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MEIRAM - 26 Aug 2012

Fayareen in tense standoff commit to pay blood money to Rizeigat

The Fayareen section of the nomadic Misseriya tribe in South Kordofan has committed to pay blood money to the Rizeigat tribe of Darfur amid fears that clashes could break out again.

The decision came Friday as crowds of herders from both tribes assembled in disputed grazing areas west of Meiram in anticipation of armed clashes, according to a native of the town. A number of local residents in interviews with Radio Tamazuj warned that the area could see renewed clashes.

Fighting in mid-July left more than 50 dead near the Abu Jabra oil field on the frontier between East Darfur and South Kordofan. The clashes broke out just a day before a planned peace conference in El Daien, capital of the new East Darfur State in the tribal heartland of the Rizeigat.

Grievances between the two tribes date to before the July clashes. Earlier claims for blood money and tribal boundary disputes are still outstanding from the Abu Haraz conference held near Khartoum in 2009. Last month’s El Daien conference was meant to follow up on resolutions from 2009 but the clashes ahead of the event led to a tense conference.

Authorities in South Kordofan State have been leaning on Misseriya leaders to hold accountable perpetrators of inter-tribal violence or to compensate the victims. The Misseriya, who until 2005 had their own state with its capital at Al Fula, appear to have resisted that pressure until last Friday.

Sources from the Meiram area stated that households of the Misseriya Fayareen section held their own conference last Friday in Karkadei in the presence of the Commissioner of Meiram. The government official presided with the intention of preventing clashes from renewing between the Fayareen and the Rizeigat.  The sources stated that the commissioner gave Fayareen leaders three options: reconciliation (sulh), blood money (diya), or war (harb).

The commissioner made clear that the tribe would be held responsible for whatever option it chose, including the option of war. The Fayareen chose diya, and identified 10 September as the date for another meeting of the section.

For their part the Misseriya Ajaira reportedly welcomed this decision and expressed willingness to help the Fayareen pay blood money to the Rizeigat. They were apparently satisfied that the Fayareen decided not to return to war.

Authorities had arrested a number of Misseriya Fayareen leaders after the clashes last month, according to a source among the Ajaira. These native administration leaders were detained by security authorities from the Meiram area and given an ultimatum to deliver to the authorities perpetrators of the killings of Rizeigat herders.

Diya payment among some Sudanese tribes is a form of restorative justice used in lieu of criminal punishments. The tribe or a section of it is held responsible collectively rather than individual perpetrators. The diya may be paid in livestock or sometimes in cash. 

Related content:

Fayareen leader says momentum for tribal peace summit with Rizeigat (10 August 2012)

Reuters: Tribal clashes kill 58 in Sudan's Darfur region (20 July 2012)

Tribal conflict leaves many dead ahead of El Daien conference (18 July 2012)