Update on the Waat Lou Nuer Covenant 

22 November 1999

Dear Friends and Family,

Greetings and thank you to all those who have provided support in prayer during the past few weeks. I will attach to the end of this letter the Press Release and the Waat Lou Nuer Covenant that help tell the story of the peace that has come to the Lou Nuer on the East Bank of the Nile in south Sudan. It is a thrilling story of the work of the churches in facilitating peace in the midst of near anarchy. Especially read about the young boy who cried until he could put his print to the peace and the choirs which sang all night in celebration of peace.

I will add a few personal highlights and reflections:

• The "White Army" is famous among Nuer. They are youth militia who traditionally have organized under the chief in their area and are formed around age-sets. With the long-running war and the collapse of governmental institutions, the White Army has become a ready source of fighters for various groups who are trying to gain power in an area. They are also active raiders, seeking cows from neighboring groups, or seeking vengeance for previous raids. Most members are armed with AK-47 automatic rifles and have become almost "guns for hire" if someone will supply them bullets and convince them to join in a conflict. In the Lou Nuer section there are five districts, each with a White Army militia of about 2,000 fighters. Some are young children and others are in their late teens or early twenties. For real peace to come to an area, the White Army must be enrolled in the peace and their leaders brought under the discipline and control of chiefs, elders, and regular military.  This conference included the two top White Army leaders from each district. On the first Sunday during pre-conference meetings and briefings, the White Army from one district arrived in Waat.  More that 2,000 shouting, singing, dancing, and drilling youth with their weapons raised in the air spent about 36 hours with us. They met with elders, church leaders, chiefs and the top commanders of the forces considering making peace. In the end, they enrolled in the peace process and will make a great contribution to the peace.  It is a rare experience, as a foreigner, to walk in the midst of such passion, military power, and unbridled potential for either good or for destruction. It is inspiring to see community elders and wise church leaders courageously call them to task and enlist them in the life-giving work of peace building.

• I lay in my little tent some nights and listened with such joy to the sounds of story-telling and laughter. The joy was knowing that several of those telling the stories were soldiers who had been fighting each other. As meals were shared, former "enemies" slept in toukels together, remembered their better days, rebuilt broken relationships, and made the "sounds of peace."

• The last medical supplies had been brought into Waat five years ago in 1994. At that time a militia struck the town and took hostages from NGO and UN staff. Since then, Waat has been abandoned by aid workers. When we arrived, we came with medical supplies. Plastic sheeting over un-thatched toukels created the clinic and examining rooms again. A nurse, five community health workers and a visiting doctor opened the doors for care. In a week, more that 1,300 patients were treated. But even more important, because of the peace, the medicines will keep coming and the clinic is now operational again. I said to Johannes, the nurse, "You are going to get tired from so much work." He replied, "How can we get tired? This is the work we have wanted to do for so long. Now we can help our people. You can't get tired doing that."

• Two young boys, aged 5 and 7, named David and Moses were on the edge of the village. When asked what they were doing, they said, "We are here because the Lou are going to make peace." And why is that important to you? "That man [pointing to a local commander] killed our father. With peace we can live free and we can go to school."

• A kuor moun (spiritual leader) was preaching to the bull that would be sacrificed for the peace. He was confessing to God the sins of the people, speaking strong messages to the people, and speaking to the bull about its role of taking their evil deeds away.  Then he stopped in front of me and said, "You are going to live a long and peaceful life. And when you are a very old man, you get an airplane and come back here to see us." He gave me the two most precious gifts a Nuer can give -- the blessing of a long life in peace and the promise that I would be remembered by the people for my work among them. It deeply touched me. And then like an arrow the spear suddenly was sent straight into the heart of the bull and the covenant of peace was sealed in blood.

