January 31, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – The leading figure at Sudan's ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and former state minister at the Ministry of Finance Ahmed al-Majzoub, said the speech which was delivered by president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir on Monday represents only 1% of the comprehensive reform document drafted by the NCP.

Sudan's President Omer Hassan al-Bashir delivers a speech on January 27, 2014 in which he appealed for a political and economic renaissance in his country ravaged by war, poverty and political turmoil, in the Sudanese capital Khartoum (AFP Photo/Ebrahim Hamid)

Last December, the NCP announced that it is developing a comprehensive reform document which it described as historic. The announcement came in the wake of a government shakeup that saw the departure of several long-time NCP figures from their governmental posts.

The long awaited speech by Bashir that was expected to unveil a major reform proposal, created a wave of disappointment among those who followed it including opposition leaders who were present.

Bashir announced a 4-point plan for reform "to stop the war and bring peace, free political society, fight against poverty and revitalise national identity", calling for political forces to engage in dialogue to agree on the implementation items though he did not specify practical steps to do so.

Opposition figures who were present made statements either personally or through their parties criticising the lack of specifics and excessive generalities that gave no real signs of concessions on the part of the ruling party.

But al-Majzoub stressed in a talk show at the pro-government Ashorooq TV on Thursday that the president's address which consisted of 22 pages represents only 1% of the actual reform document.

The talk show focused on the economic issues which appeared in the presidents' speech.

Al-Majzoub pointed that several organizational and economic decision to promote growth of Sudan's economy will be issued soon, adding that the document was prepared by a committee composed of NCP experts who do not hold official posts in the party or the government.

“Large number of experts was engaged in the preparation of the document. The economic reform document for example is composed of more than 30 pages”, al-Majzoub said.

He said economic stability is contingent upon achieving peace because war depletes resources, stressing the right path to achieve economic growth is to direct resources towards development and economic stability instead of war.

The NCP figure further stressed the creation of the national revenues body which was mentioned in the presidents' address will be an independent entity.

“We could compensate for our lost revenues through improving relations with South Sudan”, he said

He asserted continuation of governments' social subsidies, saying the president's speech clearly underscored importance of increasing production.

Al-Majzoub also said the document called for expanding employment opportunities and combating poverty.

The talk show surveyed several ordinary citizens about their future expectations. Some of them wished agreement among political parties and focus on peace and economic issues while others called for agreement on permanent constitution and reducing prices of basic commodities.

The economic expert, Mohamed al-Nayer, for his part, praised the president's call for establishing a national independent revenues body, emphasising the need to avoid withholding money by government units.

Previous budgets saw the phenomenon of government units retaining money that should otherwise be sent to the ministry of finance.

The controversial practice sparked national debate regarding the constitutionality of withholding public money by various government units, given that the ministry of finance is the only body which has the legal mandate to collect and disburse government funds.

Al-Nayer called for developing strict mechanisms to enhance ministry of finance control over public money, saying that economic packages should be directed towards benefiting citizens.

He underscored importance of restoring value of the Sudanese pound and stabilising its exchange rate in the coming period, saying the speech tackled well the issue of creating a good investment environment particularly as the Sudanese economy suffers from the foreign debt's burden.

Sudan's external debt is estimated to have grown by 27% since 2008 from $32.6 billion to $41.4 billion in 2011. The IMF forecasted the debt level to reach $43.7 billion in 2012 and $45.6 billion in 2013. The latter represents 83% of Sudan's 2011 GDP, which was $55.1 billion.

Around three quarters of Sudan's external debt are owed to the Paris Club of creditor nations and other non-member states. The remaining balance is equally divided between commercial banks as well as international and regional financial bodies.

(ST)

January 31, 2014 (JUBA) - Before the recent conflict, Bor town was developing slowly as the capital of South Sudan's Jonglei state since the 2005 peace deal with Khartoum ended decades of civil war and led to the country's independence in 2011.

A South Sudanese girl sleeps as people go about their daily life in Minkammen, on the outskirts of Bor, on January 8, 2014 (PhotoAFP /Nichole Sobecki)

However, much of Bor has been destroyed in the recent fighting, which saw the strategic town on the White Nile river about 200km north of the capital Juba change hands four times, setting the town back years in terms of development.

Royal Junior School was a fast growing private learning centre in Bor that provided nursery and primary classes. It has now been reduced to rubble.

"The school bus is burnt, clinic looted, windows and doors broken for classes," said Michael Kur, the director and founder of the school.

