"We the willing, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, with so little, for so long, we are now qualified to do anything, with nothing" By Konstantin Josef Jireček, a Czech historian, diplomat and slavist.
Remembering Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok: Eulogy and Tributes in Living Memory of Gen. Atem Aguang Atem, One of the Most Iconic and Heroic SPLM/SPLA Commanders of the Liberation Struggle
By
PaanLuel Wël, Juba, South Sudan
1. Introduction
Friday,
September 27, 2019 (PW) – Tomorrow,
on Saturday, 28 September 2019, the final funeral rites of Maj. Gen. Atem
Aguang Atem Deng, who passed away on May 27, 2019, will be conducted at his
home, near Giada Military Hospital and opposite Medan Simba, in Juba, South
Sudan. The Late Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok was one of the most iconic and
heroic commanders of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/SPLA)’s
war of the liberation struggle in South Sudan. Gen. Atem Aguang participated in
most of the historic and fierce battles that defined, shaped and determined the
ultimate success of the liberation struggle, leading to the eventual independence
of the Republic of South Sudan on July 9, 2011. For his boundless bravery and
immense contributions to the successes of the SPLM/SPLA in the battlefields, he
was immortalized, alongside his comrades-in-arm, in one of the most legendary and
inspirational songs of the liberation struggle, by the renowned artist, Ustaz Panchol
Deng Ajang, one of the greatest musicians of the liberation era:
“Atëm Aguang acïthɔ̈ɔ̈rë Parajɔk
Ee
Jallab köök cïkë kuath wut
Ku Deng-Madööt atɔ̈u thïn ku Ajak ë Yen
Bïkkë yup cë kä kuath ɣɔ̈k
Dhubɛɛt kuɔ aye mëën
Alueel Yïndïpenden ye wɛɛn Commando One
Kuka lueel Brigade One ye lɛ̈ny Commando
Six
Jesh ye riŋ tɔŋ ke ɣou
Ke pam ëthok, athäär ke Dhubɛɛt cie döŋciɛ̈ɛ̈n
Jesh ë Bäny Oyai Deng
Dhubɛɛt kor we cä bë waan
Yïn Daniel Atong, ku Awet Ajing
Döm de Parajɔk ku Awïny
Ciennë jɔ wëi lɔ dhuk
Dunde mɔidït adhiaau
Baŋö jaa looi të jɔl ë keem bɛɛr miööt
Ke Nhialic anhiëër ke dun ëye lɔ̈ŋ
Ye Meerï cool luaak ke cɔ̈t bë lɔ abï dhiaau
Yeeŋö bë ye wëëny ë piny abë tɔ̈u
Ku kuc mandɛ̈ ke cä Atëm bë gam
Ee moi bë wɛɛrroor, adɔ̈ŋ ɣäudheer piny ku tweliib
Ku Dabɛɛb ku agut cä arabiiy ken ke
cäth
Chol ë Thɔn athäär cë Chol ë Lual
Dhubɛɛt ke OJS aayï Malual Ayɔɔm
Atëmda athäär ku Deng-Madööt, Macɔk Atëm ku Jɔk Riääk, ku CDR
In that song, Comrade Panchol Deng Ajang
celebrated the battlefield accolades of the then Alternate Commander (A/CDR)
Atem Aguang during the 1995 Operation
Jungle Storm (OJS) military campaigns in Eastern Equatoria, under the
overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak, CDR Pieng Deng Kuol, CDR James Hoth Mai,
and CDR Isaac Mamur Mete, that overran and captured Parajok (25 Oct. 1995),
Owiny-Kibul (26 Oct. 1995), Palotaka and Magwi (27 Oct. 1995), and Oboo,
Panyikwara, Ame, Moli, Pageri, Loa and Kit in November 1995. In full recognition
of and appreciation for his exemplary battlefield courage, bravery and sacrifices,
A/CDR Atem Aguang was promoted to the rank of a full Military Commander (CDR). What
made those military victories so outstanding and historic in the living memory
of the people of South Sudan was the fact that those monumental feats came at
the darkest hours and the weakest moments in the entire history of the
liberation struggle following the 1991 Nasir coup by Riek Machar and Lam Akol. Before
the Nasir coup, the SPLM/SPLA had successfully liberated about three-quarters
of southern Sudan, with the exception of Western Equatoria and the three
garrison cities of Juba, Wau and Malakal that were under military siege.
After the Nasir coup, the SPLM/SPLA
virtually lost all the liberated towns with the exception of Boma and Nimule. It
is also to be noted that defense of Nimule Border Post was hinged on the fierce
battles that were fought at Aswa Bridge in which the late Gen. Atem Aguang Atem
was the commanding officer in the fore trenches. The fate of the liberation
struggle, along with the age-old aspiration of the people of South Sudan, was
hanging precariously at the precipice of total defeat by Khartoum. The
successful defense of Nimule Border Post by the late Gen. Atem Aguang and his
colleagues under overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak in 1994 gave a break to
seemly unrelenting strings of military victories of the enemy over the SPM/SPLA.
As a consequence of masterminding a debilitating disruption of enemy’s
advances, the tides of military victories turned against Khartoum and the
following year saw the recapture of the military bases that were lost to the
enemy. As the lead field commander of those pivotal military operations in
October 1995, the very survival of the movement, and the fate of the people of
Southern Sudan, was placed on the shoulders of the late Gen. Atem Aguang. Those
decisive military operations eternally etched his name into the living memory
of the people of South Sudan.
In those particular military campaigns, unlike
hitherto military operations, the movement won substantial and direct support
from regional leaders such as Isaias Afewerki of Eritrea, Meles Zenawi of
Ethiopia and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, all of whom sent war materials and
soldiers to aid the SPLM/SPLA in Eastern Equatoria. Eritrean and Ethiopian
soldiers were mainly concentrated among the engineering corps, military
reconnaissance and heavy artilleries, while Ugandan soldiers were embedded
among the SPLA soldiers at the front lines, fighting side by side. As the
senior field commander, A/CDR Atem Aguang became acquainted with, and a
lifelong friend to, the field commanders from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Uganda. It
was this extended military family, comprising of senior military leaders from
Uganda and South Sudan, forged at the front lines during the war of liberation,
which re-emerged at the death bed of Gen. Atem Aguang in Kampala to give him a
befitting send off in memory of, and in tributes to, their gargantuan tribulations
during military operations in Eastern Equatoria.
2.
Death and Burial
Before his death in May 2019, Gen. Atem
Aguang had been ill for about five months, commencing around December 2018, and
was admitted in Kampala, Uganda. Hours before his demise, he had phoned his
eldest son, Aguang Atem Aguang, in Juba to enquire whether Aguang was done with
his mission in Juba and when he might be returning to Kampala. It was Aguang
who had taken him to Uganda for further treatment and Aguang had only returned to
Juba at the advice of his father to follow up on a promising job opportunity
with the National Revenue Authority (NRA). Upon receiving the call that morning
from his dad, Aguang was worried and thus enquired anxiously: “Is everything okay
with you, father?” Gen. Atem Aguang responded by assuring his eldest son that
there was nothing to worry about, and then added, “Come back quickly once you
are done with your mission in Juba.”
That last conversation took place at 12pm
and then, three hours later, he passed away, surrounded by his kids, wife, and
members of the extended family. Madam Adaau-Mathiang, the wife of Gen. Gier
Chuang Aluong, and Madam Adaau Kongor, the wife of Gen. Atem Zakaria Duot, had
gone to the hospital that very day on a regular visit and were present at the
bedside when Gen. Atem Aguang breathed his last. It was Madam Adau-Mathiang who
broke the sad news to her husband, Gen. Gier Chuang, Gen. Mach Paul and Comrade
Majier Abdalla, all of whom responded promptly. They went to the hospital and
took full charge of the situation, alongside family members such as Mr. Aguer
Bol Kuir-Guuk and Mr. Adoor Manyok.
Firstly, Gen. Gier Chuang contacted Juba
and communicated the sad news to Mama Rebecca Nyandeng, Hon. Deng Dau Deng
Malek, Dr. Majak Agot Atem, Gen. Bior Ajang Duot (Bior-Asuot) and Gen. Bior
Kuir Deng (Bior-Matoto). Mama Rebecca Nyandeng and Dr. Majak Agot Atem informed
the president accordingly. Secondly, Gen.
Gier Chuang, who is widely known among the military and intelligence circles of
the Ugandan government, contacted and informed Ugandan authorities about the
passing of Gen. Atem Aguang. As already explained above, Gen. Atem Aguang was
well-known to the senior officers of the Ugandan army and military intelligence
dating back to the war of liberation when SPLM/SPLA used to conduct joint
military operations in Eastern Equatoria against both the Lord Resistance Army
(LRA) and Khartoum regime. Therefore, when Gen. Gier Chuang informed the Ugandan
military about the demise of Gen. Atem Aguang, Brig. Gen. Richard of the UPDF immediately
recognized him as one of those SPLA field commanders he, and the Late Gen.
Kazini, had conducted joint military operations in the 1990s. The UPDF’s chief
of general staff therefore ordered Gen. Richard to escort the body, with a full
military squadron, to the border. He also provided all the help requested by
Gen. Gier Chuang, including a military ambulance with an escort, and two buses to
transport the mourners to South Sudan; some of the Ugandan military leaders extended
financial and moral support to the family in their own personal capacities.
On their parts, Gen. Gier Chuang and
Comrade Majier Abdalla took the body to the mortuary at Mengo Hospital, and
paid for the services, including the preservation of the body. Gen. Gier Chuang
also provided two Land Cruisers for ground transport, while Comrade Majier
Abdalla offered three Land Cruisers to facilitate ground transport for the members
of the extended family and relatives, colleagues and comrades, of Gen. Atem
Aguang, who were going to Juba by road to receive the body at the airport and
to attend requiem and the burial. Accompanied by a platoon of the Ugandan army,
the body was transported from Kampala to Nimule where it was received by Gen. Bior-Matoto, who was delegated by the government
of South Sudan to receive the body at the border and to airlift it to Juba with
a military helicopter.
Meanwhile in Juba, family members and
relatives, friends and comrades, members of Kongor community and national
leaders from Jonglei state, thronged the home of Gen. Atem Aguang at Jebel,
opposite Medan Simba. Among the leaders were Mama Rebecca Nyandeng Chol Atem, Gen.
Bior Ajang Duot (Bior-Asuot), Hon. Michael Makwei Lueth, Hon. Deng Dau Deng
Malek, Dr. Majak Agot Atem, Gen. Mach Paul Kuol Awar, Gen. Bior Kuir Deng
(Bior-Matoto), and communities’ leaders from Jonglei state. While they had come
to offer their heartfelt condolences and to console the family, the main agenda
became the burial arrangement, particularly the town and place to inter Gen.
Atem Aguang. Mama Rebecca Nyandeng broached the subject when she asked the
family about the burial location. For the family, the general consensus was
that Gen. Atem Aguang was to be buried at Pakuor village in Kongor, among his
ancestors, as per the Dinka customs. “Aguangdit
acë thou roor ku thiäk roor; A/CDR Deng Aguang was killed and buried in
Chukudum. At least, we as a family wanted my father to be airlifted to and buried
in Kongor, among his ancestors,” explained Aguang Atem Aguang, the eldest son
of Gen. Atem Aguang. However, that suggestion from the family didn’t go down well
with the national and community leaders of Jonglei state who had gathered at
the home of the deceased to deliberate on the burial arrangement.
