South Sudan: Changing The Culture A Path To The Catastrophic HIV/AIDS !

By Tor Madira Machier,

March 18, 2015(Nyamilepedia) — Developing nations are struggling to maintain their cultures. Developed countries continues with their cultural offensives aimed to re-colonizes the world first culturally and then came political.

However in spite of these global cultural and politcal confrontations, the newly established Republic of South Sudan which is just almost five years far away from July 2011, is offering a save haven for the accomodation of western cultures which for one or many reasons highlight to the region and further to the rest of the world the weakness of the state ( South Sudanese government ) to protect both the culture and the citizens themselves which make it a fertile ground for those scrambling to extends their cultural and political motives.

Catastrophic western cultures gain momentum in the young east African nation which is now a wrong path by South Sudan with all its incalculable consequences.

South Sudan is a multi-ethnic country with multi-ethnic diversities inhabiting the country and constitutes it. South Sudan’s traditional way of life is twice better than the invading ones.

However, the aggresive advancement of modern western civilizations which are gaining stable ground for accomodations put the original South Sudanese culture at great risk of collapse. Although we, the South Sudanese people share the same fate for our culture, be sensitive that I am not pointing to a particular cultural tradition of a particular ethnic group nor I am pushing for the prevention of civilization but in contrary, I am proud to remind us that we are lossing the battle of the geniune path of civilization.

Changing gear to a better standard of life is always accompaigned by negative radical elements of civilization but only unpreventable when a particular society miscalculate its cost and how to handle the way it change. South Sudan is heavily influenced culturally by the neighboring countries. The post war era suvival of the South Sudanese people is technically affected by multi-aggressive social activities.

Ironically, the coming of peace to South Sudan after the civil war (2005) has the potential of accelerating the development of an epidemic which is notoriously known by the name HIV/AIDS in South Sudan as the country vulnerably experience a increased movement of people in addition to the radical alteration of the country’s social and economic activities.

Sensitively, South Sudan’s neighbors ( Uganda, Kenya and Ethiopia for example ) has a long history of the epidemic and indisputably quarter of South Sudanese refugees abroad fled the Sudanese civil war to the mentioned countries and subsequently adopted the new cultures. The post-war era is characterised with a large portion of anti-native cultural elements. Prostitution became a new culture being adopted and in the watchfull episode of the state. This make it easier for other citizens to adopt it.

Frankly speaking, HIV/AIDS, is a socio-natural calamity which is in one or many ways can be prevented if there is to be a willful government of the people with the aim of promoting and protecting the health of the society. The government must develope a new orianted policy of proctecting the people from HIV/AIDS and not only to provides treatment to those identified as victims of the disease but also to prevent certain styles of life that is identified to be a major contributors to the spread of the epidemic. Foreigners (currently in Juba’s custom, Jebel Market as an example) work to offer sex in return for money. Bars and lodges which are owned by indeed some individuals of high ranking level in the govenment are intendedly rented to sex workers, prostitutes.

The fact that lodges are owned by government officials including members of the Cabinet jeopardise the effort exerted by local authorities of a particular state. indisputably, prostitution is a major factor through which HIV/AIDS is 90% spreaded to others. In 2013, it was reported that HIV/AIDS rate has droped from 3.1% to 2.7%, however, drops in testing and treatment facilities was detected and yet in 2014, HIV/AIDS is developing faster with increase of higher infection rate.

This is a dangerous path by the South Sudanese authorities and the unpleasant news is that the government is reluctant to prevent what happened in Uganda and other most infected nations where the epidemic gains quick speed if advancemnt in addition to the government’s frustration to prevent anti-social businesses like prostitution. The current war is likely expected to easy the extension of the epidemic at an higher speed. As the HIV/AIDS is an aftermath of leaving the culture, South Sudan must work to save the nation from invasion by foreign cultures which supposedly have no room in South Sudan.

Tor Madira Machier is a South Sudanese student pursuing Law Degree at the university of Ain Shams in Cairo, Egypt and can be reached at: tormadira2013@gmail.com