Drowning in Meroe

If I wasn't a believer in climate change and the havoc that we have wreaked on our planet, I became one a couple years ago. There were unexplained floods, followed by months of droughts all over, from Britain to Sudan. There were earth quakes, tsunamis, and hurricanes. All of them destructive and tearing away at the fabric of human life. Some places were affected worse than others.
At the time I was visiting my grandmother in our hometown of Nuhud, in Kordofan province located east of Darfur. The town was having its own problems with torrential rains. Before long over half the town was flooded, homes and livestock were destroyed. People were made homeless, and most did not have anywhere to shelter let alone money to rebuild.
The townspeople were distraught, but mostly angry. The government had ignored them. There was absolute silence from Khartoum, there were no planes, helicopters, troops with funds,food, tents or life saving supplies. Before long the people became bitter for they remembered that earlier in the year when there were floods in northern Sudan,supplies were sent immediately. But then they remembered that these areas are where the rulers of Khartoum, the Shaigiya, Jaaliya and Danagla ethnic groups hail from. And once again the people were reminded of their second, perhaps nth class status in Sudan, not at all equal citizens.
My ethnic group are the Manasir. They originally come from the Meroe area, in north eastern Sudan, one of the capitals of ancient Kush. Except for the Blue Nile that cuts through the mountains of Ethiopia into Meroe, it is a dry and semi arid land. Theirs is a sad plight. The government decided they would build a large dam in Meroe forgetting or perhaps ignoring the communities affected. The people protested, and the government was forced to pay them mind, promising them schools, hospitals, running water and other necessities. Given Khartoum's track record, the communities did not trust the government to deliver on their promises. They wanted assurances in response the government launched a violent campaign forcing the communities to leave, and imprisoning and killing many men and boys. The government unrepentant continued to build the dam. Several years later some defiant communities remain. Their poorly thatched huts are an embarrassment to Khartoum that would like to tout Meroe venture to foreign investors. And like any good despotic government, one must remove unpleasant realities. In this case the government used the dams to deliberately flood these communities, creating a man made disaster. Khartoum has also repulsed aid work and humanitarian relief.
The once dry arid lands are now flooded, drowning out the communities of Meroe. Once again, Khartoum's promise to serve the people of river valley rings hollow. THe Manasir are an undeniably northern tribe from the river valley, but since they have no surrogates in government they are expendable, just like the tribes of the extreme East, those of Darfur, and those of the South. There are no equal citizens in Sudan.