Sudan's Cultural Heritage is Also Being Destroyed
We are witnessing an era where massacres are merely observed and condemned. The massacres taking place on African soil, a land often associated with civil wars, famine, scarcity, conflicts, and natural disasters, receive even less attention on the world's agenda. The human tragedy unfolding in Sudan, trapped by the dirty politics of global actors, has been ongoing for over a year and a half.
People whose only crime was being born in Sudan have been
killed by the most brutal methods, taken captive, and tortured. The voices of
Sudanese women who committed collective suicide to escape torture and rape were
almost never heard. Women are being systematically raped and abused. The
Sudanese people, displaced multiple times within their own country, have
nowhere left to go. The situation of those who managed to seek refuge in
neighboring countries is pitiful. In camps declared safe, hundreds of Sudanese
children die every day from hunger and infectious diseases.
The war, which deepens with each passing day, is destroying
not only Sudan's future but also its past. While millions are displaced and
hundreds of thousands are mercilessly slaughtered, the country's cultural and
world heritage sites are also being destroyed and looted. Across Sudan,
museums, institutions, centuries-old manuscripts, and documents are being
destroyed; looted artifacts are put up for sale and smuggled out of the
country.
The militants of the Rapid Support Forces, led by Mohamed
Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), who are fighting against the Sudanese army, have been
involved in every kind of atrocity since the beginning of the war. These
militants, who have no moral values, are also destroying and looting historical
artifacts and sites with their blood-stained hands.
According to poet Hamid Bakheet, a member of the Sudanese
Writers Union, "The destruction is deliberate, an effort to erase
historical facts. They want to create a new era that begins with them. On top
of that, there is hatred. Hatred towards education and students in general.
They want to turn society into an ignorant community with no memory."
A Country with Ancient History
It has become impossible, unfortunately, for minds
constantly fed negative themes by the media to acknowledge that African
countries, which often only make the news for scarcity, hunger, and wars,
actually have very deep histories and rich cultural heritages.
It is little known that Sudan, an African country that has
been home to many civilizations throughout history and has made great
contributions to world heritage, hosts over 200 pyramids (almost twice the
number of pyramids in neighboring Egypt).
Sudan has a very rich past, representing the many
civilizations that played a vital role in shaping the Nile Valley.
The National Museum is Being Looted
The Sudan National Museum is considered by experts to be one
of the most important institutions in Africa. The museum houses critically
important collections spanning thousands of years of history, from the
Paleolithic Age to the ancient Kingdom of Kush, the medieval Christian period,
and the Islamic eras. Its collection of over 100,000 items includes mummies
dating back to 2500 BC.
Every artifact in the museum is not only a remnant of art
and history but also an indispensable part of Sudan's national identity.
Some of the museum's most valuable collections belong to the
Kingdom of Kush, which ruled independently from Egypt between 1660-1575 BC.
The National Museum also contains depictions representing
royal figures of Nubian society, including frescoes from the Cathedral of
Faras, belonging to the Christian kingdoms of Nubia, such as Makuria and Alodia
(6th to 15th centuries).
The museum's collection also makes it possible to see the
change in the country's religious and cultural landscape with the rise of Islam
in the 15th century. Among the artifacts from this period are Quranic
manuscripts, some dating back to the first centuries of Islam in Sudan.
The museum, which has been under threat since the first
months of the war, has become even more vulnerable in recent months. Numerous
artifacts have been destroyed and looted.
Countless works—from the granite statues of the pharaohs,
notable for their unique craftsmanship and majestic stance, to gold jewelry,
weapons, and tools highlighting the Kushites' expertise in metalworking and
artistic sophistication—have been destroyed by Dagalo's army.
Frescoes from the Christian kingdoms and numerous manuscript
works from the era of Islamic dominance were burned.
Looting is still ongoing at two of Sudan's major museums:
the Khalifa House Museum in Omdurman and the Nyala Museum in the South Darfur
state.
The Muhammad Omer Bashir Center for Sudanese Studies library
at Omdurman Ahlia University was destroyed. The Heritage House, a cultural
center in Khartoum founded by academic Ismail El-Fihail, was demolished.
The area containing Naga, located northeast of Sudan's
capital Khartoum and recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has fallen
under militia control. Naga, once known as a cradle of civilization, is also
under threat, like other cultural heritage sites.
Cultural preservation in Sudan has already been suffering
from insufficient funding for a very long time. The situation has become much
more critical due to the war. The massacres being carried out have reached such
tragic proportions that speaking about the destruction of cultural heritage
takes a back seat. However, when the war finally ends, Sudan will be rebuilt,
and the extent of the cultural devastation will then be clearly revealed.
Cultural heritage is not just a memory of the past; it is also the hope for the
future. The destruction of Sudan's history is tearing away a piece of the
future of the entire world, primarily Africa. No matter the perspective, we
must remember, speak about, and keep the tragedy in Sudan on the agenda.
Sources:
https://www.dw.com/en/sudans-cultural-treasures-destroyed-in-conflict/a-65904076
https://africasacountry.com/2024/09/sudans-cultural-devastation
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