• The pain of all the conflict of these troubled people had been brought to the surface in days of story-telling. I had urged them to reach out and touch each other's wounds as the Apostle Thomas had done when he touched the wounds of Jesus. Then on Thursday night as I sat on a stool waiting for an evening meal of goat and rice I suddenly felt something crawling up my calf inside my pants leg.  A scorpion had climbed up my high shoes, beyond long socks and stung me about mid-calf. I struck it, killed it, and with a sinking feeling knew that I was in for hours of excruciating pain. There was nothing that could be done except to endure the pain for the next 24-26 hours. My lower leg was on fire, painful to even touch.  Every few minutes a bolt of pain, like a knife, would course up my leg to my waist. For those long hours I had to walk with a cane and could hardly stand after sitting for a time. But through it all the Lord gave grace for me to continue my work, typing in the full transcript of what was said in the meetings. The whole community knew what had happened and they shook their heads, smiled with understanding and gave me support. In their beliefs, when so much pain is surfacing in the community, sometimes one person is chosen to bear the pain for the many. I was told that it was a blessing that I had been chosen, and they thought it was the right choice. In addition, once I survived the sting, I would experience great health and strength in the coming months. Once again, I am amazed that this Christian concept we have of Jesus bearing the pain for the many, is a traditional concept among the Nuer that I have now come to experience personally. The spiritual principles are woven continuously into the fabric of the society, and now that I have endured the pain, I look back and think that it is a blessing to share in their pain and share in their healing process.

• The final night of joy after signing and sealing the covenant of peace was one of the most special nights of my life. The pain of the scorpion was now past. The sounds of joy were everywhere. All night the choirs sang. I awakened at 2, at 3, at 4, at 5 a.m. Each time the variety of drums was evident, and the children, youth, and adult choirs from different parts of the village were still singing and practicing for the Sunday morning worship that would seal the covenant in Christian worship. With more than 3,000 in worship beginning at 6:30 a.m. the joy spilled over the whole village. There had been little for them to eat or drink. There had been no sleep.  Many of them had walked for hours to come for the celebration.  This was a fresh expression of the saying, "we bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord."  Thank you, my friends and family, for your gracious love and support. I am so thankful to have you and the work to which I am called as we celebrate on Thursday our American Thanksgiving Day. My body is so weary. I have had to overcome some gastro-enteritis.  But the sleep of this past week has begun to restore me, and my soul is at peace with the good work being done. The people are making this peace with their own hands, and they freely acknowledge that it is the work of God. Amen.  Blessings and Peace in the spirit of Thanksgiving. 

Bill Lowrey

PRESS RELEASE

People-to-People Peace Process Makes Another Breakthrough in Uniting Lou Nuer of Upper Nile

Friday 12 November 1999
New Sudan Council of Churches

NAIROBI: 12 November, 1999. After six months of intensive work facilitated by the New Sudan Council of Churches, the Lou Nuer of Upper Nile have reconciled in a seven day Peace and Governance Conference in Waat, Sudan. The Lou area, including the towns of Waat, Akobo, Yuai, and Langkein, has been wracked by conflict as military forces under three commands have battled each other. Frequently, the White Army youth militia groups, which number in the thousands, joined various groups and entered the conflict. As a result, almost all UN and NGO humanitarian groups had withdrawn from the area and near anarchy had reigned.  All forms of civil governance had collapsed.

The Waat Lou Nuer Covenant which is attached to this Press Release establishes peace among the Lou and formed a Peace and Governance Council to rebuild the civil administration, establish a police system, and re-empower the traditional court system of chiefs. Appeals are issued for peace with all sections of Nuer and with all neighboring peoples, declaring unilateral and permanent cease-fires, and urging all southerners to join in the reconciliation process that is uniting the south.

The final section of the Covenant is "A Word of Promise: We will protect this peace against anyone from within our ranks or who would come against us from the outside attempting to destroy our unity and peace. For this peace we are willing to die so that our children may live in peace and enjoy this good land that God has given to us."

The New Sudan Council of Churches through its peace teams has orchestrated an intense process to bring the conflicted sides together. In June and July teams flew into the midst of conflict to convince antagonists to cease their fighting. In August a total of sixteen shuttle flights in three days brought all the key military and political leaders together in discussions that resulted in a commitment to reconcile and integrate their forces. September saw the emergence of a joint military coordinating council, the integration of military forces, reestablishment of security across the Lou Nuer area, and a major public rally for peace in Waat. Finally, in late October delegates from every section of Lou Nuer gathered in Waat bringing together chiefs and church, youth militia and regular military, women and civil administrators. Lou Nuer who had been displaced traveled from Khartoum, Malakal, and foreign countries to help rebuild their society. Daily attendance by the approximately one-hundred official delegates was matched by nearly one thousand (1000) additional participants who came to make sure that the peace was established.

