By Ginaba Lino
The Bari Community has marked the 15th anniversary of Jubek Day with renewed calls to preserve its cultural heritage, revive the Bari language, and promote national unity ahead of South Sudan’s Independence Day celebrations.
Speaking during the celebration in Nyaing, Acting Secretary General of the Bari Community, David Dogga Jada, described culture as an important foundation for peace, identity, and unity among South Sudan’s diverse communities.
Jada said the Bari cultural movement began in the 1980s when members of the community organized cultural activities at Nyakuron Cultural Centre. He explained that despite years of conflict and displacement, Bari elders established a cultural association in Sudan in 1999 to protect their language, customs, and traditions.
He added that the community later reached an agreement with the then Government of Southern Sudan to recognize July 8 as Jubek Day, which is now celebrated by Bari communities both at home and in the diaspora.
Jada said cultural celebrations create opportunities for different communities to learn from one another and strengthen peaceful coexistence.
The Chairman of the Bari Language Education Centre, Acolyte Primo Wani Andrea, appealed to the government, development partners, and the Bari community to support efforts to revive the Bari language.
He said the language disappeared from many schools in the mid-1980s and has gradually been replaced by English and Arabic in many homes.
Primo revealed that the Bari Language Education Centre, established in December last year, now operates 13 learning centres across Juba with volunteer teachers and is registered with the Central Equatoria State Ministry of General Education.
He also encouraged media houses to increase programming in local languages and urged Bari-speaking families to use the language at home.
Meanwhile, Bari Youth Representative Emmanuel Kenyi called on young people to take responsibility for preserving their cultural heritage and passing it on to future generations.
This year’s Jubek Day was celebrated under the theme: “Lor Lo Jubek a Lor Taking Ko Mora,” meaning “The Day of Jubek is a Day of Peace and Unity,” highlighting the role of culture in promoting reconciliation, peaceful coexistence, and national unity.