My radio silence could be partly explained by a forthright intercession by a member of the South Sudan Embassy at a SOAS discussion yesterday. “Self appointed experts on South Sudan [are a big problem at the moment]… [we need discussion to be] made more academic. … [Their comments are how] we are judged”I’ve just given a paper at Oxford on Friday, on intellectual culture and the conceptual gap (in political thought and in historical discussion) between “traditional authority” and the “elite politicians” in South Sudan, partly in response to the “where is civil society?” cries about lately. I’m working on writing up my PhD from the UK, and am trying to organise a visit to Khartoum sometime this year, as well as hopefully a return to South Sudan if I can find somebody who wants me to work for them around this time next year.