings. Philip, our translator, echoes the bitter sentiment of the Dinka’s toward the Toposa and Dadinga with comments like, “Now that we have peace, Toposa and Dadinga—no school for them (meaning restiction of teaching facilities to the tribes). Dadinga are very bad people, they are our enemy.” His lack of including the Toposa as ‘enemy’ is due to the fact that he married one. The Dinka’s in the area don’t have the look of a tribe. They were second hand clothing, sunglasses, shoes instead of tire sandals, and possess the really big guns of the SPLA, which make them the force of the area.

(TIRE SANDALS)
Now in all of this mess is the little tribe named the Tausi: The Tausi are farmers. They have weapons and are on the lowest of the tribal totem pole. Tausi are afraid to own anything bigger than a chicken for fear of raids, they have been push from their land so many times by the day we met them they were not even living in Sudan anymore but on the Uganda side near the border. The Tausi were very humble and this has been caused by being looted, displaced and beat down for a very long time. They are considered the lowest, but God uses the weak things of the world to shame the wise.

So back to where I was—After talking with the Tausi we said we wanted to trek to their place for two reasons, need assessment and to preach the gospel. They were hesitant for two reasons; first they didn’t have guns to protect us from raiders and second they didn’t want to upset the Uganda authorities. The first we were willing to risk, but the whole crossing into Uganda without checking in did create a problem if the UPDF found us there. So we came up with a game plan to drive to the border (Uganda/Sudan) talk with the UPDF (Ugandan Army) and see if we could trek out to the Tausi who lived on the tops of the hills. On Tausi boy who could speak Toposa, which Philip could understand would accompany us and lead us to their place. The Tausi agreed hesitantly. As we closed they asked if we would buy them some local wine so they could get drunk. We refused and instead gave them each a packet of salt in appreciation for walking the 12hrs on foot to meet us here. We then told them we would next see them on their mountain.

So the Tausi set off, 12 hours on foot and we had and a 1-hour drive ahead to the border, then another 3-hour drive in Uganda, and then a 3-hour walk up the mountain. We picked up our Tausi guide named, Peter, and a Tausi boy who through a fit because he didn’t want to walk 12-hours on foot. We were on our way.

Posted by Admin at January 27, 2005 12:13 PM