Ret Chol was a
Southern SudanSouthern Sudan is located in Africa with Juba as its capital city. Under the terms of the deal with Khartoum, Southern Sudan has been given a large degree of autonomy...
ese politician from Nasir County of the Upper Nile state.
A
NuerThe Nuer are a confederation of tribes located in Southern Sudan and western Ethiopia. Collectively, the Nuer form one of the largest ethnic groups in East Africa....
from Kuanylualthoan, Ret Chol had his earliest education in
EthiopiaEthiopia , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country situated in the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, Kenya to the south, Somalia to the east and Djibouti to the northeast. Its size is 1,100,000 km² with an...
during which he came in contact with some
Seventh-day AdventistThe Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ. It is the eighth largest international body of...
missionaries who later baptized him. After completing his High School in
EthiopiaEthiopia , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country situated in the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, Kenya to the south, Somalia to the east and Djibouti to the northeast. Its size is 1,100,000 km² with an...
he went to
LebanonLebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon
[Republic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies...]
to study at the Middle East Union College of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Ret Chol was the first Sudanese to become a baptized Seventh-day Adventist.
Ret Chol was a
Southern SudanSouthern Sudan is located in Africa with Juba as its capital city. Under the terms of the deal with Khartoum, Southern Sudan has been given a large degree of autonomy...
ese politician from Nasir County of the Upper Nile state.
Early life
A
NuerThe Nuer are a confederation of tribes located in Southern Sudan and western Ethiopia. Collectively, the Nuer form one of the largest ethnic groups in East Africa....
from Kuanylualthoan, Ret Chol had his earliest education in
EthiopiaEthiopia , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country situated in the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, Kenya to the south, Somalia to the east and Djibouti to the northeast. Its size is 1,100,000 km² with an...
during which he came in contact with some
Seventh-day AdventistThe Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ. It is the eighth largest international body of...
missionaries who later baptized him. After completing his High School in
EthiopiaEthiopia , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country situated in the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, Kenya to the south, Somalia to the east and Djibouti to the northeast. Its size is 1,100,000 km² with an...
he went to
LebanonLebanon , officially the Republic of Lebanon
[Republic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies...]
to study at the Middle East Union College of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Ret Chol was the first Sudanese to become a baptized Seventh-day Adventist. After completing his major in business administration he came back to
SudanSudan is a country in northeastern Africa. It is the largest country in Africa and in the Arab World, and tenth largest in the world by area...
and started the first Adventist church group that worshipped in a house in the Sudanese capital of
KhartoumKhartoum is the capital of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
.
Political career
While he was the first to embrace the privilege to share the ministry of the
AdventistThe term Adventist generally refers to someone who believes in the Second Advent of Jesus in the tradition of the Millerites.The Adventist family of churches are regarded today as conservative Protestants....
Church with his fellow Sudanese, something else was creating an impact on his life as a person. There were privileges for him to work in the
governmentA government is the body within a community, political entity or organization which has the authority to make and enforce rules, laws and regulations.....
and he did his best to see that the opportunity did not slip away. Because of his involvement in the politics, he was unable to effectively work as a
missionaryA missionary is a member of a religion who works to convert those who do not share the missionary's faith; someone who proselytizes. The word "mission" is derived from the Latin missioninimus A missionary is a member of a religion who works to convert those who do not share the missionary's faith;...
. However, his values and beliefs did not change. He became a government official in
MalakalMalakāl is the capital of the Wilayah of Upper Nile, Sudan. It is located on the banks of the White Nile, just north of its confluence with the Sobat River. The town was a garrison of the northern Khartoum-based government for much of the recent civil war, but is now part of the autonomous...
, the capital city of the Upper Nile State. Three years later he was appointed to be the deputy Commissioner for Nasir County. He had some political rivals like Joshua Dei Wal (also from Nasir). When the war broke out in The Jongulei Capital Mading
BorBor may refer to:*Bór, a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium*Bor , a location in Afghanistan*Bor , a town in Plzeň Region , Czech Republic*Bor, name of several villages in the Czech Republic...
, Mr. Chol came to
KhartoumKhartoum is the capital of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
and was appointed as the Minister of the local governments. He later won the title of the Upper Nile State governor. This was the regime of Sadiq El-Mahdi the former
PremierA premier is a title for the head of government in some countries and states.In many nations, the title "premier" is used interchangeably with "prime minister"...
of
SudanSudan is a country in northeastern Africa. It is the largest country in Africa and in the Arab World, and tenth largest in the world by area...
.
Contemporaries
Ret Chol had many friends who themselves were from the
NuerThe Nuer are a confederation of tribes located in Southern Sudan and western Ethiopia. Collectively, the Nuer form one of the largest ethnic groups in East Africa....
communityIn biological terms, a community is a group of interacting organisms sharing an environment.In human communities, intent, belief, resources, preferences, needs, risks, and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the identity of the participants and their degree of...
. These are John Gilla Lul, David Koak Guok, Peter Lam Nguth, Kueth Kang,
Daniel Koat DuothDaniel Koat Mathews is a Sudanese politician and Nuer leader, who has been effectively involved in the national politics for many years. He is now a Major General in the Sudan People's Liberation Army.-Biography:...
and others Like William Nyuon Bany. Many of Nasir politicians lost their lives during the civil war that started in 1983 in
BorBor may refer to:*Bór, a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium*Bor , a location in Afghanistan*Bor , a town in Plzeň Region , Czech Republic*Bor, name of several villages in the Czech Republic...
. Due to the competition and political marginalization, many
NuerThe Nuer are a confederation of tribes located in Southern Sudan and western Ethiopia. Collectively, the Nuer form one of the largest ethnic groups in East Africa....
politicians were unable to pursue their careers because of so much
nepotismNepotism is favouritism granted to relatives or friends, without regard to their merit. The word nepotism is from the Latin word nepos .- Papal :...
.
Later years
On June 30, General El Bashir took power and removed El-Mahdi from his post as prime minister. Ret Chol, a civilian politician was unable to gain any place in the government of The National Salvation Revolution. In early 2000s, he was appointed an ambassador before his death in May 2004. Ret Chol did not side with any political group.
External links