Crisis in Abyei: South Sudan must act and stop violence between Dinka groups

By Jan Pospisil, Coventry University

Abyei – a territory roughly the size of Jamaica – is being contested by two countries, Sudan and South Sudan. Abyei, which covers just over 10,000km², is under special administrative status following the terms of a 2005 peace agreement between the two countries.

The disagreement has led to increasingly violent inter-communal tensions. Although the roots of these stretch back decades, they present a complex challenge, particularly in a context where the state lacks the capacity to enforce the rule of law impartially. But, in my view, the South Sudanese national government has the tools to help alleviate these tensions in the near term.

I have researched the political and security situation in Sudan and South Sudan for more than two decades and, as representatives from all sides confirm, the heart of the current conflict lies in overlapping territorial claims.

Important region

Abyei is both geographically and culturally significant.

It’s strategically positioned in a resource-rich and fertile area between Sudan and South Sudan that is also important for its transport links. Abyei is a bustling regional trading hub. Although there is only one producing oilfield in Abyei and production is declining, the region is thought to have vast untapped resources.

Abyei is deeply embedded in the history of the Ngok Dinka community, who are among the northernmost Dinka populations. The Dinka represent the predominant ethnolinguistic group in South Sudan, a country that emerged as the world’s newest nation in 2011.

Abyei’s ownership is also contested by the Arabic Misseriya from the north, indigenous to the current Sudanese territory.

These contestations have resulted in the region being plagued by recurrent conflicts, marking a history of turmoil in Abyei dating back more than a century.

Efforts at resolution

In an effort to resolve the dispute over Abyei’s sovereignty, negotiations held between the Sudanese government and the Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement that began in 2002 proposed a referendum to decide if Abyei should become part of Sudan or South Sudan.

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