Tired of war: South Sudan street artists calling for peace

Tired of war: South Sudan street artists calling for peace

The paintings express the young people’s frustration with the civil war, which has been going on for nearly three years.

Photograph: Ana Taban

Boma - Martine Perret-192-1.jpg

Young people in South Sudan are expressing their frustration with the civil war through street art promoting peace.

Photograph: Charles Lomodong

Around 20 young people launched the campaign in early September, saying: ‘We are tired of war and all the suffering that comes with it. We are tired of just sitting by and seeing our country burn. We are tired of having a country with vast natural resources and yet a crashing economy. We are tired of the fact that we have a beautiful cultural diversity that is destroyed by tribal animosity. We are tired of having a starving population yet we have a fertile land. We are tired of being used to kill ourselves for the benefit of a few.’

Photograph: Charles Lomodong

Ankole cattle herd near Bor, South Sudan.

Traditional wrestling match that our Dinka brothers are famous for.

The paintings around South Sudan’s capital Juba are accompanied with a social media campaign on Twitter and Facebook using the hashtag #AnaTaban.

Photograph: Ana Taban

Traditional Shilluk beaded necklace

‘People are tired of living in fear daily because of the high levels of armed violence committed against civilians,’ say the campaigners. ‘Women see the brunt of this with sexual violence at unprecedented levels. The conflict has also led to high levels of poverty and hunger due to the economic collapse and the insecurity, which prevents the people to farm and feed their families.’

Photograph: Charles Lomodong

Ana Taban’s mission is to use art to mobilise and engage people.

Photograph: Charles Lomodong

The campaigners are using different media: music, street theatre, murals, sculptures and poetry. They have released a music video on YouTube.

Photograph: Charles Lomodong

Children and young people’s futures are being blighted by war in South Sudan. The UN’s International Day of Peace on 21 September to promote the end of conflict.
Photograph: Ana Taban

Artist: EmpressAbul Oyay

South Sudan all the able men were killed and only the women were left and there

Folk Art Market by the Roots Project

Man’s Corset, Dinka, South Sudan

Dinka men regularly wear beaded corsets, partly as indicators of their age group and position. The yellow beads in this corset suggest that it may have been designed for a man over the age of thirty. The glass beads and wire used in making such corsets are imported products, making the outfits considerable markers of status and prestige.

Woman’s garment

Late 19th – early 20th century Dinka people, South Sudan Glass beads, leather, fur, strings H: 70 cm

This is a wooden monument created by the Bongo people from South Sudan to mark the grave of an important member of the community, often a high ranking hunter or warrior. This work was carved from a single tree trunk of mahogany - mahogany’s great durability protects such sculptures from the wear and tear of the elements as well as from degradation by termites. The eyes were originally marked by beads. In some cases, the posts capture personal adornments such as bracelets and scarification patterns. During his lifetime, a Bongo man could gain honor and prestige through successfully hunting large animals or achieving victory in combat. In fact, some Bongo effigies are even notched to indicate the number of successful kills achieved by the deceased. The post was raised by the deceased’s relatives usually a year or so after his death in a ceremony accompanied by a large feast. In addition to the central male figure, the grave site may also be decorated with sculptural representations of the deceased’s wives, children, and even victims. The wooden monuments and feast confirm the title and rank attained by the deceased during his lifetime, and ensure that he maintains that place of distinction in the afterlife. The higher the deceased’s status, the more lavish the celebration. During the festivities, relatives and guests recite his accomplishments and genealogy, so that Loma, the Bongo’s Creator God, may evaluate him.

Yuge (wood and leather), ca 1890, Dinka, South Sudan

Bari Neck Ornament

Anuak hat, South Sudan, made using a coiling technique and glass beads

This type of hat is known in Anuak as aduda, and is worn by girls of high rank at marriage ceremonies; “ when the daughter of a noble marries … [the bride comes] wearing around her neck a string of dimui beads and bearing in her hand a dem spear. She is draped around the waist with a leopard’s skin and wears on her head a cap decorated with beads ( aduda ). The skin and the cap become the property of the bridegroom.” (E.E. Evans-Pritchard, 1940, The Political System of the Anuak, p. 113)

Shilluk Tobacco Pipe, made in South Sudan 1938

Painting: Dink Bride

Artist: Gloria Ssali

Atong De March, Miss world South Sudan 2012

Our 2005 winner of South Sudan's very own "MISS MALAIKA" Pageant held in Juba. Misss Rebecca Yom Chor proudly representing her culture

Jalpan Bol, a student, painter and member of Ana Taban poses for a photograph in his compound, in Juba All photographs Reuters

South Sudanese activists are using music, poetry, theatre, comedy, dance and fashion to preach tolerance in the world's youngest nation which has been divided by years of civil war.
South Sudan won independence from Sudan in 2011 but descended into war in 2013 after President Salva Kiir fired his deputy Riek Machar, unleashing a conflict that has spawned armed factions often along ethnic lines.
Supporters on both sides, many of whom reside outside of the country due to the conflict, have taken the hostilities to the Internet, using Facebook and Twitter to take each other on with posts that are sometimes deemed hate speech.
Enter Ana Taban, which means “I'm tired” in Arabic, a group of young musicians, fashion designers and poets who are using art and culture to demand peace in their homeland.

“I hope for better serviced institutions, better opportunities for youth, a country where I don't need to be from a specific tribe,” said Ayak Chol Deng, 31, an epidemiologist, spoken word poet and activist who co-founded the group about a year ago.
The group holds regular open-air performances around the capital Juba and in other towns to call for peace and to educate their fellow citizens on the need for a non-violent resolution of the conflict that has cost thousands of lives.
Meen Mabior Meen, 30, a rap musician and founding member of Ana Taban, said it is a platform for the youth to tackle issues that can change the country. He spoke at his home in Juba, sitting next to the crib of his new-born child.
Such powerful aspirations are also attracting people outside of the country to the group, at #Anataban, in order to play their role in encouraging peace.
They include Abul Oyay, 30, a university student in neighbouring Kenya.
Ana Taban's members do not limit themselves to theatrical performances. Bright murals with messages calling for peace, created by its members, can be seen on walls around Juba.
“We are focused on bringing the country together, bringing people together. We are neutral, we are non-partisan,” said Jacob Bul Bior, 28, a radio and theatre actor.