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Africa Horn

Fighting erupts in Sudan's Kordofan region

2011-06-10

[Al Jazeera] Fighting in Sudan's volatile oil-producing border state of South Kordofan has left several people dead and maimed, the UN has said. "We know that more people have been killed overnight this morning in the state capital, Kadugli. But we don't have casualty figures," Hua Jiang, a spokeswoman for the UN mission in Sudan (UNMIS), told the AFP news agency on Wednesday. Jiang said the fighting, which started on Sunday between Sudanese armed forces and northern elements within the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), the former southern rebel group, was currently most fierce in Kadugli. But the army had also been shelling SPLA positions in the mountains of South Kordofan, she added. "The IDPs (internally displaced persons) are now our main concern," she said. Ceasefire call Tension has been escalating in South Kordofan, the north's only oil-producing state, which borders the south. The state is home to many fighters who sided with the south against the north during decades of civil war and fear being isolated after the south officialy declares independence next month. The fighters are still referred to as members of the SPLA, although south Sudan says they are no longer part of its army. Khartoum has repeatedly ordered about 40,000 northern SPLA troops, which it says are illegal, to either disarm or redeploy south of the 1956 borders before southern independence. The fighting started after northern forces attempted to disarm some of the gangs, Yasir Arman, who heads the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement's [SPLM] northern wing, the political wing of the SPLA, said. "We call for an immediate ceasefire, and to start dialogue immediately," Arman told Rooters. A front man for the northern forces was not immediately available to comment, though Khartoum has previously said the region was stable. UN staff evacuated Kouider Zerrouk, another UN spokesperson, said that between 6,000 and 7,000 civilians were in and around the UNMIS peacekeeping compound, near Kadugli's airport, seeking protection. All UN agencies and international NGOs have suspended their operations in Kadugli since Monday and their staff evacuated to the UNMIS base. On Tuesday, the UN reported at least six casualties from festivities in the state capital, four of whom where Sudanese coppers. South Kordofan is awash with weapons and retains strong links to the south, especially among the indigenous Nuba peoples who fought on the side of the southern rebels even though their homeland, the Nuba Mountains, lies in the north.

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Africa Horn

Sudan's split won't lead to war: Machar

2011-01-09

[Arab News] Riek Machar, vice president of the government of Southern Sudan confirmed Saturday that the people of southern Sudan will vote for secession from the north in a referendum scheduled to take place Sunday. Machar, who is also vice president of Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM), the ruling party in southern Sudan, ruled out an outbreak of civil war in the event voters in the south win the referendum to split from the north. In an interview with Arab News, he blamed some quarters in the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) of pushing southerners to vote for secession. He denied the United States or the West are pushing southern Sudan to split. Machar expressed confidence that outstanding issues between the north and the south, such as the border demarcation and dispute over the oil-rich Abyei area, would be solved peacefully. He said that over 60 percent of border issues have been solved and the remainder will be dealt with after the referendum. Abyei, now in the state of West Kordofan, which covers an area 10,460 sq km, was granted special administrative status by the 2004 protocol that ended the civil war. The area, inhabited by southern Negok Dinak and northern Missiriya tribes, is considered a historical bridge between the northern and southern parts of Sudan. Machar expressed hope that the north would extend a hand to the new state to enable it stand on its feet and build its institutions. He pointed out that maintaining good relations based on joint interests would benefit both sides. He said relations between the people in the south and those in the north are deep-rooted and play a crucial role in having the two sides maintain good, friendly and cooperative relations. He pointed out that among the key challenges facing the new state is the provision of basic health and education services as well as building infrastructure, adding that oil revenues, which would be owned by the south, would help greatly in this process. Machar promised to honor agreements signed with Chinese, Malaysian and other oil companies working in oilfields in the south. He did not rule out the establishment of diplomatic ties between the new state and Israel. He said he objects to the label in the Sudanese passport that states that the holder is allowed to travel to all countries except Israel. Machar said good relations with Israel could help the new state play a role in resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict. However, The infamous However... he denied any existing relationship with Israel and noted that there are no direct flights between Israel and southern Sudan. "In the future nothing forbids us having such flights, though." On the eve of the voting, two rebel groups clashed with southern Sudan's military, resulting in at least nine deaths. The attacks against the SPLA happened late Friday and Saturday. "Why is it happening now? The intention or the motive behind must be undermining the referendum," said Gen. Acuil Tito Madut, the inspector general of the south's police. "Once these fights break out in these states that will mean some people will not vote and once people don't vote that means the required percentage is not achieved." In order for the referendum to pass, a simple majority must vote for independence and 60 percent of the 3.9 million registered voters must cast ballots.