Mama Nyandeng declared that Gen. Atem
Aguang was a freedom fighter and a national leader, and should therefore be
accorded the status of a national hero in burial. That stance from Mama Rebecca
Nyandeng was embraced and projected by majority of community leaders from
Kongor and national leaders from Jonglei state. It was argued that Gen. Atem
Aguang was not just a war hero but also a government official, a military
leader, who fell sick and died while on active duty. Therefore, the family was
advised to wait and hear first from the government of South Sudan regarding the
final resting place for Gen. Atem Aguang. It was decided that if there were no
word from the government in Juba, then the government of Jonglei state would
first be given a chance for they had requested to have Gen. Atem Aguang buried
at Malual-Chat military barrack in Bor. If there were no plans in place from
the national government in Juba and state government in Bor, then the family of
Atem-Banyelok would have the honor to have Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok
buried at Pakuor village, among his ancestors, as per the Dinka customs.
Mama Rebecca Nyandeng told the gathering
that the first option, Plan A, would be to hear first from the government of
South Sudan if they had any plan in place for the final resting place for Gen.
Atem Aguang; the second option, Plan B, would be to go with the popular demand
of the people of Jonglei state to have Gen. Atem Aguang interred at Malual-Chat
Military Barack, the historical place where the first bullet was fired on the
16th of May, 1983, in Bor, and that the third option, Plan C, would
be the plan from the family to have Gen. Atem Aguang airlifted to Kongor and
buried at the family ancestral home in Pakuor village. “The president is
leaving for Kenya today and I have an appointment with him,” Mama Rebecca
Nyandeng told Gen. Bior-Asuot. “Your assignment is to contact Gen. Kuol Manyang
Juuk. You guys need to be extra careful because it is easy for history to be
lost, never to be recovered. It is Atem today, and you guys are next in line; so
ye raan jam ke ngic raan where we are
all heading to. Talk to Kuoldit and let me go and talk to Kiirdit.” Gen. Kuol
Manyang had gone to Kenya as part of the advance team to receive the president.
Subsequently, Mama Rebecca Nyandeng
contacted President Kiir who was scheduled to leave for Kenya in three hours.
The President made room for, and met with, Mama Rebecca Nyandeng and consequently
pledged government’s full support, including offering the Martyrs’ Ground for
the burial of Gen. Atem Aguang. Before his departure to Kenya that afternoon,
the President instructed the 1st Vice President, Gen. Taban Deng
Ghai, to offer full support of the government – including receiving the body at
the airport and overseeing the burial process at the Martyrs’ Ground, a place
near Jebel Kujur where the former six bodyguards of Dr. John Garang, who
perished with him in the helicopter crash, were buried in August 2005. As Gen.
Atem Aguang was the one who located and recovered the charred bodies from the
crash site in July 2005, fate had it that he was going to rest together with
his former comrades for eternity.
3.
Family Background
The Late Maj. Gen. Atem Aguang Atem hailed from the prominent family of Ustaz Aguang Atem Deng from Kongor (Apioloch, Pan-Alek, Pan-Achalai), Twi Dinka community in Jonglei state, South Sudan. Gen. Atem Aguang was born on the 1st of January 1960 at the town of Duk-Payuel (Duk-Deng), in Jonglei State, South Sudan. He was the first-born son – and the third child from the second wife – of Ustaz Aguang Atem Deng, who had nine (9) wives, thirty-four (34) children and hundreds of grandchildren and great grandchildren.
The first wife of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) was Mama Alek Akuei Atem (Duk, Nyarweng), with whom they were blessed with only one daughter, Apul Aguang Atem (Apul-Marialdit Atuur), who is married to Ajok Atem (Maar, Pakeer).
His second wife, the biological mother
of Gen. Atem Aguang, was Mama Bion Riak Makol (Kolnyang, Guala, Agok) with whom they were blessed with eight (8)
children – four boys and four girls. By order of birth, the eight (8) children
from the second wife are: Mrs. Apul
Aguang Atem, who is married to Mr. Makeer Yolo (Baidit, Pathuyith, Ajiing); Mrs. Amuor Aguang Atem who is married
to the late Mr. Kon Nul Bior (Wangulei,
Ayual, Pawiir); the Late Gen. Atem
Aguang Atem, who is married to Mrs. Amer Jok Ayii
(Jalle, Juet, Jangdor); the Late CDR
Deng Aguang Atem, who was married to Mrs. Hellen Ujang (Torit, Lokoyo) and Mrs. Athok Makuach Deng (Wernyol, Adhiok, Pakoy); the Late Mrs. Adhieu Aguang Atem; the Late
Mr. Chol Aguang Atem; Mr. Mabior Aguang Atem (currently in Australia) who is married
to Achol Barach Kuany (Kongor, Padol),
and lastly, Mr. Bul Aguang Atem who is also in Australia. The
third wife of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) was Mama Nyankuer Lueth
Atem (Wangulei, Ayual, Achath), with
whom they were blessed with only one daughter, Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem
(Apul-Nyangok).
The fourth wife was Mama Adau Ajang-Cham
Aguer (Kongor, Pan-Bior) with whom
they were blessed with six (6) children – five girls and one son, namely, Mrs. Apul
Aguang Atem (Apul-Nyayong); Mrs Amuor Aguang Atem (Amuor-Thii); Mr. Atem Aguang
Atem (Atem-Agutmading); Mrs. Ayen Aguang Atem (Ayen-thii); Mrs. Yar Aguang
Atem, and Mrs. Adhieu Aguang Atem. The fifth wife was Mama Abuol Deng Achol (Anyidi,
Palek, Herjok) with whom they were blessed with eight (8) children, one boy
and seven girls, including double twins: First twins – Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem
(Apul-Ageer) and the late Mr. Atem Aguang Atem; the late Mrs. Nyibol Aguang
Atem; Mrs. Achol Aguang Atem; the late Mrs. Adau Aguang Atem; Mrs. Ayen Aguang
Atem (Ayen-Koor), and the second twins – the late Mrs. Athok Aguang Atem and
Mrs. Adit Aguang Atem. From the sixth wife, Mama Yar Agueet Yuang (Baidit, Pathuyith, Aliab), the family of
Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) was blessed with four (4) children –
three boys and one girl. These are the late Mrs. Amam Aguang Atem; Mr. Chol
Aguang Atem who holds a Bachelor of Science in Social Science and CIA;
Mr. Achiek Aguang Atem who graduated with a Bachelor
of Arts in Education and currently pursuing MBA, and lastly Mr. Deng Aguang
Atem (Deng-thii) who holds Masters of Science in Petroleum Geoscience.
The seventh wife was Mama
Aman Thiaka Anyang (Anyidi, Palek, Pakoom)
with whom they were blessed with three (3) children – one boy and two girls,
namely, Mr. Atem Aguang Atem (Atem-Mayom), the late Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem and
Mrs. Achol Aguang Atem. His eighth wife was Mama Nyanwut Atoor Mayen (Jalle, Aboudit, Tiit-Dior) with whom
they were blessed with three (3) children – two boys and one girl: the late Mr.
Atem Aguang Atem, the late Apul Aguang Atem and Mr. Deng Aguang Atem
(Deng-Mugisto). Lastly, the ninth wife
of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor)
was Mama Tiir Ayol Ajak (Kolnyang, Biong, Nai-Aduong) with whom they had no child.
The Late Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok is
survived by two wives – Madam Amer Jok Ayii Jok (Jalle, Juet, Jangdor) and Madam Yaar
Bona Kook (Yirol, Atuot, Apaak) – and
seven children, comprising of four boys and three girls, plus a dozen of
grandchildren. From his first wife, Madam Amer Jok Ayii Jok, whose uncle was the
late SPLM/SPLA Commander Thon Ayii Jok, the family was blessed with six
children, four boys and two girls. The first-born child of the late Gen. Atem
Aguang is Mr. Aguang Atem Aguang Atem who graduated with a Bachelor of Business
Administration. He is married to (1) Mrs. Kuei Moses Panchol Garang (Anyidi, Palek) with whom they are
blessed with a son, Atem Aguang Atem Aguang Atem Deng, and (2) Mrs. Achol
Mading Atem Ayuel (Kongor, Biordit, Anyang)
with whom they are blessed with another son, Deng Aguang Atem Aguang Atem Deng
– both of which demonstrate a typical interplay of the Dinka customary naming
system.
The second child is Mrs. Apul Atem Aguang Atem who holds a
Bachelor of Information Technology and is married to Molana Anyang Ngong Ayuen (Jalle, Aboudit, Pen). The third child is
Ms. Amuor Atem Aguang Atem who graduated with a
Bachelor of Business Administration and is married to Mr. Alor Awet Alor
(Abyei, Ngok Dinka, Abior). The
fourth born are the twin boys – Kongor Atem Aguang Atem who is presently
pursuing Bachelor of Science in Petroleum Engineering, and Deng Atem Aguang
Atem who is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. The last-born
is Bol D’Achuek – Bol Atem Aguang Atem – who is still pursuing his secondary
school education. From the second wife, Madam Yar
Bona Kook (Yirol, Atuot, Apaak), Gen.
Atem Aguang was blessed with one child – Ms. Bion Atem Aguang Atem, who
is still pursuing her primary school education. The late is also survived by
five grand kids, all boys – Deng and Atem Aguang Atem, Ayuen and Nhial Apul
Atem and Deng Amuor Atem.
4.
Childhood and Education
The extended family of Mzee Atem-Banyelok
was among the earliest families in Kongor community to embrace western education.
The two eldest sons of Atem-Banyelok – Duot Atem Deng, the father of Maj. Gen.
Atem Zakaria, and Aguang Atem Deng, the father of the late Gen. Atem Aguang and
the late CDR Deng Aguang – were both educated and this education was later
imparted to their kids who later made tremendous contributions to the
liberation of South Sudan. This culture of, and the love for, education within the
extended family of Atem-Banyelok came about through Grand-Aunt Apul
Atem-Banyelok, the eldest child of the family, who was married to Mzee Garang
Bany Atem (Kongor, Pan-Bior), the
father of Gen. Deng Garang Bany, the composer of SPLM/PLA “Oyee” slogan, who
was among the founders of the movement, having trekked from Malakal to Ethiopia
together with Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech and Captain Salva Kiir Mayardit.
Mzee Garang Bany Atem, who later became
the right-hand man to Paramount Chief Ajang Duot Bior, was an ex-soldier during
the Turco-Egyptian reign in the Sudan and was reported to have participated in
the 1st world war. Because of his prior exposure to the outside
world, he was among the first generation of Dinka elders to appreciate the
importance of missionary education. Therefore, he enrolled his nephews in
school, and it was this appreciation of education that compelled his wife, Apul
Atem-Banyelok, to plead with her father to allow his two younger brothers –
Duot and Aguang – to be enrolled in school together with her kids. That was how
Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor)
became educated and got trained as a professional teacher in the 1960s, and was
posted to Rabek, a small town near the provincial city of Kosti, Central Sudan,
at the height of the Anyanya one war of liberation.
It was in Rabek that the late Gen. Atem
Aguang spent his childhood and where he commenced his early education. Between
1968 and 1969, young Atem was matriculated at Rabek Kindergarten (nursery school)
at the age of 8 and then to primary school in Kosti. After the transfer of
Ustaz Aguang Atem to Malakal, Southern Sudan, following the Aheec-Dhoor travesty, the late Gen. Atem
Aguang continued with his primary school studies at Dar el Salaam primary school,
Malakal town, in 1974. For his junior high school, he studied at Bor Junior
secondary school, Bor town, between 1975 and 1977, during the era of the Juba-based
High Executive Council government of Justice Abel Alier Kwai and Gen. Joseph
Lagu Yanga, after the signing of the Addis Ababa Accord (AAA). For senior high
school, he matriculated at Malakal Senior secondary school,
Malakal town, where he became a classmate of Gen. Thomas Chirilo Swaka from 1978 to 1980.
