This article will show that oral histories of South Sudanese 1 women elders, living in the Australian diaspora, contain accounts of state crime perpetrated against Sudan's southern population during that country's second civil war (1983–2005) by the Government of Sudan (GoS). Crimes include genocidal attacks on rural communities that involved killings, rape and enslavement. The bombing of displaced civilians, extrajudicial killings, unlawful imprisonment, and mass killings at border crossings were also mentioned by women elders in life histories recorded by The Anyikool Project (TAP) between 2012 and 2014 (Maher 2014). Green and Ward (2013) found that oral histories of members of civil society organizations (CSOs) contain histories of state crimes during civil conflict, and are therefore a potentially rich source of knowledge for researchers. Here, I posit that the oral histories of female survivors of civil conflict are an equally rich, but a largely untapped, source of information. The oral narratives of these women have much to offer our understanding of gendered resistance to state crimes during civil wars.
The south of Sudan achieved independence from the north in 2011 and is now known as South Sudan. In this article when addressing any period prior to independence, I will refer to the region and its people as southern Sudan and south Sudanese. Sections of the article that addresses post-independence uses the descriptors South Sudan and South Sudanese.
Contested area in the northern province of Kordofan.
Located close to the border with Ethiopia, in the southern region of the province of Upper Nile.
In the southern province of Bahr el-Ghazal.
Located in the northern region of the province of Upper Nile.
Chollo are also commonly known as Shilluk.
During the second war, the southern region was administered through three large provinces; Bahr el-Ghazal, Upper Nile and Equatoria. In 1998, these were re-configured into ten separate states.
Dr Diane Bretherton OA, Dr Ida Kaplan.
The recordings will go online in 2016.
Ananya means snake bite or snake venom.
Jikany are one of five Nuer sub-groups/clans.
Also known as Murhaleen.
Present author.
Catherine arrived in Australia in 2004.
Teresa arrived in Australia in 2005.
Rita arrived in Australia in 2003.
“In the bush” is a commonly used expression to mean joining the rebels or going to join the fight.
Dinka children traditionally spent periods of time at these roving camps where they learned to tend cattle.
Changjwok arrived in Australia in 2003.
The Girl's Battalion.