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Africa Horn

Bashir has no choice but to lose South

2011-01-03

And then send out his hunting dogs to find it again. [The Nation (Nairobi)] Miracles happen, now and then. Sudan President Omar al-Bashir ought to be among those praying for one: that southern Sudanese don't opt to secede. A referendum scheduled for January 9 to 15 gives them that option. That's as par the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, CPA, the government, and the rebel Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) signed. Contrary to popular opinion, the 2005 CPA ended a longer conflict. Trouble started with a 1948 British decision to place the South and the North under one administration. Anger mounted after the southerners got peanuts from 800 jobs Britons relinquished during self-rule five years later. Outright war broke after the North reneged on a federal system at independence in 1956. Then for 10 years, Khartoum sabotaged a 1972 peace deal arrangement. War resumed. Then the CPA came, 21 years later. The events explain why the southerners are almost certain to secede. Mr Salva Kiir Mayardit, the south's president and national vice-president, is cheering them on. Last week he told them to "dream of our forefathers" come the referendum. The BBC quoted a resigned Mr Al Bashir telling the southerners Tuesday, "If you want unity, you are more than welcome. . . If you want separation, you are also welcome." He forgot, Inshallah! If the southerners opt for secession, their leaders are to draft a new constitution and schedule elections. On July 9, the 55th African state will come into being. Leaders, among them former US President George W. Bush and Kenya's Daniel arap Moi, whose governments played a major role in negotiating the CPA and aren't' that modest, will thump chests. Only the flow of the White Nile will rival that of tears of joy. That's as far as the euphoria need go. Booby traps lie ahead. Explosive issues remain pending. These include Abyei, a tiny oil-rich enclave. A referendum to determine if residents wish to remain part of Sudan or join the South will not take place due to disagreements. Then there's boundary demarcation, security arrangements, liabilities and assets, and citizenship. People have focused a great deal of attention on the South. Seemingly forgotten are changes the North needs. These include re-arranging the structure of government, including a new constitution. It will lose resources and revenue. That the shock of losing nearly a third of Sudan might lead to violence against resident southerners can't be ruled out. The same goes for political instability because "Al Bashir lost southern Sudan." Generals loathe politicians who lose territory. Resources endowed as it is--oil, fertile soil, minerals, including gold, and lots of water--the South remains, relatively speaking, a wasteland. Even if well managed, and vices like corruption are taking root, it will take time for the new nation to become viable. Moreover, the South isn't homogenous. Additionally, 20 political parties aren't a recipe for stability. Add to that disgruntled former rebels who already have become a headache for the SPLM. Incidentally, uniformed elements in the North have mastered the art of using proxies. For the southerners and supporters, it's worth remembering the old saying: a deal isn't one until it's done.

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Africa Horn

Sudan: UN observers to withdraw from eastern Sudan

2006-07-08

(SomaliNet) The United nations (UN) are set to pull out of eastern Sudan since forces of the former rebel, Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) had withdrawn from the region according to a peace agreement it signed with the government in January 2005,a senior UN official said Thursday, Xinhua reported. United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary General in Sudan, Jan Pronk, told reporters that since the tasks of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) were completed in the Kassala state under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the mission's offices and operations will be closed and phased out. According to Pronk, the mission of UNMIS in the region was accomplished after the completion of redeployment of thousands SPLM troops from eastern Sudan last month.