Kur's story is one of the many for South Sudanese and foreign nationals who owned businesses in towns that have witnessed the heavy fighting in recent weeks.

The markets of Bentiu, Bor and Malakal have all been destroyed in the intense fighting between the government and rebels loyal to former vice-president Riek Machar.

Sudan Tribune's reporter who visited Bor last week witnessed the destruction of shops, hotels and lodges. The entire main market of Marol was burnt to the ground apart from the few permanent buildings.

Kur founded Royal Junior School in 2008 with 87 pupils.

"By the end of November, 2013, we had more than 1,800 pupils in nursery and primary levels," Kur told Sudan Tribune in Juba, where he took shelter after defectors from the South Sudanese army took control of Bor for the first time in December 18.

Government forces captured Bor on December 25 only for it to be retaken by rebels on December 31. The rebels were forced out of Bor again with the help of Ugandan forces on January 18.

Ayuel Arok, owner of Mzee Hotel and Lodge in Bor, said he could not recognise his building when he visited Bor this week.

"Everything is destroyed", said Arok.

Arok said he had stocked his hotel with items expecting high sales over the Christmas period but now he has lost everything. He said the losses were incalculable.

"Now, I don't know where to begin. There is no money and I don't [know] what the government will do to help business community," Arok stressed.

Markets were looted by rebels, government forces and local citizens that returned to Bor town have changed hands since the conflict that started in Juba's Presidential Guard unit on December 15, local residents claim.

Akol Paul Kordit, a member of South Sudan Crisis Committee - a body charged by President Salva Kiir with quickly assessing the situation in the country - told reporters in Bor on a visit there last week that special consideration will be made to help rebuilding the destroyed towns.

Business people who have suffered in the conflict "are not alone", Kordit said.

"We shall have […] a comprehensive development approach as a national government to address how best these three cities can be made to catch up with the rest of the cities of the Republic of South Sudan", he said.

Most shops are either burnt or broken into. Asked if they hope for government help, most businessmen are skeptical.

"The ceasefire which was signed did not mention damages caused and we don't know who will be responsible for the losses incurred" to businesses, Ayuel Arok said.

"My business depends on peace and resettlement of people back to Bor," said Michael Kur, the owner of Royal Junior School putting his losses at around 300,000 South Sudanese Pounds (around $100,000).

Simon Akuei, the secretary general of South Sudan chamber of commerce said the government has a role to play in reviving the local businesses.

"The business is down and the supply of imports is low," Akuei said.

"The first step [the government can do] is to convince people that it is safe in South Sudan," Akuei added.

"I believe that we can still turn it around," Akuei said when asked if businesses in Bor have the resilience to rise to their feet after the damage caused by more than a month of the conflict.

Local people are beginning to trickle back to deserted towns despite the lack of food and services.

(ST)

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

January 31, 2014 (ADDIS ABABA) - The East African bloc, Inter Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), who negotiated a ceasefire deal between the warring parties in South Sudan said on Friday that they will be dispatching their first team of observers to the conflict-affected member state over the weekend.

The decision to deploy monitors within the next 48 hours was made after leaders of IGAD member states held a meeting behind closed doors on Friday on the sidelines of the African Union summit in Ethiopia.

Regional mediators late on Friday confirmed to Sudan Tribune that a "joint technical committee" of 11 observers will head to Juba on Saturday.

The joint technical committee comprises members representing the South Sudanese government and the rebels, who refer to themselves as the SPLM/A in Opposition. The committee also comprises of representatives from Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, the African Union (AU) and the international community.

The monitoring team led by Ethiopia will assess the situation in the main flashpoint towns of Juba, Bor, Malakal and Bentiu and will return to Addis Ababa with a report in five days, before the second round of peace talks between the government and rebels resumes in the Ethiopian capital on February 7.

After the first team submits its report to IGAD and regional mediators, the main monitoring and verification team will head to South Sudan within a week.

Ambassador Seyoum Mesfin, IGAD's chief mediator for the six-week-old South Sudan conflict urged the two warring parties to "respect and expeditiously" implement the cessation of hostilities agreement signed in Addis Ababa on 23 January.

The former Ethiopian foreign minister further called on the two sides to fully cooperate with the ceasefire monitoring team.

Citing reports of ceasefire violations by both sides Mesfin said there had largely been "much restraint and encouragement."

Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta called on South Sudan's leaders to put the interests of the hundreds of thousands of people suffering by the violence above all other considerations.