S/No.
Schools attended
Year
Location
1
Rabek Kindergarten
1968-1969
Kosti, Northern Sudan
2
Dar el Salaam Primary School
1974-1975
Malakal town
3
Bor Junior Secondary School
1975-1977
Bor town
4
Malakal Senior Secondary
School
1978-1980
Malakal town
5
College of Medicine,
University of Cairo (opted to join SPLM/SPLA)
1983-
Cairo, Egypt
6
University of Juba
2009-2012
Juba city
After high school, the late
Gen. Atem Aguang went back to Kongor and taught at Pakuor primary school, near
his ancestral home, between 1981 and 1982. At the outbreak of the second civil
war in May 1983, the late Gen. Atem Aguang was admitted at the College of
Medicine, University of Cairo, in Egypt; however, he abandoned his plane ticket
to Cairo and went to the bush to fight for the liberation of his people under
the banner of the SPLM/SPLA. After the conclusion
of the armed liberation struggle, following the signing of the Comprehensive
Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005, and after having led the first
SPLM/SPLA’s battalion in a triumphant entry into Juba city in August 2005, he
went back to school in 2009 and graduated in 2012 with
a Bachelor of Science in Rural Development at Juba University.
4.
Joining the Armed Liberation Struggle
The late Gen. Atem Aguang was among the
first waves of students and southern intellectuals that responded to the May 16th
uprising by joining the war of liberation in early 1984. Upon arrival in
Ethiopia, he was trained in Combat Engineer with Zindia battalion, Koryom
Division, under the command of CDR Peter Panhom Thanypiny, deputized by Dau
Manyok. He was commissioned as Sergeant and deployed with Hadid Battalion,
Koryom Division, under the command of Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech, to Maban
Area where he valiantly participated in the capturing of Maban and Dajo towns
in Upper Nile of the then Southern Sudan. In 1985, Gen. Atem Aguang and his
Hadid battalion went to Thiaijaak-Adura area to clear out Anyanya two militias from
Gajaak who were flank-attacking Eagle battalion, under the command of CDR
Kerubino Kuanyin Bol, that was embroiled in a deadly battle for the liberation
of Jekou that proved disastrous to the movement.
It was in the course of fighting Anyanya
two in Gajaak area that Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech was killed with twelve
(12) senior officers. Reportedly, Hadid Battalion was exhausted, and barely
replenished, after liberating Maban and Dajo, and were therefore overwhelmed by
Anyanya two, in numbers and weapons, that was armed by and directed from
Khartoum. During the military retreat, the vehicles and heavy weapons got stuck
and the mobile headquarters got surrounded. Against the best advice, and
passionate pleading, from his officers, Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech flatly
refused to abandon the military vehicles and heavy weapons in the hands of
Anyanya two. When the army was defeated and fled in disarray, the senior
officers stuck with their commander and were all martyred in Thiaijaak – one of
the darkest moments of the liberation struggle. The victorious Anyanya two, which
was still seething from the disputed killing of Samuel Ghai Tut by the
SPLM/SPLA, set all the military vehicles and weapons on fire.
After the liberation of Maban and Dajo,
Sergeant Atem Aguang was promoted to the rank of Sergeant Major in 1985, and
then deployed to Bor Area in the Central Southern Sudan Zonal Command under the
overall command of the late CDR Arok Thon Arok, permanent member of the
Politico-Military High Command of the SPLM/SPLA. Sergeant Major Atem Aguang was
put in charge of the Engineering and Motor Units of the Company of Hadid-Zindia
Battalion. Immediately upon his arrival in Bor Area in 1985, he heroically participated
in the famous “Tong Ashara Alif” – a do-or-die military operation against the
Sudan Armed Force (SAF) military campaign, code named Sobur Ziada – at the historical
town of Pan-Wel, along the Bor-Juba road.
For his fearlessness and bravery in the
battle of “Tong Ashara Alif,” he was promoted to the rank of 2nd Lt.
in November 1985 while still in Bor Area. In 1986, 2nd Lt. Atem
Aguang was further moved and deployed to Jebel Lado, North of Juba, under the
direct command of the late SPLM/SPLA commander, Maj. Thon Ayii Jok, and under
the overall command of Lt. Col. Kuol Manyang Juuk, alternate member of the Politico-Military
High Command of the SPLM/SPLA and commander of the Central Southern Sudan Zonal
Command, after replacing CDR Arok Thon Arok. For his heroic military performances
and leadership at Jebel Lado operations, the Late Gen. Atem Aguang was promoted
to the rank of the 1st Lt. on July 1st, 1987.
S/No.
Military Trainings Attended
Year
Location
1
Combat
engineering training
1984
Bonga, Ethiopia
2
Shield-7 training
1989-1990
Bonga, Ethiopia
3
Commando training
1990
Bonga, Ethiopia
4
Security and VIP
Protection training
2003
United State of America
5
Command and staff course
training (Batch-II)
2008
Juba/Bilpam by American
Tutors
In 1989, 1st Lt. Atem Aguang was
sent to Shield-7 military officers training (Cadet) at the Institute for
Revolutionary War Studies at Bonga, Ethiopia. After military officers’ training
course, he was further trained with SPLA Commando Forces in 1990 at Bonga.
After completing commando training, he was deployed as deputy Commander of
Commando Task Force-7, commanded by Captain Deng Kuot Nyang and under the operational
command of CDR James Hoth Mai and the overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak in
Operation Bright Star Campaign (BSC) Phase-II. In November 1990, 1st
Lt. Atem Aguang and his Task Force-7 captured the town of Yambio, the first
town to be liberated in Western Equatoria.
5.
The Iconic Commander of the SPLM/SPLA
In 1991, 1st Lt. Atem Aguang gallantly
participated in various SPLM/SPLA’s military operations in Bou Bridge, Near
Maridi, against the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), particularly the military
campaign code-named “Fajeer el-Sadiq” that resulted in the killing of Brig. Gen.
Abdel el-Jeliil, the SAF campaign commander. For his audacious military command
and chivalry, he was promoted to the rank of Captain on the 1st of July
1991, exactly four years after he achieved the rank of the 1st Lt.
After completely destroying SAF military campaign code-named “Hakim el-Gaaba,”
Captain Atem Aguang and his SPLA Commando Forces at Bou Bridge were ordered in
1992 to capture Juba under the operational command of CDR James Hoth Mai and the
overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak.
Captain Atem Aguang, along with his
younger brother, A/CDR Deng Aguang, nobly participated in the first SPLM/SPLA’s
military operation on Juba City on June 6, 1992, and again in the second unsuccessful
attack on July 7, 1992, in which his former high school classmate, Gen. Thomas Chirilo
Swaka, bolted out of Juba and joined the SPLM/SPLA, together with the current
Jubek Governor, Gen. Augustino Jadalla Wani. It was his younger brother, A/CDR
Deng Aguang, who stormed and captured Giada Military Barack, leading to the
killing of senior SAF officers who were caught by surprise at the heart of the
city during the second SPLA’s assault on Juba.
In the aftermath of the second assault
on Juba and the defection of Gen. Thomas Chirilo and Gen. Augustino Jadalla Wani
from the SAF, the government conducted targeted mass killing of Southern
intellectuals, political leaders and senior army officers in the SAF. Most of
these unsung martyrs who were massacred in Juba were from the Equatoria
community who had risked their lives to provide valuable information to the
movement and coordinated the two military assaults on Juba. Among those who
perished in the targeted killing of Southerners in Juba was the son of CDR
Galerio Hurinyang Modi, alternate member of the Politico-Military High Command
of the SPLM/SPLA.
The two brothers of Ustaz Aguang
Atem-Banyelok also partook in the subsequent various military campaigns of
Operations Jungle Storm (OJS) in 1992-1993 to repulse the resurgent SAF in the
wake of the 1991 Nasir Coup, masterminded by CDR Lam Akol Ajawin, CDR Riek
Machar Teny and CDR Gordon Koang Chuol. These were particularly perilous
experiences for the movement as most liberated towns such as Pochalla, Pibor,
Bor, Kapoeta, Kajo-Keji, Yirol, Yambio and Torit were retaken by SAF’s
operation “Seif el-Obuur” – the dry season military campaign – that was launched
in January 1992, just few months after the 1991 Nasir coup. In particular,
Khartoum was buoyed by their collaboration with the Nasir group that was
supplying them with insider information about the plans, military strategies and
resources of the movement.
According to Dr. John Garang, “the enemy
victories had been facilitated by the Nasir incident as we lost defence in
depth. In the past, we would fight the enemy from Melut before even reaching
Malakal. But because of the Nasir situation, the enemy steamers were not fought
until Adok and the enemy land convoys were this time not fought until after
Ayod. This gave the enemy the advantage.” The SPLM/SPLA was forced to change
tactics from military offensive to liberate towns to defensive wars to safeguard
liberated areas. When Kapoeta was retaken by SAF in 1992 with heavy losses for
the movement, CDR Majak Agot Atem was compelled to issue a radio message to the
leadership of the movement in which he advocated for the adoption of guerrilla
warfare in the face of imminent defeat by Khartoum. Dr. John Garang was
duty-bound to acknowledge the resurgence of the belligerent SAF, but gently
reminded ranks and files of his beleaguered movement that Anyanya One was able
to achieve Addis Ababa Accord without controlling any town in Southern Sudan in
1972:
“…Therefore nobody should be discouraged by temporary
situations. This is the nature of war. We have lost Pochalla, Bor, Yirol, Pibor
and now Kapoeta. We may lose more towns, but losing towns is not losing the
war. These are towns that we captured from the government in the first place.
Anyanya-1 did not capture a single town but they fought the war and gave the
successive Khartoum governments of that time severe headache, till they got the
Addis Ababa Agreement, all without ever capturing one major town. War is lost
only if the will to fight and continue the struggle is lost and I assure you
that we will achieve our aims. Today the enemy is smiling and laughing, but
tomorrow the SPLA will have the last laugh. SPLA Oye!”
Reaching that tomorrow where the
movement would have the last laugh was obviously a daunting task as some senior
members of the movement were hurriedly jumping ship and cowardly trooping to
Khartoum, having prematurely concluded that the SPLM/SPLA was doomed to the
dustbin of history. All liberated towns were recaptured by SAF except the hill
town of Buma, the first town to be liberated, and the border town of Nimule
where Captain Atem Aguang and his comrades-in-arms laid the last line of
defense before the movement was obliterated. In Khartoum, much-publicized
preparations were in high gears to declare the end of the civil war, with
President Bashir promising on national TV to celebrate Ramadan in Nimule. Numerous
“programs for the rehabilitation and redevelopment of the war-ravaged southern
states were also being envisaged.” Meanwhile in Nigeria, during the Abuja peace
talks, Dr. Ali el-Haj, the head of Khartoum delegation, was arrogantly telling
CDR Salva Kiir Mayardit, the head of SPLM/SPLA delegation, that the “unity of
the country is not negotiable and separation can only be achieved at the barrel
of the gun.”
