Time for US-Sudan Relations Fresh Start

KHARTOUM, Sudan, Sept. 17 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following was written by Ali Osman Mohamed Taha and issued by the Embassy of the Republic of the Sudan:

Barely 20 months in office, the government of President Omar Hassan El-Bashir became the first Sudanese political power to recognize officially the right of Southern Sudan for self determination through Frankurt agreement. That move, concluded ten years before the Machakos Protocols, which paved the way for the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) three years later, that brought Africa's longest running civil war to end.

That step is breaking new grounds in Africa, a continent known for sanctioning borders inherited from colonial era.

The rationale is based on the belief that the war between the North and South well in its ninth year and before that raging for 16 years needs to be addressed differently to allow for a voluntary unity or separation.

That belief and commitment was stipulated clearly in carrying out the security arrangements of the CPA: First by agreeing voluntarily to withdraw all troops of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) from the South. After all SAF was not defeated and forced to leave. Second, the CPA allows for both SAF and Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) to pull troops against each other's moves. According to the Assessment and Evaluation Commission (AEC) last January report SAF is now fully redeployed north of 1/1/1956 border, a clear reflection of a political will not to go back to war. On the other hand the verified figure reported by the Ceasefire Joint Military Committee said that SPLA redeployment stood at 26 percent only. AEC is composed of members of the two CPA parties in addition to representatives of some regional, international organizations and selected countries including the United States.

The credit goes squarely to one man, Omar El-Bashir, being a military man himself was able to convince his lieutenants by the CPA security arrangements and more important deliver on them in a way no civilian leader could have done.

The main concern of the Government of National Unity and the North in general is stability and how to prevent the return of violence regardless of the referendum outcome. And that is why efforts were focused on developing the ten tamazuj, or intermingling states between the North and South that is manned by one third of Sudan's population and have huge natural and mineral resources. By improving services and creating opportunities and mutual interest, the chances of violence returning will be diminishing.

Now that we are little over one hundred days from D-Day to the referendum what needs to be done particularly the United States?

Most important is to work towards closing the door before the return of violence by addressing post-referendum issues like the 2,100 km-long border demarcation before voting takes place. If left unaddressed it could be an inflaming point. Some 80 percent of the demarcation had been concluded.

During the 17 months I spent negotiating with late Dr. John Garang on details of the various CPA six protocols, we came to two main conclusions stipulated clearly in the Agreement that worth quoting. Item 2.4.2 that says, "The Parties shall work with the (AEC) Commission during the Interim Period with a view to improving institutions and arrangements created under the Agreement and making the unity of Sudan attractive.

Also item 2.5 that says, "At the end of the six-year Interim Period there shall be an internationally monitored referendum, organized jointly by GOS and SPLM/A for the people of Southern Sudan to: confirm the unity of Sudan by voting to adopt the system of government established under the peace agreement, or to vote for secession."

These two clauses show clearly that work towards unity along existing arrangements is a priority, a moral and official responsibility not only for the two parties, but also for those who are witnesses and guarantors of the CPA like the United States.

That requires also playing a more active role at various stages in the referendum to ensure that it is free and fair, which is a prerequisite to recognize its outcome.

The United States is asking Sudan government to settle Darfur problem, ensure conducting the referendum on time and recognizing its outcome, which has multiple political, economic and social repercussions if the South is to secede. Equally it has to ask itself how that could be done while it is adopting policies aimed at weakening the country and its president, who effectively controls the decision of war and peace.

At stake is not only Sudan, but the regional ripple effect if the country is to disintegrate as a result of the incessant campaign to demonize it and weaken it through sanctions and isolation.

It is high time for a fresh start of US-Sudanese relations.

*Ali Osman Mohamed Taha is the Vice President of Sudan, who negotiated the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement with Southern Sudan.

CONTACT: Embassy of Sudan Press and Information Office, phone: +1-202-338-8565, or fax: +1-202-667-2406

SOURCE Embassy of the Republic of the Sudan

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