Although the two warring factions signed a cease fire agreement a week ago the fighting has not stopped to allow humanitarian access and for some of the over half a million displaced people to return home. The International Crisis Group estimates that 10,000 people have died in the conflict, which began as a political power struggle between President Salva Kiir and the deputy he sacked last year, Riek Machar.

After fighting broke out on December 15 in Juba the conflict quickly spread to Jonglei, Unity and Upper Nile states. Machar and his associates deny the government's accusations that they were planning a coup against President Kiir.

After extensive international pressure the South Sudanese government has released seven of the 11 detainees it had held for over a month without charge in connection to the alleged coup. There have been further calls, including from Ethiopia, for the remaining four detainees to also be freed.

Responding to reports that he will be charged with treason for leading the rebellion, Machar has warned that such statements could damage future peace talks.

At the AU summit, Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir today said unless the crisis in South Sudan is resolved quickly, Africa might witness another conflict like the decades of civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

South Sudan seceded from Sudan in 2011 after a 2005 peace deal ended over two decades of civil war. But since then the former the rebels have struggled to evolve into a national army and its political wing into a democratic ruling party.

Both sides in the conflict are accused of committing serious human rights violations.

The UN Mission in South Sudan in a statement on Thursday said it is investigating the crimes committed by both sides since fighting broke out in mid-December.

According to the statement, UN peacekeepers in South Sudan have conducted more than 300 patrols in the capital Juba and Jonglei state to collect evidence and document abuses.

(ST)

By Arop Madut Arop-Gotnyiel

January 31, 2014 - I have been reading discussions in the social media; in which the discussants are calling for an immediate investigation on the ongoing destructive war that has plagued our young country. In these discussions some panellists are urging for speedy end to the conflict, while others are pushing for investigating the people they believe were responsible for the outbreak of the current fratricidal conflict immediately. Questions are also being asked, in these discussions, as to whether there was a coup or just mere misunderstanding in the presidential guards Headquarters in the night of December 15th, 20013, which brought down our country to the current crisis situation; or whether there was a coup in the making and was thus pre-empted by the army which later spread to engulf three states. In fact I read most of these discussions with interest and sadness.

Interest because the discussions centre on the current sensitive issue of killing one another and which has widely been condemned not only by South Sudanese but by all the peace loving people worldwide and who are calling on the warring factions to stop the conflict that has already destroyed some of our cities and tearing families apart. Sadness, because some panellists appear to have moved away from the immediate issue of condemning the savage killing of innocent citizens and calling for peace. Instead the panellists are pointing at figures they are accusing as being responsible for the ongoing carnage. Most people who read these discussions may have expected that, the discussants should have continued with the condemnation of these unfortunate killings and appeal for the stoppage of the ongoing war which if not stop, is pushing our country every day into abyss. However those who called for immediate investigation could be forgiven because their discussions took place against the background of intense environment and extreme emotions. However, the immediate thing that is needed now, is first to stop the conflict and when all is over and peace has been restored and our people are at peace with one another, it will be the time to call for genuine investigation by international teams of experts. It will be then that each and everyone, who have knowledge about what went wrong and the people who were involved in this madness will come forward and give evidence against the alleged culprits. Equally important to stress here is that, these public discussions should also appreciate, at the same time, the authorities in the eight states of our Republic, who kept peace and made sure that no reciprocal atrocities were committed. Once we succeed to stop all this madness, it will be then that, we shall invite the international human rights experts and the International Criminal Courts judges to come and investigate; first the causes of the fight that led to the carnage and then identify the culprits for prosecution. I am sure each of the people involved in this fratricidal conflict will be thoroughly investigated by those neutral bodies and are either acquitted or punished. Essentially, if we succeed to stop the ongoing fight between the government and those fighting against it, and the country is at peace with itself, lot of home work will be made in effort to correct some of the factors that often make our people; the Nuer and the Dinka in particular; prone to ethnic fighting whereas they have almost been integrated through intermarriages and migrations and immigrations through centuries of mixing freely among themselves. Surely there are a lot of things that must be corrected once peace has been restored. The first important thing that I think, will be corrected once the ongoing madness is over; will be the reorganisation of the SPLA as to make it a professional national army of our young Republic. Looking at the current composition of our army in the post war period, one is truck in the face to notice that most of the officers in the army garrisons are from among those have gone to Khartoum many times and having acquired wealth; responded to the Presidential Amnesty; are forgiven and integrated into the SPLA! This is the crime for which President Kiir Mayardit has, unfortunately, become a victim but of good intentions.