Nonetheless, Nimule proved to be the
waterloo of SAF as they were roundly defeated and decisively vanquished at the
historic Battle of Ashwa Bridge, in which the late Gen. Atem Aguang boldly distinguished
himself as one of the most iconic and heroic field commanders of the liberation
struggle, earning himself a special promotion to the rank of the Alternate
Commander (A/CDR) on April 1, 1994. According to Khartoum media interviews with
SAF soldiers who survived the Battle of Ashwa Bridge, “it was during this
battle on Nimule that some of the government ministers, public figures,
engineers, medical and veterinary doctors from the Mujahedeen contingent lost
their lives.” Thanks to the noble sacrifices and valor of the late Gen. Atem
Aguang and his comrades-in-arm, President Bashir’s public declaration of
capturing Nimule, reaching the Ugandan border and finally declaring the end of
the civil war – and triumphantly celebrating Ramadan in Nimule – was stillborn.
Commenting on SPLM/SPLA’s historic victory at the Battle of Ashwa Bridge, and
other subsequent military triumphs against SAF, the leader of the SPLM/SPLA leader,
Dr. John Garang, sent out the following poignant radio message to the ranks and
files of the movement in 1995:
“War is essentially a contest over initiative. The
SPLM-SPLA held the initiative from 1983 up to 1991. As a result of various
factors, including internal changes within the Movement, changes within the
region and changes within the international environment, the NIF was able to
seize the initiative from us and we had a series of setbacks. They were able to
capture several towns from us including Yirol, Bor, Pibor, Pochalla, Torit,
Kapoeta, Kajo-keji and so forth. But they did not destroy the Movement. When Beshir
announces victories over the SPLA, he never talks about tanks or artillery
captured from us. You can exchange space for time. We traded space and bid our
time. We reorganized ourselves socially, politically, structurally, and
militarily. We made the necessary qualitative changes and seized the initiative
again.
This year, 1995, the NIF was going to launch yet another
‘final’ offensive on the first of November. We pre-empted them on 25 October.
Within ten days we were able to overrun thirteen garrisons. We put six thousand
troops out of action. That is three brigades: one in Parajok, one in
Owiny-Kibul, and the third in Magwi. We pressed on to Kit where the front-line
is now. We have consolidated the gains that we have achieved in this period.
The balance of forces on the ground has completely changed. Only two days ago,
the regime counter-attacked. This was the third counter-attack from Kit. We
waited for them and annihilated a brigade.
There were two brigades, one in front and the other in
reserve. They attacked us with a combined force of the Army Proper and the
Mujahidiin (ill-trained Islamic Crusaders). This creates lots of command
problems. They push the Mujahidiin in front and the regular army stays in the
rear. The Mujahidiin believe they are going to Heaven from the battlefield. One
of our elder politicians has made the joke that if the road to Heaven were
through Southern Sudan, they (the Mujahidiin) would not have found us
languishing there. Anyway, in the heat of battle this Heaven thing does not
work and the Mujahidiin run away. When the Mujahidiin run, the rest of the army
also runs. It becomes a stampede. The Mujahidiin spoil the battle but we like
them very much. Like the other battles before it, this was a complete disaster
for them. We counted more than two hundred bodies on the ground and gave up. We
picked more than one hundred and fifty prisoners of war.
The strength of the Sudanese army in the South is still
substantial in terms of numbers. They have forces in Juba and they have forces
mis-deployed in Torit, Kapoeta, Kajo-keji, Yei, Morobo and Kaya. Along the
Kenya-Ugandan border axis alone, they had about two hundred and fifty thousand
troops before our offensive. In Juba alone there are about three divisions
(say, twenty thousand men). But those are numbers. They had created the
illusion in the minds of the army and the population that the war was over. Now
they cannot explain these reverses. That is why they have to invent some
scapegoats. They are now accusing Uganda, Eritrea, Tanzania, and South Africa
of fighting for us. Even the United States is accused of operating behind this
‘conspiracy’. They actually announced over Radio Omdurman that they had killed
two hundred and sixty Ugandans soldiers at the Kit front.
Of course this is absolutely untrue. There is not a single
Ugandan or any other foreign soldier on our soil, leave alone being killed in
our battles. Fortunately for us and unfortunately for them, there were two BBC
journalists at Kit when the announcement was made and they just laughed it off
with our soldiers. So I would assess the strength of the NIF army in the South,
defined in terms of morale and the will to continue the war, as being very
poor. This has been proven by our offensive. The offensive we have launched is
irreversible.”
Throughout 1994, A/CDR Atem Aguang
continued to participate in major military campaigns of Operation Jungle Storm
(OJS) at Jebel Awiny (Sindoro), Karpata, Omo, Nyarbang, Moli, Thawula, Pageeri
and finally Ashwa Bridge. After the SAF fail to dislodge the SPLA Forces at
Ashwa Bridge, his forces were moved to Pogei-Magwi road to stop SAF’s flank
attack against the SPLA forces South of Aswa River. He successfully repulsed
SAF attack that resulted in the killing of prominent NIF Jihadist Leader,
Mahmoud el-Sherif, in 1995. In those military operations, he was under the
command of CDR Obute Mamur Mete and the overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak.
Soon afterward, in October 1995, the SPLM/SPLA took the initiative in a
surprising military revival that threatened and later ended in encircling Juba
from all directions until the arrival of the CPA era. This was the decisive
military operation immortalized in the historic song by the legendary artist,
Ustaz Panchol Deng Ajang. In 1995-1996, A/CDR Atem Aguang fought vigorously and
boldly against SAF at Polataka, Obou, Owiny-kebul, Magwi, Ameer Junction, and
Jebeleen. He was then moved back to capture Loa-Ashwa and dislodged SAF under
the command of Col. Mohamad Ugel.
It was in the middle of these epic battles, in 1996, that
he received the devastating news of the death of his younger brother, CDR Deng
Aguang Atem-Banyelok, who was in charge of Chukudum. He was killed in cold
blood by the renegade militia leader, Captain Peter Lorot, on behest of
Khartoum forces in Kapoeta. The SPLA forces in Chukudum responded by killing
the paramount chief of Didinga community in revenge attack for the death of
their military commander, and for facilitating the escape of Peter Lorot and
his militia group to the SAF-controlled Kapoeta.
In July 1997, A/CDR Atem Aguang was
promoted to the rank of a full Military Commander (CDR) and deployed to the Military
Cooperative in Nimule. In 1998, he was transferred to Langabu as Commander of
Cobra Battalion. Between 1998 and 2000, he was assigned as commander of
Brigade-III of Cobra, Jongo and Commandos. In 2001, CDR Atem Aguang commanded military
operations against SAF at Raja, Sopo and Magaya towns under the overall command
of CDR Pieng Deng Kuol. In these particular operations, he sustained a bullet
injury on his left hand.
6.
The Death of Dr. John Garang and the Triumphant Entry into Juba
In 2003, CDR Atem Aguang was redeployed
to Mobile Headquarters of the C-in-C and chairman of the SPLM/SPLA as
operational commander. He was then transferred to Ramchiel where he served as
deputy commander to CDR Malual Majok Chiengkuach, between 2003 and 2004. At the
signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005, he was in charge of
the Commandos, the elite unit of the SPLM/SPLA that was the personal battalion
of the Chairman and C-in-C, Dr. John Garang. He was also assigned to organize
and train Joint Integrated Units (JIUs) in New Cush; thereafter he was deployed
as the Commander of JIUs, Division-1, in the Equatoria region. When the SPLM/SPLA
adopted conventional ranking in Rumbek, 16 May 2005, his rank of CDR was
assessed and confirmed to the conventional ranking of Brigadier General.
On the 30th of July, 2005, the
plane carrying Dr. John Garang, who had deftly led the movement since May 1983,
was reported missing while returning from Uganda. Upon losing contact with the
plane, the leadership of the movement tasked the late Gen. Atem Aguang with
locating the missing plane and securing the safety of the chairman. It was the
late Gen. Atem Aguang, along with his then deputy of Commando battalion, CDR Peter
Gatwech Ghai, who found the wreckage of the chopper and retrieved the charred
bodies from the burnt plane, including the body of the late Dr. John Garang. Again,
in August 2005, it was the late Gen. Atem Aguang who was tasked by the
leadership of the movement to command the first SPLA battalion in a triumphant
entry into Juba for the burial of Dr. John Garang and in anticipation for the
establishment of the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS). In November 2005,
Gen. Atem Aguang was put in charge of the SPLA JIUs First Division in Juba. A
year later, 2006, he was transferred to Malakal as deputy commander to JIUs
Second Division Commander under the command of the then Brig. Gen. Marial
Chanuong Yol.
Few months later, he was re-deployed as
commander to SPLA New Sudan Brigade at Molbok-Renk and Abyei. In 2007, he was
deployed as chief of operations in Infantry 7th Division. In 2008,
he requested and was granted study leave. In 2009, he finally resumed his
studies after 26 years since he turned down a scholarship in 1983 to study
medicine at Cairo University in preference to joining the armed struggle for
the liberation of South Sudan. In 2012, the late Gen. Atem Aguang graduated
from the University of Juba where he obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Rural
Development and Community Studies. When the civil war broke out in December
2013, the late Gen. Atem Aguang was promptly recalled back to the army and
deployed, from 2014 to 2018, as Operation Commander of Mechanized Forces and
Division Eight in Bor, where he participated in dislodging SPLA-IO rebel forces
from Bor, Gadiang, Pajut, Ayod, Yuai and Waat, in the Greater Jonglei state.
In early 2018, he was deployed as deputy
commander of Division Seven in Torit, Eastern Equatoria. In August 2018, he was
transferred and deployed as Deputy Commander of Division Six in Maridi, Western
Equatoria. It was in Maridi that he fell sick in December 2018. He went,
briefly, to Uganda for treatment and then returned to duty in Maridi. In early 2019,
he was finally transferred to the SPLA General Headquarters at Bilpam, Juba,
where he was deployed as Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistic and Supply. Sadly,
he passed onto glory on May 27, 2019. Gen Atem Aguang is survived by his wife,
four sons and three daughters, and five grandsons.May his precious
soul rest in eternal peace with the ancestors and with his martyred comrades!
S/No.
Military Promotions Attained
Year
1
Promoted to the rank of Sergeant
1984
2
Promoted to the rank of
Sergeant Major
1985
3
Commissioned to the rank
of 2nd Lt, attached to shield-2
November, 1985
4
Promoted to the rank of 1st
Lt.
1st July, 1987
5
Promoted to the rank of
Captain
1st July, 1991
6
Special promotion to the
rank of Alternate Commander (A/CDR)
1st April, 1994
7
Promoted to the rank of
Commander (CDR).
July, 1997
8
When the SPLA adopted
conventional ranks assessment in 2005, his rank of CDR was assessed to
Brigadier General
16th May, 2005
9
Promoted to the rank of
Major General, the rank he maintained until his untimely passing on to Glory
on May 27, 2019
2016
7.
Postscript: The Legend of “Aheech-Dhoor”
During the era of the Anyanya One war,
the central government in Khartoum used to be fearful of educated South
Sudanese and would post them to the far-flung regions of the North where they
would have little contact with their people and the Anyanya One movement. This
was done mainly to prevent these incipient intellectuals from joining the
Anyanya war or simply to preclude them from enlightening their own people –
awaking them from their blissful political naiveté and socioeconomic ignorance.
Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok was fed up
with such a system that kept him deliberately away from the South, and thus
embarked on an ingenious way to extricate himself without being thrown into
jail. One such cunning method of civil disobedience that he embraced was to
practically teach Arab kids in Dinka language – basically teaching them how to
sing the praise songs of his favorite ox, the legendary Aheech-Dhoor, that later became his famous nickname throughout the
rest of his life.