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Africa: Horn

SPLM Team Set to Join Darfur Peace Talks

2005-09-27

Former southern Sudan rebels are to join peace talks aimed at ending more than 30 months of civil war in the western region of Darfur, a Sudanese daily reported yesterday. The Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement has already named a delegation to participate in the African Union-sponsored negotiations in the Nigerian capital Abuja, Akhbar Al-Yom said. It added that the team included senior SPLM officials Deng Alor, the new minister for Cabinet affairs, Yasser Arman, a northerner, and Abdul Aziz Hilu from the Nuba Mountains in central Sudan. “The SPLM is now part of the national unity government and it is illogical to let the National Congress party negotiate alone in the name of the government,” the paper quoted SPLM deputy leader Riek Machar as saying. The national unity government was formed last week, eight months after the signing of a peace agreement with Khartoum that ended more than two decades of north-south conflict that left some two million people dead. International observers have said that power and wealth-sharing arrangements in the Jan. 9 peace deal could be used as a model to end the conflicts in Darfur and eastern Sudan. The SPLM has expressed sympathy with the cause of the people of Darfur and their demands for greater political and economic autonomy from Khartoum. Sudan’s new Foreign Minister Lam Akol Ajawin said Sunday that his SPLM movement would propose a solution to the Darfur conflict to the government in Khartoum.

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Africa: Horn

Kiir Takes Office, Vows to Work for Unity

2005-08-12

Salva Kiir was sworn in as Sudan’s first vice president yesterday after the death of his predecessor John Garang and pledged to follow his legacy and work for unity despite past calls for independence for the mainly Christian or animist south. “We really want our country to remain united,” Kiir said at a low-key ceremony in Khartoum where security was tight after several days of deadly rioting that greeted Garang’s death. Kiir, 54, took office less than two weeks after Garang was killed in a helicopter crash that raised fears for the future of a January peace deal that ended 21 years of war between southern rebels and the government in Khartoum. “I shall protect the sovereignty of the country,” said Kiir, a known separatist who led the military wing of Garang’s Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement Army (SPLM A) “I shall protect the country’s decentralized system... and preserve unity... as God is my witness,” he said. “I wish to call on all Sudanese to engage in a process of national healing.” One of his primary challenges will be to form a national unity government with former archfoe President Omar Bashir, a process interrupted by Garang’s death just three weeks after he became vice president under the Jan. 9 accord. Kiir, who replaced Garang as SPLM A head, will also have to help solve disputes surrounding oil-rich areas on the north-south border. He is also to continue talks with several Khartoum-backed southern militia chiefs with a view to rallying them to the peace agreement that ended Africa’s longest-running conflict. “The Comprehensive Peace Agreement is not a bed of roses, and even a bed of roses has thorns. Let’s join hands to see that full participation in the process is ensured,” he said. Good luck, Salva. And be careful when you ride helis...

