Recalling the Past to Reform the PresentAfricans of Two Worlds: The Dinka in Afro-Arab Sudan by Francis Mading DengReview by: Thomas J. LoughreyAfrica Today, Vol. 28, No. 2, The Sudan: 25 Years of Independence (2nd Qtr., 1981), pp. 124-126Published by: Indiana University PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4186010 .

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does not deal with tribalism in terms of the "right to self-determination of all peoples." In looking towards the future it surely must be considered that the permanent residence of a large number of southerners in the north is an objec- tive element in the Sudanese polity. This migration is accounted for not only by economic pressures. It reflects personal goals of upward mobility and social satisfaction which can only be achieved in the larger Sudanese political frame- work.

The author's assertion that tensions flowing from differences of culture must be accommodated cannot be disputed. At the same time, however, given the total African reality, it is obvious that the "primordial" loyalties which so concern Wai must also be transformed in the modernization process. As Wai plaintively notes, it was only Dr. Hastings Banda of Malawi, of all African leaders, who came to the vocal support of the secession movement. But it is dif- ficult to make an African legitimizer out of the champion of African diplomatic ties with South Africa and Israel and one who has ruthlessly crushed political and religious dissenters at home. That Dr. Banda should so obligingly cate- gorize the Sudanese conflict as an Arab war of extermination against Africans speaks more of the Malawian leader's surrogate role than of his perception of Sudanese affairs.

In speculating upon future internal political arrangements in the Sudan which might assure a greater degree of popular participation, it might be worthwhile to consider more precisely the advantages which diversity offers all Sudanese. Thus, the resistance of many Sudanese Muslims to the ambitions of those who would sacrifice personal liberties in the name of an Islamic state is strongly reinforced by the presence of the South in a united Sudan. The Republican Brothers, a uniquely Sudanese expression, is a vibrant testimony to the uniqueness of the Sudan in the Muslim world. At the same time, the Southern Region, as part of the larger Sudan, is undoubtedly saved from the fate which has befallen neighboring Uganda, a country with many parallels to the southern mosaic. One must hope that Sudanese academicians of every background will lend their talents to overcoming the "primordial" concerns so abundantly reflected in this volume.

Recalling the past to reform the present Thomas J. Loughrey

Francis Mading Deng, AFRICANS OF TWO WORLDS: The Dinka in Afro-Arab Sudan. (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1978) xx-238 pp., hardcover $15.00.

Dr. Deng's book, Africans of Two Worlds: The Dinka in Afro-Arab Sudan, essentially deals with how his own ethnic group, the Dinka, perceive the pro- gress made by the Sudan in integrating the Arabic north and the African south into a modern, unified nation-state. Through the eyes of the Dinka, who are the largest ethnic group of Sudan's highly diversified southern population, Dr. Deng traces the historical development of the south's relationship with the north.

Thomas J. Loughrey taught in Tanzania from 1976 to 1978, and presently teaches at Regis High School in Denver, Colorado and is a consultant on African affairs to the Center for Teaching International Relations, University of Denver.

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The book is unique in that Dr. Deng largely bases his study on his extensive interviews with 16 chiefs and elders from all over Dinka-land. It is through the perceptions of these chiefs and elders that we gain insights into the history of the Sudan which has shaped the modern-day conflicts between the north and the south over the process of Sudanese nation-building.

Through the oral traditions of the Dinka chiefs, first of all, we acquire an anthropological understanding of the Dinka historical, cultural, and moral makeup. The second section of his book deals with the Dinka's historical con- tact with the outside world. While we learn of the negative perceptions the Dinka have for their Turko-Egyptian and Mahdist rulers, we find that the Dinka considered British rule to be much more humane and pleasant, comparatively.

We are then led through the period in which Sudan gained a rather hasty in- dependence in 1956 but was soon followed by a bitter, bloody civil war between the north and south which lasted 17 years. It has been this latter aspect of Dinka history which remains vivid in the minds of the Dinka. The interviews clearly show how the civil war left a deep distrust and hatred for the largely Arab north among not only the Dinka but by the majority of the southern population. The Dinka and their southern neighbors feel that independence for them has only been a means by which the north could continue its domination over the south politically, economically and culturally. It is exactly this perception by the south which Dr. Deng believes must be changed if Sudan's future is to be peaceful.