Furthermore, it is very unfortunate that the integration of some of the former streets boys who became responsible soldiers in our army; without first giving them some ideas about the mechanics of modern warfare, are responsible in parts to what happened on December 15 and 16 and is ongoing. Sadly, the once mighty and gallant SPLA in the pre war period, has now become a laughing stock just because, of the presence of large number of former street boys who became officers by default. These facts apparently can explain some of the atrocities committed on the innocent people and property not only in Juba but later in Bor, Bentiu, and Malakal and elsewhere. The destruction and atrocities witnessed in the three states could have not been carried out or committed by professional soldiers under professional commanders. The second thing that must be corrected as soon as we have restored peace in our country, will be to stem out the culture of revolting, amnesty is given in efforts to maintain peace in the young nation, and those returnees; are integrated into the national army which is supposed to be a professional army. Now our army is full of people who have previously committed atrocities or genocide in the past and were forgiven without addressing the causes which made them prone to rebellion; and are easily convinced, are pardoned and are integrated into the national army. It will be necessary for the ministry of defence to redeploy some of these former street soldiers in the SPLA and put them into reserve camps where they can be able to produce their own resources in addition to their salaries as members of Reserve Defence Force. It should also be a practice that former soldiers covered by presidential amnesty should be put in these reserve defence force camps. I am sure many donor countries that have gratefully being helping us in the past will be willing to avail funds for the construction and building of the envisaged Reserve Defence Force Camps in certain productive areas in the South Sudan. Once these non professional personnel are cleaned out of the national army, the immediate thing for the defence ministry will be to recruit younger new recruits; and if practicable; among the primary and secondary schools leavers; into the new national army.

The third thing that I would like to stress here has to do with one vital question; and that is; what will be the role of the South Sudanese intellectuals; and their efforts for the reconciliation and national healing; once the ongoing destructive and fratricidal fight has been halted? As the cream of their society I recommend that, the Naadh and Jaang intellectuals, in particular, must meet, as soon as the war is over, discuss and devise ways and means as to how to make our people abandon their time honoured culture of injury to one is an injury to all, as well as the culture of cattle rustling. Although the former has enabled our people, in the past when they successfully fought wars against their enemies, it is high time to abandon this culture now that we have a country of our own.

One sad example to demonstrate what I am talking about is what happened to my nephew in Kuajok last December, when his close friend of many years, a Dinka whose mother is a Nuer, killed him and five others on hearing that one of his uncles (a Nuer) was killed by Dinkas in Juba. When the news reached me I did not know how to respond because, my daughter is married to a Nuer husband and the couple have been blessed with three nice children and are with me in the house. If my nephew was killed by a half Nuer, would my grandchildren be killed in revenge because they are half Nuer? Thank God the issue has been handled with wisdom. Let us stop this culture of an injury to one is an injury to all and adopt a civilize culture where an injury to one is his own problem.

He can then take the person that injury him to the police and to the national court to answer the charge brought against him. This should be our culture instil to our youth. It should also be included in the civic lessons in our schools. Indeed the South Sudanese intellectuals and on the top the Nuer and the Dinka intellectuals; who claim to be national leaders and who, at the same time, remain primordial and parochial in their thinking and behaviour, must now start without delay to educate themselves of how to be nationalistic; it will be then that they will in turn educate their respective constituents. As educationist, I am aware that education is a slow process but it is worth an attempt and worth undertaking. Unless the urge to loot cattle or take side in any unprovoked fight, by the cattle owning nationalities which was one of causes that led to the death of thousands of innocent people during the Anya Nya/ SPLM war; has also been the cause of instability in the cattle owning states, even long after our country became independent; and which caused the loss of thousands of innocent lives in the last eight years since the descent of peace on our country; unless this damaging culture is stemmed out, any future efforts and attempts to start building a nation called South Sudan, will be like chasing the wind.

This culture, which might have understandably brought glories in the past, should now be the role of the Naadh and Jaang intellectuals to persuade their people to stop these divisive cultures. Because, if these two cultures are not addressed sooner than later, they will continue to be the causes for continuous future disunity and instability in our country; it will also be a future hindrance to the progress of our people. Compatriots, the entire world is laughing at us; just only two years of independence and we are not only brutally killing one another but vandalizing our own cities— destroying all our own resources given to us by people of good will so as to pull our young state out of the age long state of backwardness. Let us all join hands and stop this war of our own making; because the victims of this war; as being reported daily by the world media; are our own relatives on both sides, our poor innocent natives and our own cities we built from scratch. Indeed rebuilding the destroyed cities that were wilfully destroyed; will be likened to a person forced by circumstances to eat his own vomits; very painful indeed!