Every evening when the kids would go
home, their parents would inquire what they had learnt at school that day and
the kids would repeatedly report learning a song, Aheec-Dhoor, and would joyfully break into singing it, much to the
chagrin of the parents. When multiple reports of Aheec-Dhoor finally reached the ears of school authorities from the
disgruntled parents, Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok was summarily released from his
duties and allowed to travel to South Sudan, after an investigative committee
established that Aheec-Dhoor was
nothing more than a ploy by the shrewd teacher to have his request, to be
transferred to Southern Sudan, granted.
Through changing times and dynamic circumstances, the legend of Aheec-Dhoor has transformed itself from being a form of protest, a civil disobedience, against an oppressive Khartoum regime to a colloquial expression, an adage, in the modern Dinka language. Presently, Aheec-Dhoor has attained an impressive status of an idiomatic expression – an alluring thing, a charming word or a captivating action that is later established to be nothing more than a clever ruse.
The author would like to thank Aguang Atem Aguang for providing information on the family and appreciate Engineer Deng Diar Diing (Deng-Mayom) for editing the article.
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Tributes to Gen. Atem Aguang – One of the Most Iconic and Heroic Commanders of the Liberation Struggle
Posted: September 27, 2019 by PaanLuel Wël Media Ltd. in Commentary, Contributing Writers, History, Obituary, Opinion Articles, Opinion Writers, PaanLuel Wël, PeopleRemembering Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok: Eulogy and Tributes in Living Memory of Gen. Atem Aguang Atem, One of the Most Iconic and Heroic SPLM/SPLA Commanders of the Liberation Struggle
By PaanLuel Wël, Juba, South Sudan
1. Introduction
Friday, September 27, 2019 (PW) – Tomorrow, on Saturday, 28 September 2019, the final funeral rites of Maj. Gen. Atem Aguang Atem Deng, who passed away on May 27, 2019, will be conducted at his home, near Giada Military Hospital and opposite Medan Simba, in Juba, South Sudan. The Late Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok was one of the most iconic and heroic commanders of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/SPLA)’s war of the liberation struggle in South Sudan. Gen. Atem Aguang participated in most of the historic and fierce battles that defined, shaped and determined the ultimate success of the liberation struggle, leading to the eventual independence of the Republic of South Sudan on July 9, 2011. For his boundless bravery and immense contributions to the successes of the SPLM/SPLA in the battlefields, he was immortalized, alongside his comrades-in-arm, in one of the most legendary and inspirational songs of the liberation struggle, by the renowned artist, Ustaz Panchol Deng Ajang, one of the greatest musicians of the liberation era:
“Atëm Aguang acï thɔ̈ɔ̈rë Parajɔk
Ee Jallab köök cïkë kuath wut
Ku Deng-Madööt atɔ̈u thïn ku Ajak ë Yen
Bïkkë yup cë kä kuath ɣɔ̈k
Dhubɛɛt kuɔ aye mëën
Alueel Yïndïpenden ye wɛɛn Commando One
Kuka lueel Brigade One ye lɛ̈ny Commando Six
Jesh ye riŋ tɔŋ ke ɣou
Ke pam ë thok, athäär ke Dhubɛɛt cie döŋciɛ̈ɛ̈n
Jesh ë Bäny Oyai Deng
Dhubɛɛt kor we cä bë waan
Yïn Daniel Atong, ku Awet Ajing
Döm de Parajɔk ku Awïny
Ciennë jɔ wëi lɔ dhuk
Dunde mɔidït adhiaau
Baŋö jaa looi të jɔl ë keem bɛɛr miööt
Ke Nhialic anhiëër ke dun ëye lɔ̈ŋ
Ye Meerï cool luaak ke cɔ̈t bë lɔ abï dhiaau
Yeeŋö bë ye wëëny ë piny abë tɔ̈u
Ku kuc mandɛ̈ ke cä Atëm bë gam
Ee moi bë wɛɛr roor, adɔ̈ŋ ɣäudheer piny ku tweliib
Ku Dabɛɛb ku agut cä arabiiy ken ke cäth
Chol ë Thɔn athäär cë Chol ë Lual
Dhubɛɛt ke OJS aayï Malual Ayɔɔm
Atëmda athäär ku Deng-Madööt, Macɔk Atëm ku Jɔk Riääk, ku CDR
In that song, Comrade Panchol Deng Ajang celebrated the battlefield accolades of the then Alternate Commander (A/CDR) Atem Aguang during the 1995 Operation Jungle Storm (OJS) military campaigns in Eastern Equatoria, under the overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak, CDR Pieng Deng Kuol, CDR James Hoth Mai, and CDR Isaac Mamur Mete, that overran and captured Parajok (25 Oct. 1995), Owiny-Kibul (26 Oct. 1995), Palotaka and Magwi (27 Oct. 1995), and Oboo, Panyikwara, Ame, Moli, Pageri, Loa and Kit in November 1995. In full recognition of and appreciation for his exemplary battlefield courage, bravery and sacrifices, A/CDR Atem Aguang was promoted to the rank of a full Military Commander (CDR). What made those military victories so outstanding and historic in the living memory of the people of South Sudan was the fact that those monumental feats came at the darkest hours and the weakest moments in the entire history of the liberation struggle following the 1991 Nasir coup by Riek Machar and Lam Akol. Before the Nasir coup, the SPLM/SPLA had successfully liberated about three-quarters of southern Sudan, with the exception of Western Equatoria and the three garrison cities of Juba, Wau and Malakal that were under military siege.
After the Nasir coup, the SPLM/SPLA virtually lost all the liberated towns with the exception of Boma and Nimule. It is also to be noted that defense of Nimule Border Post was hinged on the fierce battles that were fought at Aswa Bridge in which the late Gen. Atem Aguang Atem was the commanding officer in the fore trenches. The fate of the liberation struggle, along with the age-old aspiration of the people of South Sudan, was hanging precariously at the precipice of total defeat by Khartoum. The successful defense of Nimule Border Post by the late Gen. Atem Aguang and his colleagues under overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak in 1994 gave a break to seemly unrelenting strings of military victories of the enemy over the SPM/SPLA. As a consequence of masterminding a debilitating disruption of enemy’s advances, the tides of military victories turned against Khartoum and the following year saw the recapture of the military bases that were lost to the enemy. As the lead field commander of those pivotal military operations in October 1995, the very survival of the movement, and the fate of the people of Southern Sudan, was placed on the shoulders of the late Gen. Atem Aguang. Those decisive military operations eternally etched his name into the living memory of the people of South Sudan.
In those particular military campaigns, unlike hitherto military operations, the movement won substantial and direct support from regional leaders such as Isaias Afewerki of Eritrea, Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, all of whom sent war materials and soldiers to aid the SPLM/SPLA in Eastern Equatoria. Eritrean and Ethiopian soldiers were mainly concentrated among the engineering corps, military reconnaissance and heavy artilleries, while Ugandan soldiers were embedded among the SPLA soldiers at the front lines, fighting side by side. As the senior field commander, A/CDR Atem Aguang became acquainted with, and a lifelong friend to, the field commanders from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Uganda. It was this extended military family, comprising of senior military leaders from Uganda and South Sudan, forged at the front lines during the war of liberation, which re-emerged at the death bed of Gen. Atem Aguang in Kampala to give him a befitting send off in memory of, and in tributes to, their gargantuan tribulations during military operations in Eastern Equatoria.
2. Death and Burial
Before his death in May 2019, Gen. Atem Aguang had been ill for about five months, commencing around December 2018, and was admitted in Kampala, Uganda. Hours before his demise, he had phoned his eldest son, Aguang Atem Aguang, in Juba to enquire whether Aguang was done with his mission in Juba and when he might be returning to Kampala. It was Aguang who had taken him to Uganda for further treatment and Aguang had only returned to Juba at the advice of his father to follow up on a promising job opportunity with the National Revenue Authority (NRA). Upon receiving the call that morning from his dad, Aguang was worried and thus enquired anxiously: “Is everything okay with you, father?” Gen. Atem Aguang responded by assuring his eldest son that there was nothing to worry about, and then added, “Come back quickly once you are done with your mission in Juba.”
That last conversation took place at 12pm and then, three hours later, he passed away, surrounded by his kids, wife, and members of the extended family. Madam Adaau-Mathiang, the wife of Gen. Gier Chuang Aluong, and Madam Adaau Kongor, the wife of Gen. Atem Zakaria Duot, had gone to the hospital that very day on a regular visit and were present at the bedside when Gen. Atem Aguang breathed his last. It was Madam Adau-Mathiang who broke the sad news to her husband, Gen. Gier Chuang, Gen. Mach Paul and Comrade Majier Abdalla, all of whom responded promptly. They went to the hospital and took full charge of the situation, alongside family members such as Mr. Aguer Bol Kuir-Guuk and Mr. Adoor Manyok.
Firstly, Gen. Gier Chuang contacted Juba and communicated the sad news to Mama Rebecca Nyandeng, Hon. Deng Dau Deng Malek, Dr. Majak Agot Atem, Gen. Bior Ajang Duot (Bior-Asuot) and Gen. Bior Kuir Deng (Bior-Matoto). Mama Rebecca Nyandeng and Dr. Majak Agot Atem informed the president accordingly. Secondly, Gen. Gier Chuang, who is widely known among the military and intelligence circles of the Ugandan government, contacted and informed Ugandan authorities about the passing of Gen. Atem Aguang. As already explained above, Gen. Atem Aguang was well-known to the senior officers of the Ugandan army and military intelligence dating back to the war of liberation when SPLM/SPLA used to conduct joint military operations in Eastern Equatoria against both the Lord Resistance Army (LRA) and Khartoum regime. Therefore, when Gen. Gier Chuang informed the Ugandan military about the demise of Gen. Atem Aguang, Brig. Gen. Richard of the UPDF immediately recognized him as one of those SPLA field commanders he, and the Late Gen. Kazini, had conducted joint military operations in the 1990s. The UPDF’s chief of general staff therefore ordered Gen. Richard to escort the body, with a full military squadron, to the border. He also provided all the help requested by Gen. Gier Chuang, including a military ambulance with an escort, and two buses to transport the mourners to South Sudan; some of the Ugandan military leaders extended financial and moral support to the family in their own personal capacities.
On their parts, Gen. Gier Chuang and Comrade Majier Abdalla took the body to the mortuary at Mengo Hospital, and paid for the services, including the preservation of the body. Gen. Gier Chuang also provided two Land Cruisers for ground transport, while Comrade Majier Abdalla offered three Land Cruisers to facilitate ground transport for the members of the extended family and relatives, colleagues and comrades, of Gen. Atem Aguang, who were going to Juba by road to receive the body at the airport and to attend requiem and the burial. Accompanied by a platoon of the Ugandan army, the body was transported from Kampala to Nimule where it was received by Gen. Bior-Matoto, who was delegated by the government of South Sudan to receive the body at the border and to airlift it to Juba with a military helicopter.
Meanwhile in Juba, family members and relatives, friends and comrades, members of Kongor community and national leaders from Jonglei state, thronged the home of Gen. Atem Aguang at Jebel, opposite Medan Simba. Among the leaders were Mama Rebecca Nyandeng Chol Atem, Gen. Bior Ajang Duot (Bior-Asuot), Hon. Michael Makwei Lueth, Hon. Deng Dau Deng Malek, Dr. Majak Agot Atem, Gen. Mach Paul Kuol Awar, Gen. Bior Kuir Deng (Bior-Matoto), and communities’ leaders from Jonglei state. While they had come to offer their heartfelt condolences and to console the family, the main agenda became the burial arrangement, particularly the town and place to inter Gen. Atem Aguang. Mama Rebecca Nyandeng broached the subject when she asked the family about the burial location. For the family, the general consensus was that Gen. Atem Aguang was to be buried at Pakuor village in Kongor, among his ancestors, as per the Dinka customs. “Aguangdit acë thou roor ku thiäk roor; A/CDR Deng Aguang was killed and buried in Chukudum. At least, we as a family wanted my father to be airlifted to and buried in Kongor, among his ancestors,” explained Aguang Atem Aguang, the eldest son of Gen. Atem Aguang. However, that suggestion from the family didn’t go down well with the national and community leaders of Jonglei state who had gathered at the home of the deceased to deliberate on the burial arrangement.
