Condemning is one of the important topics that the poet, Arka Saber, repeated in his poetry due to those who tried to disrupt the successful course of the Beja revolution and to the weak responses of some Beja people whom he constantly called on to join the Beja revolution.
Since his discursive style equipped him to classify these inhibits as reasons affecting the youth’s reluctance in following them, Arka alerted the irritation and delay of joining them in the struggle of the revolution. Therefore, he wanted opinions to either agree with his claims or to reduce its negative impact so that they can enhance their revolution.
Using three of Arka’s poets or songs as examples, this article details these claims, which could have been reasons for unsuccessful revolution if they were not highlighted by the poet. For example, in the poem, “Isanoon“, which means our brother, Arka reviewed the real factors of delay to join the revolution. The poem is sung by singer Mohammed Al Bedri.
“Isanoon“
With a little frustration and a strong desire for change, Arka began his poem in the first two lines by stressing on chivalry that the Beja adores and die for it; saying: the benefits of our revolution had gone for others because we did not discuss what they supposed to do so that we can advantage from their contributions. Since it is now becoming difficult for us to remain silent; what could be done with our revolution? We believed that they were brothers, but they constantly kept on playing the role of enemies and as a result, we were not able to distinguish between our friends and those who were not.
In the third and fourth lines, the story was presented clearly, as he attributed it to the unawareness of Beja Congress’ objectives, but its impacts were extended on the rest of the locals. The poet says that we could not recognise their goals, and it took us a long time without discussing the issue honestly. Therefore, could you share with us, what can we do with our revolution? It is shame and our history is being destroyed and distorted if some of us beg for money at a time other are still on their revolution.
The poem, “Im’ma’laayi“, which means costly, is referring to the glory that was achieved by striving revolutionaries efforts. He also listed the advantages of accepting blame as a possible roadmap for reaching some understanding points.
“Im’ma’laayi“
As Arka begins his poem, he listed all the effective stories that contributed to the success of the revolution by the revolutionaries who were evaluated by public people. He also alerted some do’s and don’ts that were supposed to be avoided as well as assessing the positive results as achievements and following them in order to enhance the completion of the revolution.
Arka’s strategy of giving hope to those who are around him was successful in injecting the revolutionaries to go forward in taking on difficult challenges. As there was a claim of some negative outcomes that many people who were against the revolution tried to highlight, Arka defended the revolutionaries and reacted with these hints in the first lines of his poem “Im’ma’laayi“. First, he confirmed that the Beja movement was expected to result in achieving peace that we would all benefit from it. He added that the omen scared others because they were worried that a fight could take place again at any time. Therefore, inappropriate words could send the wrong message for all.
Arka added a focal point that could be considered the turning line in the course of the revolution because he basically looked at preserving the community from rupturing. As many people were blamed for sticking to traditional issues, such as rising tribal discussions in political issues, which led to destroying relationships. Finally, he criticised his society for being impatient with waiting for the positive outcomes of the revolution. He also called to build trust as a virtue that must be ascertained by the revolutionaries in their everyday practices through preserving properties they have, following the prevailing laws, and not exceeding the limit of Sharia in any case.
In his poem “Obja banaiwa“, which means “don’t insult Beja”, Arka confronts the media, especially the Beja media on Kassala Radio and TV. The poet reported various scenes to prove his claims about the unsuccessful media messages, which aimed to terrify the youth with untrue stories.
“Obja banaiwa“
To confirm his claim, Arka detailed the right positions of the revolutionaries whom he describes as strong men on the battlefields, confirming that he added that they were neither spies nor hesitant because while some were martyred, the others remained on the battlefield. So, in his reply to the media, Arka wondered, “If you were not sure about what I reported, you could have asked for the battle “Kad’dboit”. Moreover, after blaming the local media, he repeated that they would remain here either as martyred or victorious revolutionaries.
The poet concluded by responding to accusations that their revolution was demanding and aspiring for political positions and not at all to fulfill a case of people, saying, “We are not requesting for authority because we will seize it”. He added that we, who left our children behind without asking anyone’s sponsorship, wouldn’t expect to budge from our positions because we were the followers of “LabasoyOfash” and “Taher Shuqul” who remained on the battlefield fighting until they were martyred in order to secure a safe exit path for their comrades.
Dr Hassan Adrob is a Sudanese based in Oman and works as an English language and Linguistic lecturer and a teacher trainer at Red Sea University and Sohar University. His MA and PhD are in Applied Linguistics. Dr Hassan is a qualified CELTA instructor and has participated in an accredited IELTS Training Programme. He fulfilled the twin duties of lecturer in English and skills leader. Dr Hassan is a regular participant at conferences and has recently published three books with Eliva Press.
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