Finally; needless to remind the readers that; all the most powerful, stable and highly developed countries of the world of today; arguably, went through the same madness or even worse than what is happening now in the South Sudan. When this uncalled for conflict is brought to a halt, there will be a dire need to revisit the Wunlit Experience; the people to people conference in the nineties that brought peace, reconciliation and stability among the then embattled Nuer and Dinka Nationalities; a move which contributed to the unity of purpose between the two nationalities and which effectively contributed to the success in bringing to a halt the twenty one year war to its logical conclusion.

The author is a Member of Parliament at South Sudan National Legislative Assembly representing Abyei. He was formerly a journalist and a writer. He can be reached at gotnyiel122@hotmail.com

January 31, 2014 (NEW YORK) - The UN under-secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, Hervé Ladsous, is due to arrive in South Sudan on Sunday, where he is expected to meet with senior government officials to discuss the implementation of the recently-signed ceasefire agreement.

The UN under-secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, Hervé Ladsous, speaks to the press after Security Council consultations on South Sudan, on 9 January 2014 (Photo: Luke Vargas/TRNS)

Ladsous also plans to meet with staff and peacekeepers from the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to thank them for their efforts in helping protect at risk civilians throughout the crisis.

The first group of peacekeeping reinforcements arrived in South Sudan in mid-January following a UN Security Council decision (UNSC) to bolster UNMISS forces by 5,500 to 12,500 troops.

Among the troops being sent are 850 Nepalese peacekeepers, 350 of whom will be redeployed from Haiti.

9 January, Ladsous said the 5,500-strong surge in UN peacekeepers and equipment could take up to eight weeks to be fully deployed on the ground.

At a press conference in New York on Friday, the spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, Farhan Haq, said UNMISS estimates it is now protecting more than 85,000 civilians at eight bases across the country, including about 43,000 people seeking shelter in two sites in the capital, Juba.

According to Haq, the mission is also currently providing protection for some 28,000 civilians in Upper Nile state capital Malakal, where nearly 1,000 patients have been treated at its hospital since the end of December. Twenty-nine babies have been delivered at the Malakal protection site during the same period.

“The mission has conducted 241 military and 62 police patrols in Juba, Jonglei, Unity and Upper Nile states in the last 24 hours”, Haq said in comments to the press.

A number of high-ranking UN officials have already visited South Sudan since conflict erupted in the capital, Juba, in mid-December following clashes between rival tribal factions within the presidential guards.

UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos was in South Sudan earlier this week on a three-day visit to meet with aid groups and government officials.

While in mid-January, Ivan Simonovic, the assistant-secretary-general for human rights, visited the country as part of fact-finding mission on human rights abuses committed during the conflict.

According to the latest UN estimates some 740,000 people have been internally displaced since the conflict erupted in Juba before spreading throughout the country as forces loyal to president Salva Kiir and rebel elements aligned with former vice-president Riek Machar battled for control of key areas.

The warring parties signed a ceasefire agreement in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, on 23 January in a deal brokered by East African bloc - the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

However, violence in the country has continued since the signing, with both sides accusing each other of violating the terms of the peace deal.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (ADDIS ABABA) – South Sudanese rebels from the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army In Opposition (SPLM/A In Opposition) have accused Ugandan troops deployed in the country of committing continuous violations of the cessation of hostilities signed a week ago in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.

Riek Machar sits next to his wife Angelina Teny in front of their tent in rebel-controlled territory inside Jonglei state, on 31 January 2014 (Photo: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic)

The truce, reached by the two factions in talks mediated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), called for the withdrawal of allied foreign troops from South Sudan, including the Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF).

However, rebels say there is no sign of a UPDF withdrawal, accusing Ugandan troops of continuing to attack their positions in Jonglei state.

“The Ugandan troops in Jonglei state do not heed to the calls by the international community to respect the terms of the agreement on the cessation of hostilities,” said James Gatdet Dak, the spokesperson for former vice-president-turned rebel leader Riek Machar.

“The UPDF is moving towards Gadiang and Baidit areas, north of Bor town, which are under the control of the rebel forces,” Dak told Sudan Tribune.

He further claimed the Ugandan army was behaving as if it is in charge of the country's security.