Mama Nyandeng declared that Gen. Atem Aguang was a freedom fighter and a national leader, and should therefore be accorded the status of a national hero in burial. That stance from Mama Rebecca Nyandeng was embraced and projected by majority of community leaders from Kongor and national leaders from Jonglei state. It was argued that Gen. Atem Aguang was not just a war hero but also a government official, a military leader, who fell sick and died while on active duty. Therefore, the family was advised to wait and hear first from the government of South Sudan regarding the final resting place for Gen. Atem Aguang. It was decided that if there were no word from the government in Juba, then the government of Jonglei state would first be given a chance for they had requested to have Gen. Atem Aguang buried at Malual-Chat military barrack in Bor. If there were no plans in place from the national government in Juba and state government in Bor, then the family of Atem-Banyelok would have the honor to have Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok buried at Pakuor village, among his ancestors, as per the Dinka customs.
Mama Rebecca Nyandeng told the gathering that the first option, Plan A, would be to hear first from the government of South Sudan if they had any plan in place for the final resting place for Gen. Atem Aguang; the second option, Plan B, would be to go with the popular demand of the people of Jonglei state to have Gen. Atem Aguang interred at Malual-Chat Military Barack, the historical place where the first bullet was fired on the 16th of May, 1983, in Bor, and that the third option, Plan C, would be the plan from the family to have Gen. Atem Aguang airlifted to Kongor and buried at the family ancestral home in Pakuor village. “The president is leaving for Kenya today and I have an appointment with him,” Mama Rebecca Nyandeng told Gen. Bior-Asuot. “Your assignment is to contact Gen. Kuol Manyang Juuk. You guys need to be extra careful because it is easy for history to be lost, never to be recovered. It is Atem today, and you guys are next in line; so ye raan jam ke ngic raan where we are all heading to. Talk to Kuoldit and let me go and talk to Kiirdit.” Gen. Kuol Manyang had gone to Kenya as part of the advance team to receive the president.
Subsequently, Mama Rebecca Nyandeng contacted President Kiir who was scheduled to leave for Kenya in three hours. The President made room for, and met with, Mama Rebecca Nyandeng and consequently pledged government’s full support, including offering the Martyrs’ Ground for the burial of Gen. Atem Aguang. Before his departure to Kenya that afternoon, the President instructed the 1st Vice President, Gen. Taban Deng Ghai, to offer full support of the government – including receiving the body at the airport and overseeing the burial process at the Martyrs’ Ground, a place near Jebel Kujur where the former six bodyguards of Dr. John Garang, who perished with him in the helicopter crash, were buried in August 2005. As Gen. Atem Aguang was the one who located and recovered the charred bodies from the crash site in July 2005, fate had it that he was going to rest together with his former comrades for eternity.
3. Family Background
The Late Maj. Gen. Atem Aguang Atem hailed from the prominent family of Ustaz Aguang Atem Deng from Kongor (Apioloch, Pan-Alek, Pan-Achalai), Twi Dinka community in Jonglei state, South Sudan. Gen. Atem Aguang was born on the 1st of January 1960 at the town of Duk-Payuel (Duk-Deng), in Jonglei State, South Sudan. He was the first-born son – and the third child from the second wife – of Ustaz Aguang Atem Deng, who had nine (9) wives, thirty-four (34) children and hundreds of grandchildren and great grandchildren.
The first wife of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) was Mama Alek Akuei Atem (Duk, Nyarweng), with whom they were blessed with only one daughter, Apul Aguang Atem (Apul-Marialdit Atuur), who is married to Ajok Atem (Maar, Pakeer).
His second wife, the biological mother of Gen. Atem Aguang, was Mama Bion Riak Makol (Kolnyang, Guala, Agok) with whom they were blessed with eight (8) children – four boys and four girls. By order of birth, the eight (8) children from the second wife are: Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem, who is married to Mr. Makeer Yolo (Baidit, Pathuyith, Ajiing); Mrs. Amuor Aguang Atem who is married to the late Mr. Kon Nul Bior (Wangulei, Ayual, Pawiir); the Late Gen. Atem Aguang Atem, who is married to Mrs. Amer Jok Ayii (Jalle, Juet, Jangdor); the Late CDR Deng Aguang Atem, who was married to Mrs. Hellen Ujang (Torit, Lokoyo) and Mrs. Athok Makuach Deng (Wernyol, Adhiok, Pakoy); the Late Mrs. Adhieu Aguang Atem; the Late Mr. Chol Aguang Atem; Mr. Mabior Aguang Atem (currently in Australia) who is married to Achol Barach Kuany (Kongor, Padol), and lastly, Mr. Bul Aguang Atem who is also in Australia. The third wife of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) was Mama Nyankuer Lueth Atem (Wangulei, Ayual, Achath), with whom they were blessed with only one daughter, Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem (Apul-Nyangok).
The fourth wife was Mama Adau Ajang-Cham Aguer (Kongor, Pan-Bior) with whom they were blessed with six (6) children – five girls and one son, namely, Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem (Apul-Nyayong); Mrs Amuor Aguang Atem (Amuor-Thii); Mr. Atem Aguang Atem (Atem-Agutmading); Mrs. Ayen Aguang Atem (Ayen-thii); Mrs. Yar Aguang Atem, and Mrs. Adhieu Aguang Atem. The fifth wife was Mama Abuol Deng Achol (Anyidi, Palek, Herjok) with whom they were blessed with eight (8) children, one boy and seven girls, including double twins: First twins – Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem (Apul-Ageer) and the late Mr. Atem Aguang Atem; the late Mrs. Nyibol Aguang Atem; Mrs. Achol Aguang Atem; the late Mrs. Adau Aguang Atem; Mrs. Ayen Aguang Atem (Ayen-Koor), and the second twins – the late Mrs. Athok Aguang Atem and Mrs. Adit Aguang Atem. From the sixth wife, Mama Yar Agueet Yuang (Baidit, Pathuyith, Aliab), the family of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) was blessed with four (4) children – three boys and one girl. These are the late Mrs. Amam Aguang Atem; Mr. Chol Aguang Atem who holds a Bachelor of Science in Social Science and CIA; Mr. Achiek Aguang Atem who graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Education and currently pursuing MBA, and lastly Mr. Deng Aguang Atem (Deng-thii) who holds Masters of Science in Petroleum Geoscience.
The seventh wife was Mama Aman Thiaka Anyang (Anyidi, Palek, Pakoom) with whom they were blessed with three (3) children – one boy and two girls, namely, Mr. Atem Aguang Atem (Atem-Mayom), the late Mrs. Apul Aguang Atem and Mrs. Achol Aguang Atem. His eighth wife was Mama Nyanwut Atoor Mayen (Jalle, Aboudit, Tiit-Dior) with whom they were blessed with three (3) children – two boys and one girl: the late Mr. Atem Aguang Atem, the late Apul Aguang Atem and Mr. Deng Aguang Atem (Deng-Mugisto). Lastly, the ninth wife of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) was Mama Tiir Ayol Ajak (Kolnyang, Biong, Nai-Aduong) with whom they had no child.
The Late Gen. Atem Aguang Atem-Banyelok is survived by two wives – Madam Amer Jok Ayii Jok (Jalle, Juet, Jangdor) and Madam Yaar Bona Kook (Yirol, Atuot, Apaak) – and seven children, comprising of four boys and three girls, plus a dozen of grandchildren. From his first wife, Madam Amer Jok Ayii Jok, whose uncle was the late SPLM/SPLA Commander Thon Ayii Jok, the family was blessed with six children, four boys and two girls. The first-born child of the late Gen. Atem Aguang is Mr. Aguang Atem Aguang Atem who graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration. He is married to (1) Mrs. Kuei Moses Panchol Garang (Anyidi, Palek) with whom they are blessed with a son, Atem Aguang Atem Aguang Atem Deng, and (2) Mrs. Achol Mading Atem Ayuel (Kongor, Biordit, Anyang) with whom they are blessed with another son, Deng Aguang Atem Aguang Atem Deng – both of which demonstrate a typical interplay of the Dinka customary naming system.
The second child is Mrs. Apul Atem Aguang Atem who holds a Bachelor of Information Technology and is married to Molana Anyang Ngong Ayuen (Jalle, Aboudit, Pen). The third child is Ms. Amuor Atem Aguang Atem who graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration and is married to Mr. Alor Awet Alor (Abyei, Ngok Dinka, Abior). The fourth born are the twin boys – Kongor Atem Aguang Atem who is presently pursuing Bachelor of Science in Petroleum Engineering, and Deng Atem Aguang Atem who is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. The last-born is Bol D’Achuek – Bol Atem Aguang Atem – who is still pursuing his secondary school education. From the second wife, Madam Yar Bona Kook (Yirol, Atuot, Apaak), Gen. Atem Aguang was blessed with one child – Ms. Bion Atem Aguang Atem, who is still pursuing her primary school education. The late is also survived by five grand kids, all boys – Deng and Atem Aguang Atem, Ayuen and Nhial Apul Atem and Deng Amuor Atem.
4. Childhood and Education
The extended family of Mzee Atem-Banyelok was among the earliest families in Kongor community to embrace western education. The two eldest sons of Atem-Banyelok – Duot Atem Deng, the father of Maj. Gen. Atem Zakaria, and Aguang Atem Deng, the father of the late Gen. Atem Aguang and the late CDR Deng Aguang – were both educated and this education was later imparted to their kids who later made tremendous contributions to the liberation of South Sudan. This culture of, and the love for, education within the extended family of Atem-Banyelok came about through Grand-Aunt Apul Atem-Banyelok, the eldest child of the family, who was married to Mzee Garang Bany Atem (Kongor, Pan-Bior), the father of Gen. Deng Garang Bany, the composer of SPLM/PLA “Oyee” slogan, who was among the founders of the movement, having trekked from Malakal to Ethiopia together with Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech and Captain Salva Kiir Mayardit.
Mzee Garang Bany Atem, who later became the right-hand man to Paramount Chief Ajang Duot Bior, was an ex-soldier during the Turco-Egyptian reign in the Sudan and was reported to have participated in the 1st world war. Because of his prior exposure to the outside world, he was among the first generation of Dinka elders to appreciate the importance of missionary education. Therefore, he enrolled his nephews in school, and it was this appreciation of education that compelled his wife, Apul Atem-Banyelok, to plead with her father to allow his two younger brothers – Duot and Aguang – to be enrolled in school together with her kids. That was how Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok (Aheec-Dhoor) became educated and got trained as a professional teacher in the 1960s, and was posted to Rabek, a small town near the provincial city of Kosti, Central Sudan, at the height of the Anyanya one war of liberation.
