Articles and Analysies
The fate of the rest of Sudan after the de facto secession of the south By Dr. Mahmoud A. Suleiman
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Feb 10, 2011 - 6:43:05 PM

The fate of the rest of Sudan after the de facto secession of the south

By Dr. Mahmoud A. Suleiman

Sudan today is passing through its worst period in modern history under the National Islamic Front (NIF) regime with all its previous and subsequent denominations (National Congress Party/ Popular Congress Party)  since they seized power by a military Coup d��tat on June 30^th 1989 after ousting a democratically elected government. After more than two decades of imposing sinister culture of genocide, repression, displacement, homelessness, torture, starvation, political and intellectual terrorism, exploitation of religion, ethnic and cultural supremacy, theory of dismantling social fabric through the doctrine of divide and rule the infamous National Islamic Front (NIF) led the largest country in the African continent to disintegrate into two hostile smaller states to the satisfaction of its racist supporters.

Political analysts strongly believe that the north Sudan- after the secession of the south - will be obliged to remain multi-ethnic, multicultural, and multi- religious beliefs, even within Islam itself. Observers on the other hand indicate that the explicitly declared plan of the National Congress Party (NCP) regime led by the International Criminal Court (ICC) indicted fugitive President Field Marshal Omer Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir to impose their unilateral version of Islamism-Arabism ideology will not be easy, given the presence of sizable number of Christians of the Coptic faith besides other Christians in the regions of Nuba Mountains, South of Blue Nile and Ingessana, along with the expatriates resident and working in Northern Sudan and as well as people from some sectors from the community who do not believe any religious faith, such as pagans and communists and others of that ilk.

These undeniable facts will remain to defy the changes the racist NCP clique threatens to bring about to the remaining Sudan. The racism that haunts the remnants of the National Islamic Front (NIF) reflects the inferiority complex they suffer from. They crave eagerly to become Arabs, despite the blackness of their skin and their flagrant Negroid features of hair and thick lips as well as the ridicule they face in some forums.

 Any changes in the structure of North Sudan state should be based on respect for freedoms, acceptance of pluralism and recognition of others. The vast majority of Sudanese people living in the margin have a vision for how to govern Sudan in light of the secession of southern Sudan. They strongly believe that they are the alternative and the future of the remaining Sudan is dependent on the marginalised people who are in the Eastern Sudan region, Kordofan region, the Central Region, the Northern region and the region of the Greater Darfur in addition to the downtrodden population of the national capital Khartoum who live in poverty, hunger, disease, oppression as well as being subject to constant threat and harassment of the removal of their homes which the government officials consider been built on a land owned by the state unlawfully.

The withdrawal of the NCP government delegation from the Doha venue for the Darfur peace talks last December and moving to �settle� the eight-year conflict through an allegedly new approach (domestication) consisting of direct dialogue among local actors, tribal leaders, civil society groups and elected organs. It also aims to close camps and relocate internally displaced people (IDPs) to their villages or new settlements. However, the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and its allies considered the �NEW� strategy of the NCP as �New� declaration of war in Darfur and a second round of genocide in the making. They called on the international community, the UN, EU, AU and the Human Rights Organisations to be up to the extent of the responsibility in such situations where  unarmed civilians being subjected to torture,  ill-treatment and the threat of displacement. JEM has indicated that it is onus upon all Darfuri rebel groups to protect the people of Sudan in Darfur against the Mbeki/ NCP evil plans of the so-called domestication of Darfur peace.

At this juncture one would like to quote the US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton after al-Bashir ordered 13 nongovernmental humanitarian assistance groups, including Doctors without Borders, CARE, Oxfam Great Britain and Save the Children, expelled: �This is a horrendous situation that is going to cause untold misery and suffering for the people of Darfur, particularly those in refugee camps,� Clinton said. �The real question is what kind of pressure can be brought to bear on President Bashir and the government in Khartoum to understand that they will be held responsible for every single death that occurs in those camps.�!

Dr El-Tahir El-Faki Chairman of Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) Legislative Council writes in Sudan Tribune on October 4, 2010 while presenting JEM�s ground � breaking vision for the Post- CPA Sudan that Sudan�s unity and perhaps its sole existence are at stake. This last phrase has been proved beyond a thread of doubt true! Dr. El-Faki�s four possible scenarios and outcomes for the future of the country ( Sudan) included:

1)      Firstly: United Sudan while the South is still part of the country

2)      Second: United Sudan without the South � United Regions of Sudan (URS)

3)      Thirdly: Darfur/Kordofan Confederate States

4)      Fourthly: Independent Sudanese States

Now that the South has decided to secede based on the results of the referendum stipulated by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) of 2005 the remaining Six regions in the north which are Darfur, Kordofan, the East, North, Khartoum and the Central each region should retain the right for self-determination and semi- sovereignty in its laws and security arrangements. According to JEM�s vision that has been pre-empted and presented by Dr. El-Faki as early as October 2011 �The regions attend a General Regional Conference (GRC) where all political issues including identity and religion are discussed and the bases for voluntary unity of the regions are laid out followed by a Constitutional Conference to draft a new constitution. The constitution will be subject to national referendum by all peoples of the regions for ratification. Only then they unite as United Regions of Sudan (URS). The new form of Sudan will be called the United States of Sudan (USS)�.

The foregoing facts are supported by the legal frameworks that emanate from the Interim (Transitional) National Constitution of the Republic of Sudan and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed in Naivasha, Kenya,  on the 9^th of January 2005 both of which made it obligatory for the parties, SPLA and the Government of Sudan (GoS), to implement the peace agreement leading to the referendum, making unity attractive under the auspices of the Government of National Unity (GoNU) , the validity of that  Covenant will cease now that a separate South Sudan will be  born by 9^th July 2011; based on the results of the referendum in which the people of the southern Sudan overwhelmingly voted for separation announced on 7^th February 2011 and accepted unreservedly by the NCP chief  Field Marshal Omer Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir and the International Community (US). The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) in Sudan has begun in the direction towards the development of a new constitution for the remaining part of Sudan, and this constitution is the one that would set the legal framework for the new state in the north of the Old beloved Sudan. Mr. Pagan Amum, Government of South Sudan (GoSS) Minister of Peace and CPA Implementation and SPLM Secretary-General has been quoted in a dialogue with the Journal Freedoms (Hurriyat) as saying that the vast majority of southerners have voted for secession by up to about 99% which reflects the failure of the unity as part of the old state, and the failure of the Sudanese state in the national construction and the founding of a democratic state that can accommodate Sudanese of various and differing cultural, ethnic and religious groups. Wise Sudanese men and women share the views of Mr. Amum! Sadly though, that was the fact.

References

El-Tahir Adam El-Faki: What are the options for post-CPA Sudan? Sudan Tribune October 5, 2010  

Dr. Mahmoud A. Suleiman is the Deputy Chairman of the General Congress for the Justice and Equality Movement (J EM). He can be reached at [email protected].