SPLM Should not Legitimize Islamic Fundamentalism in the Sudan / DARFUR QUESTION NO DIRECT LINK WITH CPA.

April 5, 2010- Whereas the people of the Sudan have been earnestly waiting for a day when they would be called upon to cast votes in a general election, which election should come six months prior to a referendum to be held in the ten southern states of the Republic of the Sudan, which referendum would show whether or not the Sudan should remain one country, we are now told that April 11 2010 is the date for the commencement of the long awaited time and that January 9,2011 remains fixed for the vote on the referendum as agreed in the CPA in Nairobi January,9 2005.

Unfortunately, and although the general election which should precede referendum had nothing to do with the Darfur civil war, it seems that the government of the Sudan, the northern Sudan political opposition parties, the international community and even the SPLM all want to include the three Darfur states in the territorial constituencies for the election on April 11 ,2010. The civil war between the government of the Sudan and the African stock marginalized citizens of Darfur broke out in 2003, while the SPLM and the government had started negotiation on the civil war between them which started in May, 1983. The NCP AND THE SPLM signed an accord in Nairobi Kenya on January, 9 2005 known as the CPA. The agreement did not provide for anything to do or in connection with Darfur crisis.

Historically, the Sudan had several similar situations when general elections had to be reduced to partial elections. The Umma party under the leadership of Mr. Sadiq el Mahdi and the DUP under the leadership of Mr. Osman el Margani usually formed a coalition government making sure that a 2/3 of the members of the assembly had been duly elected. At the time the south, although entitled to 1/3 of the members of the Assembly, some illiterate southerners were turned in as unopposed from the southern constituencies even without their knowledge.

In 1965, despite an agreement to hold partial election in the north while bye election would be held in the south at the appropriate time when life would return to normal,21 illiterate southern citizens found themselves dressed in newly acquired European clothes in the House Of Parliament taking oath as unopposed candidates from the southern constituencies. In 1968 election, a candidate of the ICF of Dr. Abdallah El Turabi passed in Mbolo with only 3 votes in his ballot box. In 1986, of the 110 southern territorial constituencies 75 were found to be unconducive on security grounds. In the present situation, the three states of Darfur are not conducive for elections to be run there due to indefinite and uncontrolled violence.

Since the civil war is still raging in the three states of Darfur and since elections in the other 22 states of the country can take more than 2/3 of members to parliament I see no reason why it should not be run without Darfur . The political parties should exercise their constitutional rights by reminding the NEC of this point. The excuse given by the SPLM leadership for withdrawing their presidential candidate is unfortunately quite irrelevant. Their candidate if successful is the only trump card they could use without problem if the south voted for secession. For the SPLM not putting up a presidential candidate amounts to legitimizing Islamic fundamentalism in the country. I hope they will reconsider their decision.

The author is a South Sudanese currently living the United States ; he can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

DARFUR QUESTION NO DIRECT LINK WITH CPA.

April 3, 2010- The CPA which was signed between the NCP representing the government of the Republic of the Sudan, and the SPLM representing primarily the people of South Sudan and secondarily the equally marginalized African stock of Nuba Mountains, Ingessena Hills and Abiey Ngok Dinka in Kenya on 9th January,2005,never mentioned anything linking its implementation with Darfur Question although civil war had already broken out there between the African stock marginalized people of Darfur on the one side and the government of the Republic of the Sudan and the Janjaweed on the other. Inclusion of Darfur in the general elections scheduled on April 11, 2010 seems to have been calculated to confuse the situation in respect to holding the referendum and this is therefore wrong. Secondly, the IGAD countries, the IGAD friends and the rest of AU, UN, ARAB LEAGUE and International Community, who brokered the CPA, did so well aware of the existence of the northern opposition political parties, but they agreed to exclude them in the negotiations which resulted in the CPA. To include them now in talks about elections which are to precede referendum in the south and Abiey, in the name of fair, just, credible and competitive western style of democracy, is to enforce on the south a new situation which if not handled properly might take the southern boys back to the bush.

The northern opposition political parties, in particular the Umma and the DUP, being the parties which took over power from the Anglo-Egyptian administration are not the right people to preach just, air and credible competitive elections. They need not be reminded of the 1965 partial elections in the north after agreement with the southern political parties to have the elections run in the southern constituencies when security situation would return to normal. Those partial elections turned up a coalition government of Umma and DUP which declared war on the south massacred a wedding party in Wau massacred a large number of citizens in Juba and Watajwok in Malakal. They also declared some 21 of their party members unopposed from the southern constituencies out of a total of 60. In the 1968 general elections, one out of only 3 successful members of the Islamic Charter Front (ICF) of Dr Abdallah El Turabi passed with 3 votes in Mbolo -Maridi district of Equatoria province. In 1986 general elections, 75 out of 110 southern territorial constituencies were declared unconducive for elections on security grounds. Such is the history of general elections in the Sudan and for Mr. Abel Alier and his National Election Commission to act contrarily to that practice is a gross inconsistency. Darfur should therefore be left out of the polls completely. The SPLM should take note of this and press hard on the NEC, so that they could declare Darfur region unconducive for elections on security grounds.

Regarding the elections in general, I still maintain my previous position that the SPLM must continue to carry its cross. They excluded the other southern political parties in anything to do with the final solution of the Southern Problem. It is quite clear from the writings of a majority of the southerners that they should go in for elections as scheduled. Since it is also abundantly clear that the south is likely to vote for secession, the SPLM only legacy for its northern members is the presidency of the republic. The conditions being put by the northern opposition for their participation in the general elections seem impossible to be met within the remaining few days. It is probable that the US envoy and the other western countries might convince them to contest national and states parliamentary elections, but they might boycott the presidential vote. In such a situation where the contest would be between the Islamic Fundamentalists only, Beshir would win in the 1st ballot. Such a result would not be in the interest of the whole country, but the SPLM would have to accept the blame for having been playing a middle game between their partner the NCP and the northern opposition. In order to remedy this blame, they have to reconsider the possibility of re-instating Mr. Yasir Arman to contest the national presidential elections.

The southern people are now bitter to the extend of feeling betrayed by the SPLM leadership. The northern opposition feels the same. In short his election grade has greatly improved. I suspect the sectarian religious parties would not accept humiliation and therefore might prefer to vote for Yasir rather than themselves getting defeated at the polls by the Islamic fundamentalists in the presidential race. Mr Yasir staging a vigorous come back to the polls; will guarantee a second run-off which might give him a better chance of winning. But Yasir must know that the southern vote for him is not for the New Sudan as a legacy of late Dr John Garang. It is for the SPLM to take political control of two separate independent sovereign peaceful neighboring countries.

The author is a South Sudanese currently living the United States ; he can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.