It was in Rabek that the late Gen. Atem Aguang spent his childhood and where he commenced his early education. Between 1968 and 1969, young Atem was matriculated at Rabek Kindergarten (nursery school) at the age of 8 and then to primary school in Kosti. After the transfer of Ustaz Aguang Atem to Malakal, Southern Sudan, following the Aheec-Dhoor travesty, the late Gen. Atem Aguang continued with his primary school studies at Dar el Salaam primary school, Malakal town, in 1974. For his junior high school, he studied at Bor Junior secondary school, Bor town, between 1975 and 1977, during the era of the Juba-based High Executive Council government of Justice Abel Alier Kwai and Gen. Joseph Lagu Yanga, after the signing of the Addis Ababa Accord (AAA). For senior high school, he matriculated at Malakal Senior secondary school, Malakal town, where he became a classmate of Gen. Thomas Chirilo Swaka from 1978 to 1980.
After high school, the late Gen. Atem Aguang went back to Kongor and taught at Pakuor primary school, near his ancestral home, between 1981 and 1982. At the outbreak of the second civil war in May 1983, the late Gen. Atem Aguang was admitted at the College of Medicine, University of Cairo, in Egypt; however, he abandoned his plane ticket to Cairo and went to the bush to fight for the liberation of his people under the banner of the SPLM/SPLA. After the conclusion of the armed liberation struggle, following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005, and after having led the first SPLM/SPLA’s battalion in a triumphant entry into Juba city in August 2005, he went back to school in 2009 and graduated in 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in Rural Development at Juba University.
4. Joining the Armed Liberation Struggle
The late Gen. Atem Aguang was among the first waves of students and southern intellectuals that responded to the May 16th uprising by joining the war of liberation in early 1984. Upon arrival in Ethiopia, he was trained in Combat Engineer with Zindia battalion, Koryom Division, under the command of CDR Peter Panhom Thanypiny, deputized by Dau Manyok. He was commissioned as Sergeant and deployed with Hadid Battalion, Koryom Division, under the command of Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech, to Maban Area where he valiantly participated in the capturing of Maban and Dajo towns in Upper Nile of the then Southern Sudan. In 1985, Gen. Atem Aguang and his Hadid battalion went to Thiaijaak-Adura area to clear out Anyanya two militias from Gajaak who were flank-attacking Eagle battalion, under the command of CDR Kerubino Kuanyin Bol, that was embroiled in a deadly battle for the liberation of Jekou that proved disastrous to the movement.
It was in the course of fighting Anyanya two in Gajaak area that Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech was killed with twelve (12) senior officers. Reportedly, Hadid Battalion was exhausted, and barely replenished, after liberating Maban and Dajo, and were therefore overwhelmed by Anyanya two, in numbers and weapons, that was armed by and directed from Khartoum. During the military retreat, the vehicles and heavy weapons got stuck and the mobile headquarters got surrounded. Against the best advice, and passionate pleading, from his officers, Lt. Col. Francis Ngor-Makiech flatly refused to abandon the military vehicles and heavy weapons in the hands of Anyanya two. When the army was defeated and fled in disarray, the senior officers stuck with their commander and were all martyred in Thiaijaak – one of the darkest moments of the liberation struggle. The victorious Anyanya two, which was still seething from the disputed killing of Samuel Ghai Tut by the SPLM/SPLA, set all the military vehicles and weapons on fire.
After the liberation of Maban and Dajo, Sergeant Atem Aguang was promoted to the rank of Sergeant Major in 1985, and then deployed to Bor Area in the Central Southern Sudan Zonal Command under the overall command of the late CDR Arok Thon Arok, permanent member of the Politico-Military High Command of the SPLM/SPLA. Sergeant Major Atem Aguang was put in charge of the Engineering and Motor Units of the Company of Hadid-Zindia Battalion. Immediately upon his arrival in Bor Area in 1985, he heroically participated in the famous “Tong Ashara Alif” – a do-or-die military operation against the Sudan Armed Force (SAF) military campaign, code named Sobur Ziada – at the historical town of Pan-Wel, along the Bor-Juba road.
For his fearlessness and bravery in the battle of “Tong Ashara Alif,” he was promoted to the rank of 2nd Lt. in November 1985 while still in Bor Area. In 1986, 2nd Lt. Atem Aguang was further moved and deployed to Jebel Lado, North of Juba, under the direct command of the late SPLM/SPLA commander, Maj. Thon Ayii Jok, and under the overall command of Lt. Col. Kuol Manyang Juuk, alternate member of the Politico-Military High Command of the SPLM/SPLA and commander of the Central Southern Sudan Zonal Command, after replacing CDR Arok Thon Arok. For his heroic military performances and leadership at Jebel Lado operations, the Late Gen. Atem Aguang was promoted to the rank of the 1st Lt. on July 1st, 1987.
In 1989, 1st Lt. Atem Aguang was sent to Shield-7 military officers training (Cadet) at the Institute for Revolutionary War Studies at Bonga, Ethiopia. After military officers’ training course, he was further trained with SPLA Commando Forces in 1990 at Bonga. After completing commando training, he was deployed as deputy Commander of Commando Task Force-7, commanded by Captain Deng Kuot Nyang and under the operational command of CDR James Hoth Mai and the overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak in Operation Bright Star Campaign (BSC) Phase-II. In November 1990, 1st Lt. Atem Aguang and his Task Force-7 captured the town of Yambio, the first town to be liberated in Western Equatoria.
5. The Iconic Commander of the SPLM/SPLA
In 1991, 1st Lt. Atem Aguang gallantly participated in various SPLM/SPLA’s military operations in Bou Bridge, Near Maridi, against the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), particularly the military campaign code-named “Fajeer el-Sadiq” that resulted in the killing of Brig. Gen. Abdel el-Jeliil, the SAF campaign commander. For his audacious military command and chivalry, he was promoted to the rank of Captain on the 1st of July 1991, exactly four years after he achieved the rank of the 1st Lt. After completely destroying SAF military campaign code-named “Hakim el-Gaaba,” Captain Atem Aguang and his SPLA Commando Forces at Bou Bridge were ordered in 1992 to capture Juba under the operational command of CDR James Hoth Mai and the overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak.
Captain Atem Aguang, along with his younger brother, A/CDR Deng Aguang, nobly participated in the first SPLM/SPLA’s military operation on Juba City on June 6, 1992, and again in the second unsuccessful attack on July 7, 1992, in which his former high school classmate, Gen. Thomas Chirilo Swaka, bolted out of Juba and joined the SPLM/SPLA, together with the current Jubek Governor, Gen. Augustino Jadalla Wani. It was his younger brother, A/CDR Deng Aguang, who stormed and captured Giada Military Barack, leading to the killing of senior SAF officers who were caught by surprise at the heart of the city during the second SPLA’s assault on Juba.
In the aftermath of the second assault on Juba and the defection of Gen. Thomas Chirilo and Gen. Augustino Jadalla Wani from the SAF, the government conducted targeted mass killing of Southern intellectuals, political leaders and senior army officers in the SAF. Most of these unsung martyrs who were massacred in Juba were from the Equatoria community who had risked their lives to provide valuable information to the movement and coordinated the two military assaults on Juba. Among those who perished in the targeted killing of Southerners in Juba was the son of CDR Galerio Hurinyang Modi, alternate member of the Politico-Military High Command of the SPLM/SPLA.
The two brothers of Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok also partook in the subsequent various military campaigns of Operations Jungle Storm (OJS) in 1992-1993 to repulse the resurgent SAF in the wake of the 1991 Nasir Coup, masterminded by CDR Lam Akol Ajawin, CDR Riek Machar Teny and CDR Gordon Koang Chuol. These were particularly perilous experiences for the movement as most liberated towns such as Pochalla, Pibor, Bor, Kapoeta, Kajo-Keji, Yirol, Yambio and Torit were retaken by SAF’s operation “Seif el-Obuur” – the dry season military campaign – that was launched in January 1992, just few months after the 1991 Nasir coup. In particular, Khartoum was buoyed by their collaboration with the Nasir group that was supplying them with insider information about the plans, military strategies and resources of the movement.
According to Dr. John Garang, “the enemy victories had been facilitated by the Nasir incident as we lost defence in depth. In the past, we would fight the enemy from Melut before even reaching Malakal. But because of the Nasir situation, the enemy steamers were not fought until Adok and the enemy land convoys were this time not fought until after Ayod. This gave the enemy the advantage.” The SPLM/SPLA was forced to change tactics from military offensive to liberate towns to defensive wars to safeguard liberated areas. When Kapoeta was retaken by SAF in 1992 with heavy losses for the movement, CDR Majak Agot Atem was compelled to issue a radio message to the leadership of the movement in which he advocated for the adoption of guerrilla warfare in the face of imminent defeat by Khartoum. Dr. John Garang was duty-bound to acknowledge the resurgence of the belligerent SAF, but gently reminded ranks and files of his beleaguered movement that Anyanya One was able to achieve Addis Ababa Accord without controlling any town in Southern Sudan in 1972:
“…Therefore nobody should be discouraged by temporary situations. This is the nature of war. We have lost Pochalla, Bor, Yirol, Pibor and now Kapoeta. We may lose more towns, but losing towns is not losing the war. These are towns that we captured from the government in the first place. Anyanya-1 did not capture a single town but they fought the war and gave the successive Khartoum governments of that time severe headache, till they got the Addis Ababa Agreement, all without ever capturing one major town. War is lost only if the will to fight and continue the struggle is lost and I assure you that we will achieve our aims. Today the enemy is smiling and laughing, but tomorrow the SPLA will have the last laugh. SPLA Oye!”
Reaching that tomorrow where the movement would have the last laugh was obviously a daunting task as some senior members of the movement were hurriedly jumping ship and cowardly trooping to Khartoum, having prematurely concluded that the SPLM/SPLA was doomed to the dustbin of history. All liberated towns were recaptured by SAF except the hill town of Buma, the first town to be liberated, and the border town of Nimule where Captain Atem Aguang and his comrades-in-arms laid the last line of defense before the movement was obliterated. In Khartoum, much-publicized preparations were in high gears to declare the end of the civil war, with President Bashir promising on national TV to celebrate Ramadan in Nimule. Numerous “programs for the rehabilitation and redevelopment of the war-ravaged southern states were also being envisaged.” Meanwhile in Nigeria, during the Abuja peace talks, Dr. Ali el-Haj, the head of Khartoum delegation, was arrogantly telling CDR Salva Kiir Mayardit, the head of SPLM/SPLA delegation, that the “unity of the country is not negotiable and separation can only be achieved at the barrel of the gun.”
Nonetheless, Nimule proved to be the waterloo of SAF as they were roundly defeated and decisively vanquished at the historic Battle of Ashwa Bridge, in which the late Gen. Atem Aguang boldly distinguished himself as one of the most iconic and heroic field commanders of the liberation struggle, earning himself a special promotion to the rank of the Alternate Commander (A/CDR) on April 1, 1994. According to Khartoum media interviews with SAF soldiers who survived the Battle of Ashwa Bridge, “it was during this battle on Nimule that some of the government ministers, public figures, engineers, medical and veterinary doctors from the Mujahedeen contingent lost their lives.” Thanks to the noble sacrifices and valor of the late Gen. Atem Aguang and his comrades-in-arm, President Bashir’s public declaration of capturing Nimule, reaching the Ugandan border and finally declaring the end of the civil war – and triumphantly celebrating Ramadan in Nimule – was stillborn. Commenting on SPLM/SPLA’s historic victory at the Battle of Ashwa Bridge, and other subsequent military triumphs against SAF, the leader of the SPLM/SPLA leader, Dr. John Garang, sent out the following poignant radio message to the ranks and files of the movement in 1995:
“War is essentially a contest over initiative. The SPLM-SPLA held the initiative from 1983 up to 1991. As a result of various factors, including internal changes within the Movement, changes within the region and changes within the international environment, the NIF was able to seize the initiative from us and we had a series of setbacks. They were able to capture several towns from us including Yirol, Bor, Pibor, Pochalla, Torit, Kapoeta, Kajo-keji and so forth. But they did not destroy the Movement. When Beshir announces victories over the SPLA, he never talks about tanks or artillery captured from us. You can exchange space for time. We traded space and bid our time. We reorganized ourselves socially, politically, structurally, and militarily. We made the necessary qualitative changes and seized the initiative again.
