Peace comes first - Mo Ibrahim says north should give south a chance to lead Sudan

Quote of the Day - Peace comes first

"The message to the Sudanese people is that peace comes first, permanent dialogue is an instrument to build peace and development in the country" - Joachim Chissano, former Mozambican President and African Union envoy for Madagascar, during a sideline event at the Pan African Media Conference in Kenya, Narobi, reportedly on 20 March 2010.

ALMOST 16 million Sudanese have registered for the April 11 election that will take place over three days. The elections were promised in the 2005 peace deal that ended more than two decades of north-south civil war.

There are 12 candidates running for the presidential position. There are two main contenders in the south: Salva Kiir, from the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement and Lam Akol, from the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement – Democratic Change.

Former African Union envoy for Darfur and former Organisation of African Union head, Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, says the north has to make unity attractive to South Sudan and admits that this has not been done. "My preference is to keep one country, a united Sudan," Salim said.

Mo Ibrahim says north should give south a chance to lead Sudan

This view was shared by Sudanese born British mobile tycoon Mo Ibrahim: "I hope Sudan stays one country, so that one day we can fix it. Because once it is broken, we can never put it back together again."

Ibrahim said that the north should give the south a chance to lead the entire country. Ibrahim suggested that North Sudan vote for a president from the south. This, he says, will convince the south to vote for unity in the 2011 referendum, when voters will decide whether to secede from the north.

"I always say one way to the miracle of solving the country’s problems, is why don’t we have a president from southern Sudan? Why don’t all the candidates say ok, let us have a president from the south? It does not matter whether he or she as long as it is someone from the south who is fit to run the country."

Source: IPS News report by Amelia Lawrence, Saturday, 20 March 2010, African Leaders Call for Peaceful Elections

Security Situation in Darfur Feb 8, 2010 - JSR departs for Doha to support peace talks - Humanitarian assessment in Mou, North Darfur

Darfur / UNAMID Daily Media Brief
EL FASHER (DARFUR), Sudan, February 8, 2010/APO):
UNAMID Daily Media Brief / 2010-02-08

Security situation in Darfur
The security situation in Darfur remains relatively calm but unpredictable.

UNAMID military forces conducted 99 patrols including routine, short range, long range, night, and Humanitarian escort patrols, covering 89 villages and Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps during the reporting period.

UNAMID police advisors also conducted 191 patrols in villages and IDP camps.

JSR departs for Doha to support peace talks
UNAMID Joint Special Representative (JSR) Ibrahim Gambari has today departed for Doha, to provide his support to the ongoing peace process. He is accompanied by the Mission’s Force Commander and the Directors of Civil and Political Affairs.

Tomorrow, Mr. Gambari will meet with Joint Chief Mediator Djibril Bassolé, members of the Qatari Foreign Ministry, senior Sudanese government officials, as well as the representatives of rebel movements who are already in Doha. Sudanese-Chadian relations will be discussed, as well as the region’s security and political situations in the face of the upcoming general elections.

The JSR will resume the consultations initiated during the 14th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa last week, where he outlined the Mission’s priorities. With the Mission’s deployment now nearing 80%, Mr. Gambari has indicated that UNAMID’s focus lay in supporting the Darfur peace process and in helping to secure stability by enhancing the security of civilians and internally displaced people in the region.

Humanitarian assessment in Mou, North Darfur
Yesterday, UNAMID conducted an inter-agency mission to Mou, a small village approximately 100 kilometres outside El Fasher, North Darfur, which had seen much conflict in the last few months, most recently in December 2009. The Mission, along with OCHA, IOM and WHO, gathered information on the security situation and the population’s food, water and health care needs, as well as assessed displacements and possible returns to the area.

The village was found to be in grave need of humanitarian aid. Owing to the drought during the last farming season, water is scarce and most of the villagers are dependent on rations. The region’s only health care facility is a small building which has been looted and burned and has had no medical personnel since September 2009. As a result, childbirth complications, diarrhea and malaria are common causes of death.

Following the visit, the mission drew up a series of recommendations including the need for increased patrols, more schools, greater access to medical care, and added water resources.

Source: United Nations – African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID)

News from SRS - Sudan Radio Service:

09-Feb-2010

• ICC Drops Charges Against Abu Garda
• Chad and Sudan Pledge to Restore Relations As Deby Visits Khartoum
• Presidential Candidate Reinstated By NEC
• NCP Should Withdraw Election Candidates Belonging to PDF and PP
• Clashes Kill Eleven in Unity State
• Under-Secretary Urges Single Curriculum for Southern Sudan Schools
• Road Works Take Towns to Villages
• Sudan Sports Latest

08-Feb-2010

• SPLM Independent Candidates Call for Pagan Amum to Resign
• Minister Teny Fears Intimidation in Unity State
• 10,000 People Flee Fighting in Darfur
• Chadian President Makes "Historic" Visit to Khartoum
• SPLM Denies Intimidation of Political Opponents in South
• Gunmen Attack Lam Akol's House in Khartoum
• Trachoma Victims Receive Free Treatment in Unity State
• Sex Industry Thrives in Juba
• Pastoralism Reduces Effects of Climate Change
• Sudan Sports Latest

SPLM-DC arming militia in southern Sudan?

