The dictionary defines tribalism as behavior or attitudes that are based on a person’s loyalty to a tribe or other social group. It is the state of being organised and advocating for ‘tribal interest’ without substantiated benefits. Tribalists can be characterized by their inherent tendency of staunch conservatism, conventionality, and conformity. In other words, they are comfortable being traditional and ordinary, following customary, ethnic, or family scripts without questioning their relevance and usefulness. Practitioners and custodians of tribal, and ethnic ideals are often anchored in a traditional tendency, a paradigm, or an entrenched way of thinking or behaving in which people are more loyal to their tribes than to their friends, countries, or social groups. In a tribal environment, there is zero or little recognition and consideration of physical, emotional, or psychological harm and the consequence of premeditated actions on ‘perceived enemies’ and wider society. Arguably, the inherent tendency and mannerism of tribalism demonstrate it as a form of mental illusion that threatens the co-existence and cohesion of citizens in a country. It is rooted in perception, prejudice, and discrimination. A tribe being a social division in a traditional society consisting of communities linked by social, economic, religious, or blood ties, with a common culture and dialect is in itself natural, and denouncing it would be denying nature. Such a diagnosis would not be scientific. It would be demonising. Denying or denouncing the existence of tribal communities is a dead-end pursuit and can lead to social upheaval in a nation. The behaviour would be comparable to a legislator wanting to repeal the law of gravity. This can be a regression of intellect and conscience. On the contrary, the Manifestation of tribalism has no scientific explanation, or genetic disposition that humans are helpless, but involuntarily controlled by such genes. Tribalism is a dangerous form of ignorance, a zero-sum-game mentality. Customary, instinct-driven people gravitate toward practising tribalism as a direct result of conditioning necessitated and fuelled by ignorance. Tribal environment combined with ‘staunch upbringing’ feed people’s minds with thinking of ‘us versus them,’ hence forming the major part of their personality and character traits. In ‘educated, civilised societies,’ tribalism takes various forms and manifests itself in many undesirable ways.
Forms of tribalism
Various forms of tribalism exist in both traditional and ‘civilised’ societies. Tribes and ethnic communities in a nation practise them in different and similar ways. These forms include racism, ethnic identity and affiliation, regionalism, sectarianism, favoritism, nepotism and so on. In my knowledge, grounded analysis, Sudan, the land of the blacks, would not have been divided in two had the successive, ‘civilised,’ Khartoum-based tyrannical regimes and rulers seen and understood that the country’s richness and prosperity were rooted in the diversity of its peoples. In the Old Sudan, Arab tribes made up about 24% and indigenous Africans made, up about 74%. Given an inclusive, visionary leadership, like the then SPLA/SPLM Led New Sudan Movement, perhaps it could have held together the cohesion and fabric of the Sudanese peoples. In my opinion, Sudan disintegrated and fell apart not because its citizens were inherently divisive and tribal, but because various Khartoum-based rogue regimes since 1956 had enacted and employed laws and rules that escalated tribalism, regionalism, discrimination, and marginalization of the Sudanese people.
These were kleptocratic regimes that used power to exclude large parts of the country. These crooked, corrupt individuals preached the ‘Arabisation and Islamisation’ of Sudan, even though millions of Muslims and Arabs did not benefit from the rotten system. No human being chooses to be born into a particular race, tribe; ethnicity, or family. Hence, regimes and tribes where ‘leaders’ and people brew and project judgmental, discriminatory, detrimental attitudes and practices toward members of another tribe or racial group are rogue, good-for-nothing, and self-defeating. The display of such behavior and practices demonstrates a zero-sum-game mentality. However, repercussions of such self-defeating systems of governance would ‘boomerang.’ Why did the ‘educated, civilised’ Sudanese leaders facilitate the oppression and marginalization of the Sudanese majority? Depending on how you look at it, one can assert that the two Sudans are endowed not only with abundant natural resources but also diverse cultures, and the social capital of their peoples. This diversity includes Jieeng (Dinka), Nuer, Nuba, Acholi, Bari, Shilluk, Anyuak, Fur, Maban, Luo, Taposa, Murle, Mardi, Azande, Mandari, Lotuo, Kuku, Kakwa, Didinga, Baka, Fertit, Bongo, Lango, beja, Zaghawa, Shaigya, Ja'alin, Shukria, Bedouins, Arakieen, Awadia, Baggara, Danagla and so on.