The third and final section of the book considers some of the important measures needed to be taken by the Arab north and the Sudanese government in order that the past bitterness and distrust between the north and south may be seen as only a bad memory. Dr. Deng believes some of the measures involve a sincere effort on the part of the Sudanese government to increasingly involve the south in the political life of Sudan. The government must also recognize that the quality of life both economically and educationally must be improved before the south will consider national integration as a value. And thirdly, Deng sees it is extremely important for the Sudan to begin emphasizing the cultural similarities rather than the differences between the north and the south as a way of slowly integrating rather than assimilating the south with the north.

Throughout the book, Dr. Deng is very optimistic concerning Sudan's future. It is a curious optimism considering the fact that the majority of the chiefs he interviewed were if not deeply pessimistic, at least "doubting Thomases." Deng, however, while realizing this, considers a number of factors that may nevertheless give cause for optimism. Deng points to the peace settle- ment reached in 1972 between the north and the south. This peace still exists to- day and according to Dr. Deng, is an indication by both sides of the desire to reconcile their differences through peaceful means. Secondly, there will be a great deal of pressure exerted by the OAU and the international community against any movement bent at splitting the Sudan into autonomous political units. Finally, Dr. Deng considers the south's great respect, (and in some cases, awe) for the personality and leadership abilities of President Nimeri as an extremely important factor in reconciling the bitterness, distrust and fear the north and south have for each other.

In conclusion, though the book can at times drag due to the number of inter- views presented, it is still an interesting and valuable study on how the Dinka

2nd Quarter, 1981 125

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view the north/south conflict in the Sudan. In addition, after reading Dr. Deng's book, one is basically left puzzled as to whether one should concur with Deng's optimism, or with the rather skeptical tone of the Dinka chiefs as to the future of the north/south relations in the Sudan. We may find hope in the fact that positive change has taken place between the north and the south since the 1972 peace settlement. We also need to be aware, however, that the past has not been forgotten by the south and its distrust for the north still lingers. An unexpected death of President Nimeri or the now faltering Sudanese economy may well spark off another bloody conflict between the north and south.

The situation is still explosive and not unlike what we witness now in Northern Ireland and Lebanon.

Seven Interviews with Dinka Chiefs

John W. Burton

Francis Mading Deng, DINKA COSMOLOGY (London: Ithaca Press, 1980) 348 pp., ? 18.50.

Dinka Cosmology is Francis Mading Deng's seventh monograph on aspects of Dinka society and culture. By any measure, this is a remarkable achieve- ment, and since this has been accomplished without the ambience and relative comfort of an academic appointment, this is all the more notable.

The present volume is best seen as a detailed appendix to his last volume, Africans of Two Worlds: The Dinka in Afro-Arab Sudan (1978 Yale University Press). Each of the 13 chapters of Dinka Cosmology is a verbatim transcript of interviews with various chiefs, which provided the substantive arguments of Africans of Two Worlds. Hence the present volume is more a primary source book rather than a contribution to any specific body of academic knowledge. In light of this it is unfortunate that the book was published without an index. The only guide to its contents is provided by the chapter headings which, in princi- ple, abstract the essential message of each chief. Whereas the title of the momograph suggests it is an addition to the classic books by Lienhardt and Evans-Pritchard on Dinka and Nuer religion, respectively, Deng employs the term cosmology with far less precision. Here, cosmology includes Dinka attitudes toward the President of the Sudan, a clearly Christian inspired view of creation as well as reasons for taking to the forest during the civil war.

Possibly because of its atypical format and contents, Dinka Cosmology will

enjoy a wide reading outside the field of anthropology and Nilotic Studies.

John W. Burton, of Whaton Colege (Mass.) is more fully identified on page 54.

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