During the signing of the Covenant and the placing of thumb-prints on the document, a young boy of about eight years was found crying outside the meeting hall. When asked why, he said it was because he wanted to put his print on the peace. He was escorted inside and proudly put his mark on the paper while the adults around encouraged him that this was a peace for him.

On Saturday morning, 6 November, the traditional people sacrificed a bull to seal their commitments. That night, after the signing of the Covenant, the Christian church choirs sang all night. Finally, at 6:30 a.m. the community met for an open-air worship service to celebrate the sealing of the Covenant of peace and to officially end the Peace Conference. There were 3,319 people present with more than a third of them in choirs, from little Sunday school groups to large adult choirs, from Presbyterian, Catholic, and Episcopal.  Across denominations, beyond the lines of faith, blending civilians and military, young and old, chiefs and elders the people of the Lou Nuer have come together. It is another major step on the way to reconciliation of southern Sudan and the journey for a just peace for all of Sudan. 

For More Information on the People-to-People Peace Process Contact:

Dr. Haruun Ruun
NSCC Executive Secretary

    Or

Mr. Telar Deng
Peace Desk Facilitator
Phone: 254-2-446966; 448141
Fax: 254-2-447015
Email: NSCC-NBO@maf.org Or peacedesk@swiftkenya.com

(1) Attachment: Waat Lou Nuer Covenant

Waat Lou Nuer Covenant
Waat, Sudan
6 November 1999

The Lou Nuer met in a People-to-People Peace and Governance Conference in Waat, Sudan under the auspices of the New Sudan Council of Churches (NSCC) from 1-7 November 1999. Delegates came from all districts in addition to Lou who came from Malakal, Khartoum and foreign countries. 

Today, we declare an end to years of internal conflicts among our people, battles between different factions, and at least three different military forces and civil administrations. Our internal strife has made us vulnerable to conflicts with our neighbors on every side, and the Government of Sudan has armed various groups within our midst to stir up confusion and destruction. We have sealed this Covenant, with its included Resolutions, by the traditional sacrifice of a White Bull (Tu-Bor) and with Christian worship.

We have met to establish a lasting peace, to build a common system of governance and to appeal to others to join us in rebuilding our communities and spreading this peace and reconciliation to all of south Sudan. 

We have agreed to the following:-

Peace

• An end to all conflicts among Lou Nuer

• Amnesty for offenses against persons and property prior to 1 November 1999

• A call to all Lou people to return to home areas and embrace the peace

• Extending the hand of peace to Gaawar Nuer to our west and Jikany Nuer to our East. We stand ready to resolve any outstanding issues and build a permanent peace.

• Extending the hand of peace to all neighbouring people on the East Bank of the Nile. With the NSCC, we invite all Nilotic peoples on the East Bank of the Nile to send delegations in February 2000 for a People-to-People peace conference.

Governance

• Strongly urge our political and military leaders to construct civil and military governance systems that will unite all Nuer people and contribute to a reconciled and united south Sudan. This system must be outside the control of the Government of Sudan or persons working in Government of Sudan controlled areas of the country.

• A separation of civil and judicial administration from the military administration;

• Empowerment of chiefs to handle all local judicial cases and a rebuilding of the civil judicial system;

• Establishment of a police system that will maintain order within our communities and be accountable to the civil administration;

• Instruct all civil administrators to be accountable for their areas, to the people, and to work in a close and transparent manner with indigenous and international NGOs;

• Require the regular military and the White Army to demobilize all children under age fifteen;

• Commit ourselves to development of water resources that enable us to have permanent communities, the establishment of schools for our children, health care for our people, and food to sustain ourselves all year.

Appeals from Lou Nuer

• To all Nuer: Appeal for unity, peace and shared responsibility for security within a unified political administration.

• To all Neighbors: We declare a unilateral, permanent cease-fire and express our desire to build peace with our neighbors.

• To all Southerners: We appeal for an unending commitment to unite south Sudan so that security is assured, our political objectives are realized and our rights protected.

• To all Friends of South Sudan: We appeal for partners who will help us rebuild our communities, strengthen our civil administration, and provide support for our common security.
  

A Word of Promise:

We will protect this peace against anyone from within our ranks or who would come against us from the outside attempting to destroy our unity and peace. For this peace we are willing to die so that our children may live in peace and enjoy this good land that God has given to us.

NSCC Official Version
8 November, 1999