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service , 11 December 2009:

(Khartoum) – The government of Upper Nile is accusing the SPLM-DC of arming a militia in the region.

On Wednesday, the deputy governor of Upper Nile state escaped death after his convoy from Akoka was ambushed by gunmen who were later captured.

The state Minister for Information, Thon Muom claims that one of the gunmen is an SPLM-DC militia member.

He spoke to SRS on Thursday.

[Thon Muom]: “The gunmen that we are talking about support the SPLM-DC. We were ambushed by an organized gang. They attacked us from the roadside while others were blocking the road. After the SPLA soldiers backed us up, some of them ran towards the river. Our soldiers were able to repulse them and we caught some of them. That’s when we discovered that they were an SPLM-DC militia. One of the people we caught is called James Uthou and he admitted that they have a battalion and half in Al-Jazeera and their commander is call Guang Nyaker. They get their supplies from Kodok and are paid from Malakal here.”

Asked to respond to the allegation that his party operated a militia in south Sudan, the SPLM-DC chairman Dr. Lam Akol, brushed off the accusation.

[Dr. Lam Akol]: “The SPLM-DC doesn’t have any militia. I have said that several times. But there are people who want to tarnish our name, people who are afraid of the progress that the SPLM-DC is making in southern Sudan and the popularity which we are getting. They are scared of that. The fighting in the area started six months ago. In January, in the same area where they claim the ambush took place, the Shilluk were shot at by some Dinka. Were they SPLM-DC? In September, some Shilluk armed men retaliated and killed Dinka in Gai-Thiang. Were they for the SPLM-DC? Akoka was attacked last month by some armed men, among the dead were SPLA soldiers. Were they for the SPLM-DC? There is armed conflict all over the south, are they all caused by SPLM-DC militias? Let them take the people they claim to have captured to court. Why have they not taken them to court so that everybody will know that the court has convicted somebody? In any case, we are going to take the minister to court so he can prove his allegations. We are taking him to court for defamation.”

Dr Lam Akol was speaking to SRS from Khartoum on Friday.

SPLM-DC chair Lam Akol has accused the Government of Southern Sudan of issuing instructions to restrict the party’s activities in the south

Reportedly, the chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement for Democratic Change (SPLM-DC), Dr Lam Akol, says SPLM-DC is not allowed to operate in southern Sudan.  It seems Dr Akol thinks the constitutional court will summon the president of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) to appear before the court.  Dr Akol is quoted as saying "we went to court because the Government of Southern Sudan issued directives to all the ten governors of southern Sudan telling them that the SPLM-DC is not allowed to operate in the South".

On November 9, 2009 the SPLM-DC claimed that they possessed a letter written by the Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Dr Luka Monoja, which contained instructions from Salva Kiir, vice-president of Sudan and president of the south, demanding that all the state governors allow political parties to exercise their constitutional rights - except the SPLM-DC.

The SPLM secretary-general, Pagan Amum, speaking to Sudan Radio Service on Thursday, denied any involvement of the SPLM leadership in the affair, said "if he [Akol] is accusing the SPLM, then the SPLM is ready to defend itself. We are ready to go to court to prove that he has no case against us. And definitely, it will also be an opportunity for the SPLM to expose him and the designs of the National Congress Party to destabilize southern Sudan.”

Source:  Before reading the following news report from Sudan Radio Service, it is worth noting that SPLM-DC chairman Lam Akol recently said that he is ready to run for the GOSS presidency if he is nominated. For further details, click on Lam Akol label at the end of this report.

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Monday, 7 December 2009:

[Khartoum] – The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement for Democratic Change has applied to the constitutional court to present a case against the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement.

The SPLM-DC has accused the Government of Southern Sudan of issuing instructions to restrict the party’s activities in the south.

The SPLM-DC’s chairman, Doctor Lam Akol, speaking on Thursday, said the court will summon the president of the Government of Southern Sudan to appear before the court.

[Dr. Lam Akol]: “We haven’t won the case yet. But we presented a case to the constitutional court and they are saying that it is a strong case and therefore they will look into it. We went to court because the Government of Southern Sudan issued directives to all the ten governors of southern Sudan telling them that the SPLM-DC is not allowed to operate in the South. And of course, that is a violation of the constitution, especially articles 29, 30, 39, 41 and it’s against basic human rights. Furthermore, any violation of the constitution is a violation of the CPA.”

