Abeed
Encyclopedia
Abid is a derogatory term meaning "slave" used mainly in Arab countries and is usually applied as an insult to Black people
to invoke stereotypes.
The name has been explained as being an allusion to the submission that Muslim
s owe to Allah
. Meyer dismisses this as "efforts by propagandists" to "explain the term away" that are "at the least, disingenuous".
It is commonly used by the Northern Sudan
ese to refer to Southern Sudanese, and the Southern Sudanese in their turn, stereotype the Northerners as "Mundukuru" and "Minga". According to Professor Mahmood Mamdani however, conflicts in Sudan are not compatible with western pre-conceptions of "race".
Francis Deng
described the north-south division imposed by the British on Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
as the British saying to the Northerners: "You Northerners are slave traders and you treat the Southerners like Abeed. Don't call them Abeed! They are slaves no longer.".
Jok Madut Jok argues that the Sudanese slave trade still persists in the 21st century, and that Southern Sudanese in cities in the North who take marginal and petty jobs, because they lack the political influence that rural Northerners have in the cities and because they lack the necessary skills for city life, are regarded as Abeed because of the social standing that is concomitant with such occupations. Dinka
labourers earning just enough to cover their food costs have no social standing in the eyes of Northerners, and are treated as the property of landowners and merchants. "Displaced Southerners", Jok states, "are at the bottom of the racial hierarchy in Northern Sudan.". He explains that they have no resources of their own and are thus highly dependent upon patronage and exploitative relationships with power brokers, with relations ranging from servitude through bonded work to being a means for attracting resources from foreign aid agencies
. "The lines dividing slavery and cleap labour", he states, "are blurred.".
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
to invoke stereotypes.
The name has been explained as being an allusion to the submission that Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s owe to Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
. Meyer dismisses this as "efforts by propagandists" to "explain the term away" that are "at the least, disingenuous".
It is commonly used by the Northern Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
ese to refer to Southern Sudanese, and the Southern Sudanese in their turn, stereotype the Northerners as "Mundukuru" and "Minga". According to Professor Mahmood Mamdani however, conflicts in Sudan are not compatible with western pre-conceptions of "race".
Francis Deng
Francis Deng
On 29 May 2007, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced the appointment of Dr. Francis M. Deng of the Sudan as the new Special Adviser for the Prevention of Genocide, a position he holds at the level of Under-Secretary General....
described the north-south division imposed by the British on Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan referred to the manner by which Sudan was administered between 1899 and 1956, when it was a condominium of Egypt and the United Kingdom.-Union with Egypt:...
as the British saying to the Northerners: "You Northerners are slave traders and you treat the Southerners like Abeed. Don't call them Abeed! They are slaves no longer.".
Jok Madut Jok argues that the Sudanese slave trade still persists in the 21st century, and that Southern Sudanese in cities in the North who take marginal and petty jobs, because they lack the political influence that rural Northerners have in the cities and because they lack the necessary skills for city life, are regarded as Abeed because of the social standing that is concomitant with such occupations. Dinka
Dinka
The Dinka is an ethnic group inhabiting the Bahr el Ghazal region of the Nile basin, Jonglei and parts of southern Kordufan and Upper Nile regions. They are mainly agro-pastoral people, relying on cattle herding at riverside camps in the dry season and growing millet and other varieties of grains ...
labourers earning just enough to cover their food costs have no social standing in the eyes of Northerners, and are treated as the property of landowners and merchants. "Displaced Southerners", Jok states, "are at the bottom of the racial hierarchy in Northern Sudan.". He explains that they have no resources of their own and are thus highly dependent upon patronage and exploitative relationships with power brokers, with relations ranging from servitude through bonded work to being a means for attracting resources from foreign aid agencies
Foreign aid to Sudan
There is a significant amount of foreign aid to Sudan, including a large amount of relief aid from international organizations to alleviate the effects of civil wars in the South and in Darfur. Amounts vary according to the intensity of the conflicts and rainfall patterns, both of which affect food...
. "The lines dividing slavery and cleap labour", he states, "are blurred.".