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Africa: Horn

Sudan: security tight for Garang funeral

2005-08-06

JUBA, Sudan - Thousands of Sudanese government troops and ex-rebel fighters deployed here Saturday ahead of the funeral of Sudan’s vice president and former southern guerrilla leader John Garang. As residents of Juba prepared a massive send-off for Garang, two planeloads of Sudanese soldiers, including members of the elite presidential guard, landed at Juba airport on Friday and were immediately deployed around town. Heavily armed troops with rocket-propelled grenade launchers and assault rifles were positioned at 10-meter intervals on the streets of Juba, which was rocked by deadly violence after Garang’s death, an AFP correspondent said. Those soldiers joined fighters from Garang’s ex-rebel Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) who entered Juba for the first time on Wednesday to help quell the violence and provide security for the funeral. Half a million people, including Sudanese President Omar el-Beshir, South African President Thabo Mbeki, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni are expected to attend the service. Officials from the African Union and the United Nations were also expected. Garang was killed on July 30 when Museveni’s presidential helicopter on which he was returning to southern Sudan from Uganda crashed in what Sudanese, Ugandan and SPLM/A officials had repeatedly said was an accident due to poor weather. But on Friday, Museveni said it may not have been an accident, becoming the first official of any government to publicly suggest the crash may have been the result of foul play. “Some people say accident, it may be an accident, it may be something else,” Museveni told thousands of mourners in the southern Sudanese town of Yei where Garang’s coffin had been brought in an airborne funeral procession to Juba. “The (helicopter) was very well equipped, this was my (helicopter) the one I am flying all the time, I am not ruling anything out,” he said, adding that an unspecified “external factor” could have been responsible. He's also thanking his lucky stars and stroking his rabbit's foot. Salva Kiir, Garang’s successor as SPLM/A chief declined to comment on the specifics of Museveni’s remarks but said no cause had been ruled out pending an international investigation of the crash. But in Khartoum and Juba, senior SPLM/A officials cautioned against making any assumptions about the cause of the crash as did a diplomat in Bor, Garang’s birthplace where his coffin was brought after Yei. "Boss! We're going to need a new cover story real soon now!" Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail meanwhile called on Uganda to cooperate with the investigation into the crash. “(Garang’s) visit was to Uganda and the aircraft and its crew were Ugandan,” Ismail told the official SUNA news agency. However he expressed displeasure that the Ugandan authorities only informed Sudan about the disappearance of Garang’s helicopter several hours after they found out. Sudanese Information Minister Abdul Basit Sebdarat went further still, calling Museveni’s comments “extremely worrying”. “Uttering statements or speculations ahead of the investigation would harm the probe and the chances of finding the facts, the official SUNA news agency quoted Sebdarat as saying.

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Africa: Horn

Khartoum Readies for Garang’s Return

2005-07-07

Preparations were under way yesterday to welcome former southern rebel leader John Garang back to Khartoum following a key January peace accord with the Sudanese government. Meanwhile, the Sudanese Parliament unanimously adopted a new constitution for a six-year interim period provided in the deal that will start on July 9. Garang, head of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement, is due to arrive tomorrow on his first Khartoum visit in more than 22 years to take up his post as first vice president a day later, in line with the accord. Garang and his 200-strong delegation are to meet President Omar Bashir and a similar number of officials from the ruling National Congress Party upon arrival, SPLM spokesman Yasser Arman told reporters here. After the meeting, the SPLM leader is expected to address a crowd of hundreds of thousands of people from north and south Sudan in the capital’s main Green Square. “It shall be the beginning of the process of normalizing relations,” said Amal Abbas, a journalist and member of a National Reception Committee, headed by popular Sudanese singer Mohammed Wardi. In Khartoum, Sudanese lawmakers approved all provisions of the constitution which, among other things, provides for a presidential republic with Bashir staying on as ruler, Garang becoming president of South Sudan and first vice president. He replaces Ali Osman Taha who will become second vice president. The constitution was drafted by a commission, which included a majority of NCP representatives and a little less than a third from the SPLM.

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Africa: Horn

Sudan to Resume Talks With Exiled Group

2005-06-06

Stalled peace negotiations between the Sudanese government and exiled opposition groups are to resume in Cairo next weekend and continue until a final deal is reached, officials said yesterday. Talks between the government and the opposition National Democratic Alliance will start next Saturday, Sudanese state radio quoted Ibrahim Ahmed Omar, secretary-general of the ruling National Congress party as saying. Omar also predicted that with many outstanding issues already resolved, an agreement could be signed a few days after the discussions commence, saying "the final agreement will be signed by the two sides on June 16." The NDA, a coalition of northern, southern, eastern and western opposition groups, including the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement, confirmed talks with the government would resume on June 11. "The discussions will start on Saturday," NDA vice president Abdul Rahman Saeed told AFP. But he did not share the government's optimism that a deal could be signed five days later, saying "it was possible, but not certain." Saeed explained that the talks will kick off with meetings aimed at reaching a deal on how to implement an initial agreement the two sides signed in January, particularly on political and military issues. "We have already agreed," he said, adding that the discussions will focus on "implementing what we have agreed upon."