These tribal and ethnic identities are natural forms of identification even though their names were created. People’s linguistic diversity was nature’s disposition, and arrangement; therefore these varied traditions and cultures deserve to be celebrated. Tribalism, however, is inherently diabolic and corrosive. It is a giant negative force whose intrinsic tendency mainly masquerades to pillage and destroy. As a behavior and attitude, it degrades and diminishes the essence of being human. It subjects people to manipulation, ridicule, mistreatment, and discrimination, simply because they do not belong to a particular tribal, racial or ethnic group perpetrators identify with. Can anyone assert that it is determinism that has wreaked havoc on the two Sudans? Is who we become largely determined by genetic heritage, or, upbringing, association, and development? There is scientific evidence that personality and character traits are majorly developed and formed after birth. Tribalism, racism, hatred is taught and so can love, kindness, compassion, and so on, be taught as well. Tribalism like all forms of prejudice and discrimination does not obey the golden rule, ‘Do unto others what you would like and to do unto you.’ This principle, if observed and obeyed can create heaven here on earth for all humanity.
Similar to tribalism, racism besets one group of the human race against another on the basis of skin colour and physical features. Racists brew; possess preconceived, judgmental, discriminatory ideas. They gravitate toward negative inherited attributes based on the superiority of one racial group and the inferiority of another group. Racism produces prejudice and segregation and racist individuals and institutions emanate discrimination and hostility against individuals and ethnic communities on the basis of their membership in a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority and marginalized. Racists can be bigots who perhaps feel pleasure in the suffering and destruction of other human beings.
Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups, which is often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo and if one group holds more power within the government. It is caused by class dynamics, fragile states, geo-political rivalries, and politics. Religious sectarianism can corrode societal fabric and cohesion and possibly can cause death. Regionalism on the other hand is a political ideology that seeks to increase political power, influence, and self-determination of people of one or more sub-national regions. It is a practice that advocates regional rather than central systems of governance, administration, economic, cultural or political affiliation. Tribal leaders, rulers, politicians play and gravitate towards favouritism, nepotism, or cronyism. These degrading behaviors and practices give preferential treatment to one person or group at the expense of another person. These attitudes interfere with fairness and obstruct justice. Perpetrators of such systems give undue advantage to someone who does not necessarily merit this treatment.
The Dangers of Tribalism
As I have expounded, tribalism permeates and manifests its ugliness in numerous ways, more so in underdeveloped, less educated countries. and , self-serving politicians and interest groups, and there are many of them, avowedly take advantage of civil population’s vulnerability. In the two Sudans, in which the formal education of citizens is below average, tribal and ethnic communities have tragically engaged in despairing hostility against one another. Distrust and suspicion flow in the air, poisoning citizens’ minds and hearts, skewing them towards tribal and ethnic loyalty. Intolerant views and sentiments are often expressed. Violence flares up at the fringes of society and can quickly reach a tipping point. A recurrent theme people employ at this stage is that ‘Life sucks.’ For assumed reasons, finger-pointing towards another ‘outer group’ becomes widespread. Rage easily grows and occupies people’s minds. At this point, lack of restraint and counsel easily precipitates violence and can lead to atrocities being committed. Hostility is openly displayed and often transmutes itself into an ingrained behavior and attitude. People become apathetic victims of tribal and ethnic identity and indoctrination. The law of hypnotic rhythm had deepened its grip on people’s consciousness.
