The NCP is resorting to unconstitutional means to impose the unity of the Sudan contrary to the CPA.

The Sudanese President, Omer Hassan al Bashir on his recent trip to Egypt made a number of remarks when he met with the Sudanese community in Cairo, but he mostly dwelt on the issues that pertain to the   maintenance of the Unity of the Sudan.

It has all come as an abrupt approach at the last moments as the Interim period of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) which was supposed to have ended on the 9th July 2009 is approaching its end once the expected national elections are conducted some time next year.

Al Bashir told the crowd that the remaining two years of the CPA are in deed very crucial in maintaining the unity of the country. And of course not minding the fact that the north had a whole of five good decades to promote this so-called unity but because it intentionally lacks the political will, no tangible indication to show that unity will ever surpass in the coming referendum as a choice for the southerners.

On the face value, it is only too recent that al Bashir seems to want to act so as to save the country from the ultimate fragmentation. Yet the truth is that should any referendum be held come 2011, the southerners will always choose to go their way and no amount of promises from the northern politicians will ever block that choice after all, all that the north and the Arabs in general offer are empty promises and sweet words which the southerners have heard more that a million times just enough for them to laugh it off each time it is repeated.

President Al Bashir’s reference to the establishment of the too often mentioned development fund to be financed with the oil revenues are already talks too late for any real action. Not when the oil is now selling at peanuts price anyway.

However if it is the Oil money that will eventually provide the much needed development in the South, then the secession of the South would be the most ideal setting for such a development as the Oil already exists within the southern territory where it will never have to be shared again in two halves with the neighbouring Independent State of North Sudan.

But this is not actually why I basically intent to write this article. My main concern is about the referendum itself and how the north is planning to rig it using all the available means at their disposal. Now as we are all aware, the referendum laws are being discussed at a snail’s pace, based on an intended strategy by the NIF/NCP to hurry up things in the last minute.

As the leadership of the southern based Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM)  has said it more than millions of times that their party stands for the unity of the Sudan but on a new basis, yet the National Congress Party (NCP) of President Al Bashir,  who is supposed to help its peace partner by making the new basis for the Sudanese unity a reality, has in fact chose to behave as if it is not in an agreement that requires a lot of changes on how things were run in the country before the CPA if at all the Sudan  is to retain its unity.

The CPA states that the two partners should consider the unity of the Sudan as their  priority and that they should also work together so as  to make this  unity an attractive option for the south Sudanese who are expected to exercise their rights to self determination in the referendum to be held in 2011.

As south Sudanese citizens outside the two blocks, and expecting to vote in the 2011 referendum, it is apparent and can be said without any reservations that the SPLM on its part has completely failed to sell its vision of the New Sudan to the southern voters, as it failed dramatically to provide on the peace dividends. All that it did is to justify its failures by rightly or not, pointing the figure of blame to its partner the NCP. Now as NCP is portrayed as the demon itself by the SPLM, I don’t think in anyway that any of the SPLM followers will ever vote for Unity with the NCP dominated North, which would otherwise  continue to see them live side by side while nagging throughout the endless journey of the union. Quote: “Secession that brings peace is better than unity that returns the country to war”. (Salva Kiir Mayardit, the President of the Government of southern Sudan,)

On the other hand the people of the South from time immemorial have found it difficult to discipline their pro-unity politicians even if they demonstrate broad day corruption and embezzlement of public funds as they tend to get the support, protection and backing of the successive Khartoum based governments who would for obvious reasons prefer to re-cycle these corrupt unionists amongst the southerners in a bid to deny the separatist figures from coming to positions of power in the South.

Now the South wants to start afresh and on a clear path where it can have the room to discipline and hold its leaders accountable and this can only be done when the South is no longer a part of the corrupted united Sudan. This is a point that had always made many southerners resent unity with the north as this unity has in fact become a breeding ground for corruption in the south. 

Even in the current setting, had it not been for the CPA that has held the masses from reacting towards the prevailing corruption in the south, the world would have clearly by now heard the voices of the real revolutionaries of South Sudan, and many these rotten figures amongst the southern politician would have long time back regretted the very day they were born.

Getting back to the referendum laws, I would like to make it explicitly clear to both the SPLM and the NCP and any other person or group of people who for one reason or the other happen to find themselves involved in formulating these laws that are to govern the referendum, I will not be exaggerating if I say that the CPA was welcomed by southerners because it provides an opportunity through the stipulated referendum for the South to succeed peacefully.

But based on what we have been hearing lately coming from prominent figures in the NCP and their ever unhidden agenda to temper with the CPA, it seems the future doesn’t hold much for a peaceful departure of the South.

