By Pesuech Arok Deng
As I was walking around Hai Thoura yesterday, I found a group of some guys sipping their faransawi in a certain tea place. Upon seeing me, they started murmuring that these tall guys are good to lead the demonstration on the 30th as planned.
I heard their nonsense and felt like throwing them with my shoe but my humble Hai Thoura heart convinced me and I had to let it go. These are the same short guys informing the girls to be careful in accepting the love relationship of these tall dudes as everything about them is tall.
This false belief made some of our height mates go for years without getting sweethearts. This cold war between short people and tall people will one day end in tears in this country.
Liel Kuc dhem.
It is not the first time though. In October 2010, we received the news on the campus ( University of Juba) that those of Pagan Amuom and Yasser Arman were arrested in Khartoum. It was also added that students from the University of Juba (Kadoro Campus) were arrested and some castrated.
There was an outrage on the Juba campus where I was studying as a First-year student. We immediately mobilized to show a sense of solidarity to our colleagues undergoing humiliation in Khartoum and we resolved to stage the peaceful demonstration in Juba.
The following morning, we gathered within the Campus. Being the second tallest on the campus, I was called in front together with Aken from Aweil ( the tallest guy then).
They handed to us the banner with the writings denouncing the Khartoum government for mistreating Southern Sundanese.
We were leading with the banner while these pigmies were chanting behind us the known song ” we shall never surrender”. This design of putting tall persons in front was coined up by these short guys to protect them from any bullet that comes from security operatives. We moved through Custom roundabout where we got Police deployed but the police of that time were so kind with very good hearts. They received their salaries monthly unlike the current one that goes for five months without salaries. So the chances for someone to come back home without molars after demonstrations are very high this time.
They allowed us to stage our peaceful demonstration through Garang Mausoleum, US Embassy and finally to UNMISS next to the airport without a single bullet.
Demonstrate at your own risk now. My fellow tallboys, don’t be used again like how I was used.