The Sunday News
Dawn breaks on the Nile on the Mundari cattle camp and a young tribesman begins his daily routine – after cleaning his teeth with a stick he douses his head under a stream of a urine from a cow.
The act will not only help prevent infection but will also tinge his hair orange.
Life in the little-documented Mundari tribe in South Sudan revolves around their prized bulls – who represent their wealth, status and dowry – and photographer Tariq Zaidi is one of the few people to capture the tribe’s fascinating way of life on film.
The tribesman continues his daily ritual.
A Mundari man guards his precious Ankole-Watusi herd with a rifle. About 350,000 cattle are stolen and more than 2,000 people killed each year by cattle rustlers
Next he sucks fresh milk straight from one of his cow’s udders then bangs a drum to alert the rest of the tribe that it’s time to graze the animals.
It is not just the cows’ urine that provides protection for the Mundari people. Tribesmen smear peach-coloured ash on their skin – and that of their cows – from dung fires.
It has the consistency of talcum powder and is a natural antiseptic and mosquito repellent, offering both man and bovine protection from the scorching Sudan heat.
A Mundari man relaxes in the soft, peach-coloured ash and dust of a dung fire. The substance has the texture of talcum powder and offers both man and cow protection from the scorching Sudan heat
Describing the tribe’s relationship with the creatures, Zaidi said: ‘Their cows are the most important thing in their lives. And they will protect them at all costs.’
As such, the tribe use rifles to watch over their large-horned herds, as a single cow or bull can be worth up to $500 (£348).
Every year in South Sudan around 350,000 cows and bulls are stolen, and over 2,500 people killed by cattle rustlers.
‘These animals are treated like members of the family,’ says the photographer. ‘When the cattle return back from the pasture they know exactly where their masters are and where their home is – they are like dogs in that way.
‘Families will sleep with their animals, wash them in ash and make sure the ground is soft and clean for them.’
As such, the tribe use rifles to watch over their large-horned herds, as a single cow or bull can be worth up to $500 (£348).
Every year in South Sudan around 350,000 cows and bulls are stolen, and over 2,500 people killed by cattle rustlers.
‘These animals are treated like members of the family,’ says the photographer. ‘When the cattle return back from the pasture they know exactly where their masters are and where their home is – they are like dogs in that way.
‘Families will sleep with their animals, wash them in ash and make sure the ground is soft and clean for them.’
After the civil war ended, thousands of men are said to have returned to South Sudan looking for wives. This return has seen an increase in ‘bride price’ – making these cows even more valuable and susceptible to lethal raids.
Tariq Zaidi has spent the last 10 years photographing tribal and indigenous people in over 30 countries in Africa. South Sudan is arguably the most unstable of these.
At least 50,000 people are estimated to have been killed since conflict began in the country in December 2013, with over 2.2million people being displaced and certain areas on the brink of famine.
The conflict has caused the nomadic Mundari people to continue to herd their cattle across the banks of the Nile.
‘The ongoing war in South Sudan has cut off the Mundari tribe from the rest of the world,’ says Zaidi. ‘They don’t venture into the town, they stay in the bush, and it why their unique way of life endures.’ -dailymail.co.uk
