The conflict between the north and south of Sudan has been one of the longest lasting and deadliest wars of the late 20th Century. The civilian death toll is one of the highest of any war since WWII.
In 1820 Egyptian Arabs took over Northern Sudan and founded the present day capital of Khartoum as an outpost for their army. It soon developed into a thriving center for trade in ivory and slaves. Almost fifty years later the Suez Canal was completed linking the Mediterranean Sea with the Gulf of Suez.
Between 1863 and 1879 the Egyptians and British attempted to extend their influence into Sudan. Sudanese Muslims met their attempted expansion with a revolt and forced them to vacate. Khartoum fell at the hands of Sudanese rebels on 26th January 1885 and the country became a theocratic Mahdist (Islamic) state. Fifteen years later the British returned with Lord Kitchener to regain control and Khartoum fell again, this time at the hands of the British. Sudan became a colony of Great Britain, ruled by a governor general appointed by Egypt, approved by the British. Khartoum became the official capital of Anglo/Egyptian Sudan.
This violent and babaric period of genocide lasted for twenty two years, killing an estimated 2 million people and displacing close to 4 million out of a population of 32 million.
The Egyptians and British ruled Sudan as two separate colonies – the largely Arab and Muslim north and the predominantly black, Christian and Animist south – emphasizing a racial divide that already existed. After 1924 a law made it illegal for anyone living above the 10th parallel to go any further south, and for anyone living below the 8th parallel to go any further north. This was an attempt to prevent the spread of malaria and other diseases that had plagued British troops, and also to prevent the Northern Sudanese from raiding Southern tribes for slaves.
The First Sudanese Civil War – 1955 to 1972
Sudan was granted independence from Great Britain on 1st January 1956 despite the fact that civil war had already begun between the north and south. Southerners feared that the newly independent nation would be dominated by the Arab and Muslim North. A ceasefire was agreed in 1972 with the Addis Ababa Agreement but this only proved to be a temporary respite from the attrocities.
The Second Sudanese Civil War – 1983 to 2005
Civil war resumed in 1983 when President Gaafar Nimeiry attempted to create a Federated Sudan, violating the Addis Ababa Agreement. He abolished the agreement completely and declared Sharia Law. In 1989 a coup brought Khartoum under the control of Sunni fundamentalists and an invasion of the tribal south ensued in an attempt to eliminate the Christian minority. This violent and babaric period of genocide lasted for twenty two years, killing an estimated 2 million people and displacing close to 4 million out of a population of 32 million. The war ended on 9th January 2005 when the Nairobi Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed by both sides. Southern Sudan was granted autonomy for six years, ending with a referendem for independence.
Resettles refugee, displaced and orphaned boys from the Sudan into the United States
The ‘Lost Boys of Sudan’ International Rescue Committee program was setup to resettle refugee, displaced and orphaned boys from the Sudan into the United States folowing the Second Sudanese Civil War (1983-2005). Many young boys survived the genocide that took place because they were away from their villages tending herds, or were able to escape into the nearby jungles when they were attacked. Very few girls escaped as most were raped, killed, taken as slaves, or became servants. Orphaned and with no support the ‘Lost Boys’ made epic journeys lasting years, crossing the borders to international relief camps in Ethiopia and Kenya, evading thirst, starvation, wild animals, insects, disease, and one of the most bloody wars of the 20th century.
In 2001 around 3,800 ‘Lost Boys’ arrived in the United States, today they are scattered in over 38 cities across the country. The film ‘God Grew Tired of Us’ was a four year long project that followed three of the ‘Lost Boys’ from their refugee camp to the United States, documenting their struggle to adapt and settle in the complex and confusing western world.
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The Lost Boys Of The Sudan
God Grew Tired Of Us Trailer
The conflict between the north and south of Sudan has been one of the longest lasting and deadliest wars of the late 20th Century. The civilian death toll is one of the highest of any war since WWII.
In 1820 Egyptian Arabs took over Northern Sudan and founded the present day capital of Khartoum as an outpost for their army. It soon developed into a thriving center for trade in ivory and slaves. Almost fifty years later the Suez Canal was completed linking the Mediterranean Sea with the Gulf of Suez.
Between 1863 and 1879 the Egyptians and British attempted to extend their influence into Sudan. Sudanese Muslims met their attempted expansion with a revolt and forced them to vacate. Khartoum fell at the hands of Sudanese rebels on 26th January 1885 and the country became a theocratic Mahdist (Islamic) state. Fifteen years later the British returned with Lord Kitchener to regain control and Khartoum fell again, this time at the hands of the British. Sudan became a colony of Great Britain, ruled by a governor general appointed by Egypt, approved by the British. Khartoum became the official capital of Anglo/Egyptian Sudan.
The Egyptians and British ruled Sudan as two separate colonies – the largely Arab and Muslim north and the predominantly black, Christian and Animist south – emphasizing a racial divide that already existed. After 1924 a law made it illegal for anyone living above the 10th parallel to go any further south, and for anyone living below the 8th parallel to go any further north. This was an attempt to prevent the spread of malaria and other diseases that had plagued British troops, and also to prevent the Northern Sudanese from raiding Southern tribes for slaves.
The First Sudanese Civil War – 1955 to 1972
Sudan was granted independence from Great Britain on 1st January 1956 despite the fact that civil war had already begun between the north and south. Southerners feared that the newly independent nation would be dominated by the Arab and Muslim North. A ceasefire was agreed in 1972 with the Addis Ababa Agreement but this only proved to be a temporary respite from the attrocities.
The Second Sudanese Civil War – 1983 to 2005
Civil war resumed in 1983 when President Gaafar Nimeiry attempted to create a Federated Sudan, violating the Addis Ababa Agreement. He abolished the agreement completely and declared Sharia Law. In 1989 a coup brought Khartoum under the control of Sunni fundamentalists and an invasion of the tribal south ensued in an attempt to eliminate the Christian minority. This violent and babaric period of genocide lasted for twenty two years, killing an estimated 2 million people and displacing close to 4 million out of a population of 32 million. The war ended on 9th January 2005 when the Nairobi Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed by both sides. Southern Sudan was granted autonomy for six years, ending with a referendem for independence.
Resettles refugee, displaced and orphaned boys from the Sudan into the United States
The ‘Lost Boys of Sudan’ International Rescue Committee program was setup to resettle refugee, displaced and orphaned boys from the Sudan into the United States folowing the Second Sudanese Civil War (1983-2005). Many young boys survived the genocide that took place because they were away from their villages tending herds, or were able to escape into the nearby jungles when they were attacked. Very few girls escaped as most were raped, killed, taken as slaves, or became servants. Orphaned and with no support the ‘Lost Boys’ made epic journeys lasting years, crossing the borders to international relief camps in Ethiopia and Kenya, evading thirst, starvation, wild animals, insects, disease, and one of the most bloody wars of the 20th century.
In 2001 around 3,800 ‘Lost Boys’ arrived in the United States, today they are scattered in over 38 cities across the country. The film ‘God Grew Tired of Us’ was a four year long project that followed three of the ‘Lost Boys’ from their refugee camp to the United States, documenting their struggle to adapt and settle in the complex and confusing western world.
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