Trauma caused by many man-made reasons has gripped the minds and souls of the two nations. As a consequence of the various orchestrated, protracted civil wars, premeditated tribal and ethnic violence in the two Sudans, ‘TRUAMA’ has continued to permeate and invade the collective psyche of the two related nations. National and societal integrity has disintegrated and this brokenness is reverberating across tribal and ethnic communities. Individuals become ‘lone warriors’ and can remark with zero consideration, ‘I'm great and you're not.’ Tribal attitude and pride have evolved into thick, connected layers in which people become intoxicated by expressions such as, ‘We're great and they're not.’ In a superficial way, perpetrators claim that ‘life is great,’ when it is not. Tragically, people’s diversity has been turned into a liability. At the same time, religious proclamation and participation have reached unprecedented levels. This is not surprising, because a majority of ‘leaders’ on this earth do not practice what they preach. This is perhaps a paradox of life! Who is to blame; God or humans? By nature’s design, can’t human beings not help but engage in hostility, alienation and aggression against one another? Is there some biological genes, psychological tendency, or mental war constantly going on between intellect and nerve, and that humans are unable control it? And could this be one of the reasons why a great number of human beings look to the sky for redemption and salvation? Has it not been said in various religious scriptures that true salvation comes from within rather than from without?
Tribalism and its related forms of prejudice and discrimination subvert and diminish the rule of law, fairness, and justice. Tribalism discourages and destroys equality, hard work, development, and progress. Tribalism can lead to the worst behaviors of which human beings are capable: violence, atrocity, and genocide. Tribalism corrodes the societal fabric that holds people together in an atmosphere and spirit of wholeness; security, peace, and harmony. In the two Sudans, tribalism in connection with discrimination and prejudice has led to marginalization, resource control, and lack of vision. People have falsely become attuned, conditioned that humans are innately tribal. Have we not confused the need to belong to a group, tribe, or community, with hostile racial, tribal, or ethnic identity? Do people need to be members of a particular tribe or ethnicity to perhaps maintain meaningful, fulfilling relationships with others? We cannot possibly blame the need to belong as the culprit or instigator of humans’ sorrows and suffering. So where does this widespread tribalistic behavior, and attitude come from? I can argue a portion of it emanates from the superstitious, presumptuous, primitive nature and tendency of humans.
The human condition; shared experiences, emotions, and challenges common to all human beings, is shaped by subliminal conditioning which in turn causes trepidation in people when they mix with another racial, tribal, or ethnic group. Put in another way, environmental upbringing and learning largely determine a person’s character rather than heredity or biological inheritance. Biologists and psychologists can surely agree with this explanation.
Tribal identity, that superficial in-group solidarity can feel awesome. But repercussions of this behavior in the two Sudans, like in many similar parts of the world, have resulted in widespread, visible problems including poverty and exploitation, economic and technological backwardness, and socio-cultural handicaps. Racism, tribalism, prejudice, and discrimination, among many other socio-economic grievances, practiced in Old Sudan led to the disintegration, and division of the largest country in Africa. All across the two countries, tribal populations live in density, therefore a large number of these people lead a sedentary, inactive, desk-bound lifestyle. Like in the old Sudan, and now practiced in the two Sudans, tribalism, racism, prejudice, discrimination, and socio-economic marginalisation have bred illiteracy, bondage, exploitation, disease and unemployment. No single sector in the country runs properly because all these evils have produced a high degree of incompetence and regression.
In conclusion, the dangers of tribalism which have plagued the two Sudans, for decades, include socio-economic marginalisation, violence, atrocities, hostilities, exploitation and poverty, unemployment, corrosion of fairness, justice and rule of law, and economic and technological backwardness. These behaviours and attitudes have brought the two Sudans to their present, regressive, stuck-in-the-mud states. The shared humanity is diminished. Rulers in various positions of power and authority evidently view life as a zero-sum game. This is a win-lose mentality that has diminished and corroded the cohesion and fabric that hold a nation together.
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