The SPLM secretary-general, Pagan Amum, also speaking on Thursday, denied any involvement of the SPLM leadership in the affair.

[Pagan Amum]: “If it is from the Government of Southern Sudan, why would it be against the SPLM? And if it is an order from a government minister to government governors, then I don’t see the SPLM involved in it, even if the SPLM is the ruling party. But if he is accusing the SPLM, then the SPLM is ready to defend itself. We are ready to go to court to prove that he has no case against us. And definitely, it will also be an opportunity for the SPLM to expose him and the designs of the National Congress Party to destabilize southern Sudan.”

On November 9, the SPLM-DC claimed that they possessed a letter written by the Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Dr. Luka Monoja, which contained instructions from Salva Kiir demanding that all the state governors allow political parties to exercise their constitutional rights - except the SPLM-DC.

Photo from Sudan Watch archives:  Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol, seen here in October 2005, gave the cold shoulder to a UN proposal to take over from African Union peacekeepers in Darfur and urged the world to prop up the African body with more funds. (AFP/File/Salah Omar/Sudan Watch archive Friday, March 24, 2006 - Interview: Sudan FM Lam Akol says Sudanese government calls for strengthening of AU mission in Darfur)

SPLM-DC chair Lam Akol Ajawin accuses SPLM of harassing SPLM-DC members in southern Sudan

Report by Sudan Radio Service, Wednesday, 25 November 2009:

(Khartoum) - Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin, the SPLM-DC chairman, says his party has presented a formal complaint about the SPLM to the chairman of the Political Parties' Affairs Council.

Dr. Akol is accusing the SPLM of harassing SPLM-DC members in southern Sudan.

Speaking in Khartoum on Tuesday, Dr. Akol’s party exhibited a copy of a letter written by the GOSS Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Dr Luka Monoja, on November 9, 2009. The letter urged the governors of 10 southern states not to cooperate with the SPLM –DC.

[Dr. Lam Akol]: “After the publication of this letter, which was sent to the governors of the ten southern states, no one can deny that the SPLM are responsible for harassing political activists and preventing political activities from taking place. This morning, we presented a letter to the chairman of the Political Parties Affairs’ Council and we briefed the Council on everything that is happening. It is an attempt to jeopardize our constitutional and legal rights, and we attached the letter written by GOSS to the governors of the southern states as proof that these kinds of practices are supported by the SPLM leadership itself.”

Dr Akol said his party members are being harassed on a daily basis in southern Sudan by SPLM security agents, following the directives issued by the GOSS.

He said his party will file a lawsuit against the SPLM in the Constitutional Court soon.

This report was received by email. Sudan Radio Service's website is being redesigned and will be back online very soon.

SPLM-DC Chairman Lam Akol says that he is ready to run for the GOSS presidency if he is nominated

The SPLM-DC has allied itself with seven southern Sudanese political parties in preparation for elections which are scheduled for April 2010.

Report by Sudan Radio Service, November 20, 2009:

(Cairo, Egypt) - The chairman of the SPLM-DC, Doctor Lam Akol, says that he is ready to run for the GOSS presidency if he is nominated.

According to the Sudan Tribune website, the southern Sudan political parties’ alliance announced on Thursday, that they have nominated Akol as a candidate for the southern Sudan presidency.

Sudan Radio Service interviewed Dr. Akol from Cairo on Friday.

[Dr. Lam Akol]: “The talk about nomination is still a prediction because until now the alliance hasn’t sat to discuss who they will nominate. These are just predictions. But if I have been nominated for the southern Sudan presidency, I will absolutely accept it, because it will be a favor to the people of southern Sudan especially since the region has been ruled by a weak leadership for the last five years.”

Lam Akol blamed GOSS for the instability in the region - and for its handling of the developing food crisis.

[Dr. Lam Akol]: “Our program will depend on ensuring peace, security and stability and it is a priority to ensure that security and stability prevails in order to provide basic services and development. Currently in southern Sudan there is no food security, although the region is agriculturally rich. There is enough agricultural land and water. The only missing thing is planning and the leadership.”

Lam Akol also said that the new alliance will address the question of corruption in the civil service of southern Sudan.

[Dr. Lam Akol]: “Regarding the administration of public funds, corruption is spreading in southern Sudan, from top to bottom. The program of the southern Sudan parties will fight corruption and corrupt people with no mercy. Without doing that, you can not develop the existing resources in the south. Many people are suffering from inequality, now the public service sector has been politicized; it is an absolute must to restore the public service to its former professionalism.”

The SPLM-DC has allied itself with seven southern Sudanese political parties in preparation for elections which are scheduled for April 2010.