In his a few years of activism, Mathiang has harnessed the facility of artwork and music to foster public discourse and produce consciousness to social injustices. In 2016, he co-founded the South Sudanese youth motion and artist collective #Anataban, and after fleeing to Kenya, he based Hagiga, a pro-democracy motion selling freedom of expression by way of creative storytelling.
Be taught extra about Mathiang’s activism within the unique interview beneath.
A: When South Sudan gained its independence in 2011, I didn’t suppose for a second I might turn out to be a pro-democracy advocate. However two years after independence, our nation went again to conflict, and I, with different youth leaders and civil society representatives, determined to advocate for peace.
We shaped the Coalition of Younger Leaders of South Sudan to persuade authorities leaders to comply with inclusive dialogue. In 2015, a peace settlement was signed, and I believed our nation had a second probability. Sadly, a 12 months later, South Sudan was pulled again into conflict.
This time, 19 different artists and I created a marketing campaign referred to as Anataban, which suggests “I’m drained.” Anataban was meant to be a short-term marketing campaign aimed toward redefining the dominant media narrative fueling ethnic divides. We needed to indicate the world that the residents simply needed peace. Our marketing campaign grew right into a motion with hundreds of South Sudanese artists and their followers addressing, by way of artwork, problems with poor governance and corruption.
I stepped down from my position in 2021, shortly after which the South Sudanese authorities cracked down on activists closely. I needed to flee, and was exiled. Whereas in exile, I shaped Hagiga, which creates creative platforms for the South Sudanese to inform their tales. By the Hagiga motion, increasingly South Sudanese are rising daring sufficient to speak about social and political points that have an effect on them.
South Sudan is supposed to have its first democratic elections since independence in 2024. By the #AintagabaatBelSalaam (“Peaceable Election”) marketing campaign, we’re pressuring authorities leaders to make sure a peaceable election and election interval. We’ll examine human rights abuses, and mobilize residents to signal a national petition for peaceable elections and a peaceable South Sudan. We’ll guarantee candidates don’t make use of hate slogans of their campaigns.
A: I imagine artwork is common. It’s easy: Artwork could be understood by folks from all walks of life. Artwork can unify folks.
By our work — music, visible artwork, murals, cartoons — we’ve shared messages and simplified difficult points. We’ve seen that you just paint one mural, and the message speaks to residents each single day. And with the songs, after they play on the radio or on telephones, the extra folks hear, the deeper the message will get into their techniques.
By artwork, we’ve managed to alter the tradition. You possibly can see how artists in numerous elements of the world influence how folks costume, what’s cool, how folks communicate, and the slang. That’s the great thing about artwork; you’ll be able to change folks’s views or attitudes.
In South Sudan, we’ve used artwork to talk towards hate and corruption and promote unity. We now have used artwork in numerous methods to do highly effective issues.