This year, 1995, the NIF was going to launch yet another ‘final’ offensive on the first of November. We pre-empted them on 25 October. Within ten days we were able to overrun thirteen garrisons. We put six thousand troops out of action. That is three brigades: one in Parajok, one in Owiny-Kibul, and the third in Magwi. We pressed on to Kit where the front-line is now. We have consolidated the gains that we have achieved in this period. The balance of forces on the ground has completely changed. Only two days ago, the regime counter-attacked. This was the third counter-attack from Kit. We waited for them and annihilated a brigade.
There were two brigades, one in front and the other in reserve. They attacked us with a combined force of the Army Proper and the Mujahidiin (ill-trained Islamic Crusaders). This creates lots of command problems. They push the Mujahidiin in front and the regular army stays in the rear. The Mujahidiin believe they are going to Heaven from the battlefield. One of our elder politicians has made the joke that if the road to Heaven were through Southern Sudan, they (the Mujahidiin) would not have found us languishing there. Anyway, in the heat of battle this Heaven thing does not work and the Mujahidiin run away. When the Mujahidiin run, the rest of the army also runs. It becomes a stampede. The Mujahidiin spoil the battle but we like them very much. Like the other battles before it, this was a complete disaster for them. We counted more than two hundred bodies on the ground and gave up. We picked more than one hundred and fifty prisoners of war.
The strength of the Sudanese army in the South is still substantial in terms of numbers. They have forces in Juba and they have forces mis-deployed in Torit, Kapoeta, Kajo-keji, Yei, Morobo and Kaya. Along the Kenya-Ugandan border axis alone, they had about two hundred and fifty thousand troops before our offensive. In Juba alone there are about three divisions (say, twenty thousand men). But those are numbers. They had created the illusion in the minds of the army and the population that the war was over. Now they cannot explain these reverses. That is why they have to invent some scapegoats. They are now accusing Uganda, Eritrea, Tanzania, and South Africa of fighting for us. Even the United States is accused of operating behind this ‘conspiracy’. They actually announced over Radio Omdurman that they had killed two hundred and sixty Ugandans soldiers at the Kit front.
Of course this is absolutely untrue. There is not a single Ugandan or any other foreign soldier on our soil, leave alone being killed in our battles. Fortunately for us and unfortunately for them, there were two BBC journalists at Kit when the announcement was made and they just laughed it off with our soldiers. So I would assess the strength of the NIF army in the South, defined in terms of morale and the will to continue the war, as being very poor. This has been proven by our offensive. The offensive we have launched is irreversible.”
Throughout 1994, A/CDR Atem Aguang continued to participate in major military campaigns of Operation Jungle Storm (OJS) at Jebel Awiny (Sindoro), Karpata, Omo, Nyarbang, Moli, Thawula, Pageeri and finally Ashwa Bridge. After the SAF fail to dislodge the SPLA Forces at Ashwa Bridge, his forces were moved to Pogei-Magwi road to stop SAF’s flank attack against the SPLA forces South of Aswa River. He successfully repulsed SAF attack that resulted in the killing of prominent NIF Jihadist Leader, Mahmoud el-Sherif, in 1995. In those military operations, he was under the command of CDR Obute Mamur Mete and the overall command of CDR Oyai Deng Ajak. Soon afterward, in October 1995, the SPLM/SPLA took the initiative in a surprising military revival that threatened and later ended in encircling Juba from all directions until the arrival of the CPA era. This was the decisive military operation immortalized in the historic song by the legendary artist, Ustaz Panchol Deng Ajang. In 1995-1996, A/CDR Atem Aguang fought vigorously and boldly against SAF at Polataka, Obou, Owiny-kebul, Magwi, Ameer Junction, and Jebeleen. He was then moved back to capture Loa-Ashwa and dislodged SAF under the command of Col. Mohamad Ugel.
It was in the middle of these epic battles, in 1996, that he received the devastating news of the death of his younger brother, CDR Deng Aguang Atem-Banyelok, who was in charge of Chukudum. He was killed in cold blood by the renegade militia leader, Captain Peter Lorot, on behest of Khartoum forces in Kapoeta. The SPLA forces in Chukudum responded by killing the paramount chief of Didinga community in revenge attack for the death of their military commander, and for facilitating the escape of Peter Lorot and his militia group to the SAF-controlled Kapoeta.
In July 1997, A/CDR Atem Aguang was promoted to the rank of a full Military Commander (CDR) and deployed to the Military Cooperative in Nimule. In 1998, he was transferred to Langabu as Commander of Cobra Battalion. Between 1998 and 2000, he was assigned as commander of Brigade-III of Cobra, Jongo and Commandos. In 2001, CDR Atem Aguang commanded military operations against SAF at Raja, Sopo and Magaya towns under the overall command of CDR Pieng Deng Kuol. In these particular operations, he sustained a bullet injury on his left hand.
6. The Death of Dr. John Garang and the Triumphant Entry into Juba
In 2003, CDR Atem Aguang was redeployed to Mobile Headquarters of the C-in-C and chairman of the SPLM/SPLA as operational commander. He was then transferred to Ramchiel where he served as deputy commander to CDR Malual Majok Chiengkuach, between 2003 and 2004. At the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005, he was in charge of the Commandos, the elite unit of the SPLM/SPLA that was the personal battalion of the Chairman and C-in-C, Dr. John Garang. He was also assigned to organize and train Joint Integrated Units (JIUs) in New Cush; thereafter he was deployed as the Commander of JIUs, Division-1, in the Equatoria region. When the SPLM/SPLA adopted conventional ranking in Rumbek, 16 May 2005, his rank of CDR was assessed and confirmed to the conventional ranking of Brigadier General.
On the 30th of July, 2005, the plane carrying Dr. John Garang, who had deftly led the movement since May 1983, was reported missing while returning from Uganda. Upon losing contact with the plane, the leadership of the movement tasked the late Gen. Atem Aguang with locating the missing plane and securing the safety of the chairman. It was the late Gen. Atem Aguang, along with his then deputy of Commando battalion, CDR Peter Gatwech Ghai, who found the wreckage of the chopper and retrieved the charred bodies from the burnt plane, including the body of the late Dr. John Garang. Again, in August 2005, it was the late Gen. Atem Aguang who was tasked by the leadership of the movement to command the first SPLA battalion in a triumphant entry into Juba for the burial of Dr. John Garang and in anticipation for the establishment of the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS). In November 2005, Gen. Atem Aguang was put in charge of the SPLA JIUs First Division in Juba. A year later, 2006, he was transferred to Malakal as deputy commander to JIUs Second Division Commander under the command of the then Brig. Gen. Marial Chanuong Yol.
Few months later, he was re-deployed as commander to SPLA New Sudan Brigade at Molbok-Renk and Abyei. In 2007, he was deployed as chief of operations in Infantry 7th Division. In 2008, he requested and was granted study leave. In 2009, he finally resumed his studies after 26 years since he turned down a scholarship in 1983 to study medicine at Cairo University in preference to joining the armed struggle for the liberation of South Sudan. In 2012, the late Gen. Atem Aguang graduated from the University of Juba where he obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Rural Development and Community Studies. When the civil war broke out in December 2013, the late Gen. Atem Aguang was promptly recalled back to the army and deployed, from 2014 to 2018, as Operation Commander of Mechanized Forces and Division Eight in Bor, where he participated in dislodging SPLA-IO rebel forces from Bor, Gadiang, Pajut, Ayod, Yuai and Waat, in the Greater Jonglei state.
In early 2018, he was deployed as deputy commander of Division Seven in Torit, Eastern Equatoria. In August 2018, he was transferred and deployed as Deputy Commander of Division Six in Maridi, Western Equatoria. It was in Maridi that he fell sick in December 2018. He went, briefly, to Uganda for treatment and then returned to duty in Maridi. In early 2019, he was finally transferred to the SPLA General Headquarters at Bilpam, Juba, where he was deployed as Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistic and Supply. Sadly, he passed onto glory on May 27, 2019. Gen Atem Aguang is survived by his wife, four sons and three daughters, and five grandsons. May his precious soul rest in eternal peace with the ancestors and with his martyred comrades!
7. Postscript: The Legend of “Aheech-Dhoor”
During the era of the Anyanya One war, the central government in Khartoum used to be fearful of educated South Sudanese and would post them to the far-flung regions of the North where they would have little contact with their people and the Anyanya One movement. This was done mainly to prevent these incipient intellectuals from joining the Anyanya war or simply to preclude them from enlightening their own people – awaking them from their blissful political naiveté and socioeconomic ignorance.
Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok was fed up with such a system that kept him deliberately away from the South, and thus embarked on an ingenious way to extricate himself without being thrown into jail. One such cunning method of civil disobedience that he embraced was to practically teach Arab kids in Dinka language – basically teaching them how to sing the praise songs of his favorite ox, the legendary Aheech-Dhoor, that later became his famous nickname throughout the rest of his life.
Every evening when the kids would go home, their parents would inquire what they had learnt at school that day and the kids would repeatedly report learning a song, Aheec-Dhoor, and would joyfully break into singing it, much to the chagrin of the parents. When multiple reports of Aheec-Dhoor finally reached the ears of school authorities from the disgruntled parents, Ustaz Aguang Atem-Banyelok was summarily released from his duties and allowed to travel to South Sudan, after an investigative committee established that Aheec-Dhoor was nothing more than a ploy by the shrewd teacher to have his request, to be transferred to Southern Sudan, granted.
Through changing times and dynamic circumstances, the legend of Aheec-Dhoor has transformed itself from being a form of protest, a civil disobedience, against an oppressive Khartoum regime to a colloquial expression, an adage, in the modern Dinka language. Presently, Aheec-Dhoor has attained an impressive status of an idiomatic expression – an alluring thing, a charming word or a captivating action that is later established to be nothing more than a clever ruse.
The author would like to thank Aguang Atem Aguang for providing information on the family and appreciate Engineer Deng Diar Diing (Deng-Mayom) for editing the article.
PaanLuel Wël, the managing editor of PaanLuel Wël Media (PW) website, graduated with a double major in Economics and Philosophy from The George Washington University, Washington D.C, USA, and currently works as a Project Coordinator for one of the international NGOs in South Sudan. He is the author of Pioocku Thuongjang: The Elementary Modern Standard Dinka (May, 2011), The A.B.C.D.: An Introductory Book into the English Alphabet (July, 2011) and Who Killed Dr. John Garang (July, 2015). He is also the Editor of The Genius of Dr. John Garang, vol. 1-3 (November, 2013), including Dr. John Garang’s Speeches on the War of Liberation (November, 2015) and Speeches on the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (November, 2015), Salva Kiir Mayaardit: The Joshua of South Sudan (with Simon Yel Yel, February, 2011), as well as The Customary Laws of the Greater Bor Dinka Community: Legal and Basic Rules for Self-Administration (July, 2017).
The opinion expressed here is solely the view of the writer. The veracity of any claim made is the responsibility of the author, not PaanLuel Wël Media (PW) website. If you want to submit an opinion article, commentary or news analysis, please email it to paanluel2011@gmail.com. PaanLuel Wël Media (PW) website do reserve the right to edit or reject material before publication. Please include your full name, a short biography, email address, city and the country you are writing from.
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