In mid-September, the South Sudan National Ministry of Labor and Public Service and Human Resources Development used its prerogative to regulate the workforce and roles of foreign nationals in the Republic of South Sudan by issuing a ministerial order. The order, despites all its intentions, evoked a surprising and remorseless criticism from neighbour states in East Africa, especially Kenya and Uganda.
Even before the ink on the order had dried, a Kenyan economist at the Brookings Institute rushed to call the decision "stupid[1]". As if that was not enough, on a nationwide show, Kenyan NTV called the Republic of South Sudan a "thankless kid[2]". I suppose that "kid" refers here to the short time span of South Sudan’s independence (declared in 2011).
Ugandan prime minister, on the other hand, warned the government in Juba against pursuing this measure, asking that the decision be rescinded. He was soon after his statement relieved[3] of his job. Whether this was unrelated to his remarks on South Sudan or not, it was a responsible move by President Yoweri Museveni to sack him.
The South Sudanese government decided against proceeding with its plan soon after it was announced.
However, to date the negative sentiment about the order is still being felt. If you are a South Sudanese travelling to Nairobi, Kenyan immigration officers at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport would often greet you with questions such as: "Why do you come again to Kenya when you (South Sudanese) are chasing away Kenyans in your country?" I usually answer with great irritation that, "I am not here to work!"
The persistent hostility over this matter begs the question: Was Kenya really under the illusion that the South Sudanese people were to transfer their sovereignty from Sudan to Kenya? Did anybody in East Africa really think South Sudan is a "kid" that would never grow up?
The motivation behind this ministerial order was to create space for the South Sudanese to find jobs and be responsible citizens by paying their taxes. It called for positions of executive directors, secretaries, HR officers, receptionists, etc in public and private enterprises to be given to South Sudanese citizens.
It did not call for the expulsion of foreigners of any nationality in South Sudan. It simply aimed to establish a procedure for regulation of the work force; any sovereign nation has the right to do so. Besides, a sensible mind would, indeed, agree that the decision by the minister was rightly placed when considering issues of national security.
What I find strange was how a well-educated economist at Brookings Institute, Mwangi S Kimenyi, found a rather strange parallel between the South Sudanese case and Idi Amin’s order to expel foreigners from Uganda. If I have to remind Mr Kimenyi, both the republics of Kenya and Uganda have institutionalised similar workforce priority to their citizens. How many foreigners in these countries work as directors, secretaries, HR officers, receptionists, etc? Countries around the world regulate access to their labour markets to foreigners, either through laws or strict visa regimes. Why should South Sudan not follow suit?
Right now, government officials are using Kenyans and Ugandans as secretaries when South Sudanese are sitting jobless by the roadside sipping tea all day long. This practice has been ongoing ever since the Republic of South Sudan established an open-border policy with its neighbours. If anything, this Republic has been more thankful than necessary and, in some cases, has allowed others to exploit it.
The ministerial order in my view, and in the view of many South Sudanese, was not comprehensive enough.
It was not right for an economist in a highly respected US think tank to provide such misguided interpretation and compare it to the policy of expulsion by the former President Idi Amin. NTV’s qualifier, "thankless kid" is purely insulting to South Sudan and completely disregarding reality.
To the contrary, South Sudan has been overly generous with its neighbours and their citizens.
Counting the years of independence, South Sudan is a kid, yes. But the kid must grow up! And for this kid to have healthy growth, everyone must either back off or learn to nurture it.
Panther Alier is one of the "Lost Boys of Sudan" who fled Sudan's civil war in the 1980s. He returned to South Sudan in 2009, after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, to participate in rebuilding of his country.
Source http://uk.news.yahoo.com/south-sudan-thankless-kid-143302718.html
Newer articles:
- SPLM chapter members in the US elect new chairperson - 01/12/2014 06:51
- South Sudan issues new rules on sale of US dollars - 30/11/2014 06:51
- Fleeing the horrors of South Sudan fighting - 29/11/2014 06:39
- South Sudan Facing Famine in 2015 Unless Violence Ceases: Oxfam - 28/11/2014 05:40
- UN declines transporting S. Sudanese rebels for consultations - 28/11/2014 04:36
Older news items
- South Sudan Opposition Alleges New SPLA Attacks - 26/11/2014 20:32
- S’Sudan warns UN against imposing sanctions - 26/11/2014 12:09
- South Sudan warns UN that sanctions could fuel confrontation - 26/11/2014 06:10
- South Sudan says UN sanctions will not help peace - 25/11/2014 21:05
- S. Sudan Warns UN Sanctions Could Fuel Confrontation - 25/11/2014 21:03
Latest news items (all categories):
- UAE company agreed to loan $13B to South Sudan in exchange for oil - 27/04/2024 16:44
- South Sudan auditor flags spending of IMF funds - 27/04/2024 16:41
- UN Aid Trucks Held up at South Sudan Border - 27/04/2024 16:37
- South Sudanese comedians find laughs in painful past - 27/04/2024 16:34
- The DRC had the world's biggest military spend increase last year – and South Sudan was second - 27/04/2024 16:29
Random articles (all categories):
- International aid for Museveni’s Uganda can no longer be justified - 19/01/2021 12:55
- Son of ex-police chief brutally killed in Juba - 02/12/2013 06:27
- Political Forces are Spitting on Referendum with Bitterness that May Lead to the postponement of It - 05/09/2010 01:00
- UN ‘outraged’ by attack on food aid convoy in South Sudan - 07/10/2020 04:58
- AGRA supports South Sudan to release first ever hybrid maize variety - 05/03/2020 22:24
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 32556 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 21863 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 20747 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 17314 times
- With prisons full, South Sudan to introduce mobile courts to clear backlog of cases - 11/10/2012 11:29 - Read 14214 times