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Africa: Horn

Sudan, SPLA Reach Deal on Statute

2005-06-02

A team drawing up an interim constitution for Sudan has agreed that a traditional Islamic phrase will appear in the text for the Muslim north but not for the non-Muslim south to bridge a sensitive religious divide. Southern Sudanese leader John Garang told reporters in Cairo, other than the Islamic preamble, the texts for the two regions would be the same. "We are working in order not to divide the Sudan. We want unity in diversity," he said when asked whether the compromise was a sign the country was heading towards division. 'Tain't gonna work. Islam can brook no opposition... Garang's Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) fought a 21-year war with the government of the mainly Muslim north that was partly sparked by the imposition of Islamic Shariah law over the country, including the largely Christian and animist south. The two sides signed a peace deal in January that includes dividing wealth and power, and giving southerners the right to hold a referendum on secession after a six-year interim period. It also involves splitting state and religion so Shariah law would not apply in the south. A 60-member constitutional commission has been working on an interim constitution. The SPLM wants no religious references in the constitution, which has caused some tensions with the Islamist government.

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Africa: Horn

Annan Visits South Sudan Region to Bolster Peace

2005-05-30

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was in southern Sudan yesterday in a bid to support a January peace deal that ended 21 years of civil war between Khartoum and southern rebels. On his first visit to southern Sudan as head of the world body, Annan met John Garang, who heads the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement and is soon to be sworn in as the vice president of a national unity government. Annan was greeted at the tiny airstrip in the region's provisional capital Rumbek by the former rebel leader, who gave him two bulls as a welcome present. The UN chief thanked his host for the gift but suggested the bulls should stay in Sudan and be donated to those orphaned and widowed by the war, which was the longest running in Africa. Annan met members of a constitutional convention which is drafting a new charter to set the ground rules for six years of autonomy for the south leading up to a promised referendum on independence. "I urge you to continue in your efforts to complete this essential task in a timely manner," he said.

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Africa: Horn

Opposition to Get Say in Constitution: Sudan

2005-04-24

Sudan's government and former rebels will allow other opposition parties a role in writing a new constitution, but the start of work has been delayed to allow for more talks, the ruling party said yesterday. The ruling National Congress Party and the former southern rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement signed a peace deal in January to end more than two decades of civil war in Sudan's south. Under the deal a new government of national unity will be formed and wealth and power will be shared. The first task is to form a new interim constitution. The two parties had planned to hold at least a two-thirds majority in the constitutional commission, which is the percentage needed to make any decisions. But the NCP said they had compromised to give other parties a real say. "It will mean the two (parties) together will be less than two-thirds in the commission," Ibrahim Ahmed Omar, secretary-general of the NCP told Reuters. The peace deal allows for power sharing in government, giving the NCP 52 percent and the SPLM 28 percent of all posts. Northern opposition parties get 14 percent and non-SPLM southern forces six percent. But a special compromise was being negotiated for the constitution, an important national issue. Omar said the SPLM and NCP had given up 10 seats between them to have only 38 of the 60 seats in the constitutional commission, a little over 63 percent. It will allow opposition parties some say, if small, in the shaping of the constitution. The compromise is likely to appease those opposition parties still undecided about joining the constitutional commission after weeks of talks. A joint NCP-SPLM delegation is leaving this evening for Egypt for two days of talks with Sudan's main umbrella opposition group, which is hesitant about joining.

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