The speaker of the National Parliament in Khartoum, Ahmed Ibrahim Al Tahir, was already quoted to have said that since they (NCP) are against the succession of the south, they are not going to hide what they intent to do as they will be working hard to come up with referendum laws that would render the succession of the south something very difficult if not impossible to be attained. Quoting from the Sudan Tribune: On the referendum law, Al-Tahir said that the NCP view is based on the belief that they will not facilitate secession through a law.

It was with the same pathetic tune that President Al Bashir, while addressing the Sudanese community in Cairo said, “We are for the unity of the Sudan and we also believe that many of our fellows in the SPLM share the same feelings with us. For this reason we are doing our level best to work hand in hand in formulating the referendum laws. These shall be laws that will bring the end result of the referendum to favour the unity of the country since we both believe that unity is the best option for the Sudan”. (al sharq al awsat)

Can any one tell exactly what President Al Bashir is up to?  Using common sense these statements are unwelcomed and they clearly amount to rigging, because the CPA and the Interim Constitution of the Sudan clearly states that it is the South Sudanese who are to decide their future in the referendum to be held in 2011. President al Bashir has completely gone astray, and though he is the current head of the Sudanese State, but being a northerner himself, this disqualifies him from being a decision maker in this referendum.

Anyway, this is no longer the spirit of the CPA because it is not by putting in place laws that would rig the southerners’ aspirations for their independent state that the unity of the Sudan should be sought.

This exactly shows us how the northern Arabs are thinking, and without the least hesitation the President confidently declares that SPLM shall be a part of the laws which will deprive the southern secessionists’ votes from making any impact on the out come of the referendum.

It is now clear that as the two parties to the CPA have openly failed to make the unity of the Sudan an attractive option to the southern voters, prominent figures to the agreement including the Sudanese President himself are now resorting to create laws that in other ways would make the referendum a non effective tool for southerners to peacefully achieve their independence.

The above don’t go well with what al Bashir later declared, when he said, “we are not for war…..as all wars are disastrous to everybody ……..even those claimed to have achieved victories”. “We promise to follow the CPA to the end, and that is our stand”.   “Our slogan in the coming election is to work for the sake of Unity”. He added.

The FVP and the President of the semi-autonomous south Sudan , Salva Kiir Mayardit has also recently being quoted as saying that there is no return to war and that the Unity of the Sudan remains their strategic choice , a statement he over stressed during his recent historical  visit to south Kordofan (The Nuba Mountains), Kiir in that speech that he delivered on July 7 in a rally at Kadugli, Southern Kordofan, he pleaded for the unity of the country adding that the government of national unity (GoNU) must “work hard” to make unity attractive “through providing better services and undertaking development projects in the South”.(Sudan Tribune)

Whereas to the people of Abyei ( an Oil rich enclave which is contested between the SPLM and the Khartoum government) barely two days apart as quoted from the article written by  Ngor Arol Garang in the Sudan Tribune July 11, 2009 (ABYEI) — The President of the Government of southern Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit, said secession that brings peace is better than unity that returns the country to war. H.E Kiir went on and   said, "When people hear that southern Sudanese will go for a referendum, some people would say, No, let them not be allowed to go for referendum because they would vote for secession. This is a wrong concept", he said. "Even if southerners live in a united Sudan and the war does not stop, such unity would be useless. Unity will be useful when people live in peace," he further said. He continued to add "if the secession of southern Sudan will bring peace in Sudan, it is better that we let them go for referendum and we see what they will do."However, he was quick to say we are ready for unity if situation permits. (Sudan Tribune)

Here, there are bunches of mixed massages being sent to the Sudanese masses. But if we take the President and his NCP as people who are dedicated to the unity of the Sudan, then they should have helped with the timely implementation of the agreement in a way that could have made that unity to  an attractive option to the people of the South.

However, look at what they did. Shamelessly  they have dragged their feet on each and ever item on the CPA to the extend that many  south Sudanese who were not initially politically concerned have come out openly to question as to why everything seems to be going very slowly. They,  the National Islamic Front/National Congress Party (NIF/NCP) throughout this four years that followed the signing of the CPA, have only succeeded so far to frustrate people in all the regions of the South as well as the contested areas including the top hot spot of Abyei whose citizens’ patience  have vanished long time back and would not to be easily restored again.

In the Sudan one need not to be a warmonger to predict whether a fight follow  a disagreement  would break out or not. It is true that both sides to the peace agreement have vowed to the International Community that they will respect the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s (PCA) ruling over Abyei. But remember that, we are here talking about the Sudan and not any other place. It is here that many agreements were signed and later categorically dishonoured. It is not about the immediate reaction of the people over the ruling that would be considered as the  success of the PCA  ruling over Abyei,  but it is rather how this ruling will remain honoured in the long run that actually matters.

It is  worth  stressing  a point here that if the much promised development that was denied from the people of South Sudan since the independence of the Sudan in 1956, has not come to exist up till today, then it will take both the SPLM and the NCP a great deal of a miracle to put into place a degree of developmental projects that will reach such a threshold to start reverting the strong yarn for secession that has accumulated in the Southerners’   minds over a period of no less than half a century.

The NCP should also understand very well that by creating its own NIF versions of the SPLM is in fact a waste of  resources at this particular time. In as far as what the southern Sudanese intent to do at the referendum day is already conceived and even the new versions of the SPLM political parties who are coming up these days, are no much different from the old mother party. We have heard both talking of the unity of the Sudan in gatherings where there are Arabs ( Khartoum, Cairo, Syria, Tripoli ….etc) and we have also heard how they strongly support the south Sudanese’s right to self determination in a unity that the SPLM has already declared as unattractive.

It is true that there are a few south Sudanese political parties both in the government and outside it but not in the opposition who prefer to stand on the fence at this stage and  they survive by actively avoiding any association with activities or talks that would label them as  separatists  and thus interfere with their dual personalities.  

Many are now not just hiding but actually earning their livings by adapting to the notion that, separation is an option not to be talked of and is a decision to be taken is complete secrecy in the referendum room in 2011.

However those of us who have taken upon themselves the historical challenge and responsibility to register a political party that officially and openly operates with the clear conviction and vision of   creating   an independent south Sudan nation will always see to it that the unionist parties (SPLM & SPLM- DC and others) may talk of their unity with the north when they are with the Arabs and it must end up where there are the Arabs, because   non  of these unionist parties will ever survive the public opinion in the South should they choose to campaign for the unity of the Sudan within the south Sudanese communities..

The only chance the NCP had but chose to miss was at the beginning of the government of national unity (GoNU) when there was enough room that it could have used to bring about the much needed changes had it seriously wanted to win the hearts of the southerners. But thanks to God that it didn’t happen.

The Sudanese at large waited too long to have any democratic transformation happen in the country. The NIF/NCP remains adamant all this time in its monopoly of power and decision making at the centre.

Even the new laws that were recently passed, were only done so after undue pressures from the opposition parties including the SPLM which for the sake of the implementation of the CPA had to move its operation room from the government partnership to the opposition camp in order to exert the much needed pressure to persuade the NCP to allow the changes stipulated in the agreement.

But even so, as the NCP has its agenda of not wanting to share power , not even with SPLM, the new laws are still far below  the expectations of the Sudanese masses, let alone the level needed to have an impact on the south Sudanese views and be capable of bringing  about any possible changes in their perception of the intensions of Khartoum following  the two decades of the protracted civil war that left most families to lead  lives of destitution  in the IDP camps especially in the main Sudanese cosmopolitans  like Khartoum, Omdurman, Port Sudan, Wad Medani, Kosti, El Obeid and other parts of northern Sudan or those in the horrible refugee camps in the neighbouring countries where the south Sudanese were forced to take refugee.

Khartoum still clings to its Islamic based policies and laws which in fact treat southerners as outsiders if not frank aliens. As such, though the NIF/NCP of al Bashir succeeded in negotiating a peaceful settlement to the North-South conflict, unfortunately the strict Islamist nature of the regime has failed it from realizing the timely democratic change expected to allow room for the inclusion of the other as an integral part in the implementation of the peace agreement.

It is now time that the Khartoum Islamists be prepared to live with the results of their choice. The South shall never again allow itself to be pushed into yet another meaningless unity where it is expected to continue to play the role of a second class citizenry.

In conclusion, the people of south Sudanese who have the same rights like other people in other parts of the world would want in this sharp cry to make a point against the President Omer Hassan al Bashir and his NCP for their un civilized attempt to temper with the referendum scheduled for January 2011 where the south Sudanese are to exercise their constitutional right which is embodied in the CPA, by either voting to live in a united Sudan or opt for their separated state.

We strong condemn the NIF/NCP intensions to manipulate the referendum laws in any way and as they have now made their intension public, we hereby call upon all the South Sudanese political parties, the US administration, the IGAD, the African Union, the UN, the CPA Troika and the entire International Community to be vigilant and to closely monitor each and every step in the implementation of the remaining articles of the CPA in such a way that would prevent the South and North from slipping back into another civil war.

Dr. Justin Ambago Ramba
Secretary General
United South Sudan Party (USSP)