“The Ugandan army behaves arrogantly as if it is the supreme army of South Sudan in total disrespect of the truce signed between the SPLA and the SPLA in Opposition, and have continued to launch attacks on the positions of our troops even today on Friday, north of Bor town,” Dak said.

Dak has called on IGAD and the wider international community to ensure full implementation of the cessation of hostilities agreement, which he said includes applying pressure on the Ugandan government to withdraw its forces from South Sudan.

SUDANESE REBELS MUST WITHDRAW

He also called on Sudanese rebels from Darfur and South Kordofan currently in Unity state to withdraw, as well as those in Upper Nile state from Southern Blue Nile who are allied to forces loyal to president Salva Kiir, claiming that rebels from neighbouring Sudan had been attacking the positions of South Sudanese rebels in the areas.

“These foreign forces are a negative factor to the impediment of the implementation of the ceasefire agreement,” he said.

The Darfur rebel group, Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), has rejected the claims, saying it had no involvement in the South Sudan conflict.

The SPLM-North, on the other hand, claimed its neutrality in the conflict and called on the two parties to resolve their conflict peacefully.

The South Sudanese government has yet to respond to the new allegations and SPLA spokesperson Philip Aguer was unavailable for comment before publication.

However, South Sudan's foreign minister, Barnaba Marial Benjamin, said on Thursday that his government would only sanction full and complete withdrawal of Ugandan troops from its territory after the complete implementation of the ceasefire agreement and the return of peace and stability.

The new nation received military support from its eastern neighbour a few days after fighting broke out on 15 December last year between rival factions of the presidential guards, with the conflict subsequently escalating across the country.

On a visit to the Ugandan parliament last week, the speaker of the South Sudanese national parliament, Manasseh Magok Rundial, praised the neighbouring country's lawmakers for sanctioning the deployment of their troops to South Sudan, admitting that the presence of Ugandan forces had helped save his country's leadership from “collapse”.

(ST)

January 31, 2014 (JUBA) - South Sudan cabinet on Friday approved 83 million South Sudanese Pounds (SSP) (about $2.6 million) mainly to finance its military force.

SPLA soldiers celebrate after successfully regaining the rebel-held town of Bentiu. (File photo: Reuters)

The country's information minister Michael Makuei Lueth said his finance counterpart Agrey Tisa Sabuni would present cabinet's recent proposal to parliament for approval.

He further disclosed that 50 million SSP had been "re-allocated" to the South Sudanese army (SPLA) from other ministries' spending and development funds.

Since mid-December last year, the SPLA, alongside Uganda troops has been fighting against dissident soldiers and armed civilians who defected from the government.

The soldiers who mutinied are allied to the country's former vice-president Riek Machar, whom Kiir sacked from his position in July last year.

Kiir accuses his former deputy of attempting to stage a failed coup following weeks of tension within South Sudan's ruling party, but Machar, who now head of the rebels - the SPLM/A in Opposition - denies the allegations. The two parties, however, signed a ceasefire agreement mediated by regional leaders in the Ethiopian capital last week.

The cabinet meeting also approved a plan to pay soldiers a three-month bonus.

SENIOR ARMY OFFICIALS SPEAK OUT

Meanwhile, a senior army official on Friday claimed that rebel groups who recently attempted a coup against the government wanted to “eliminate” a certain ethnicity from the country.

“We thought the rebellion and the coup were to remove and replace the government, but we have discovered that the atrocities committed by the rebels have immeasurably gone beyond the understanding of the meaning of [a] coup and rebellion,” said Brig. General Malaak Ayuen, head of information and public relations in the army.

He wondered why the international community did not consider the rebel acts a crime against humanity, citing the atrocities they allegedly committed in South Sudan's Upper Nile state.

“They [rebels] go to churches to remove and kill innocent people. They go to the hospitals and kill patients, people who would have died by themselves since they were left alone in beds, because they were sick and unable to move. They killed elderly people and yet the world and the human right organizations did not talk about it. What crimes do they want to be committed to be called crimes?” Ayen asked.

What happened was no longer a coup or rebellion to remove the government, but it appears it was a well planned act to eliminate certain ethnicity which cannot be accepted, he added without elaborating further.

Koul Manyang Juuk, the country's defense minister described as “unacceptable” the killing of patients in hospital beds and the elderly, warning that further escalation of the confrontation could threaten the country's territorial integrity.

"Servicemen and employees of all the armed forces with other organised security organs have, in series of our security meetings, expressed their readiness to defend this country. They have patriotically called on the commander-in-chief to take strong measures within the limits of existing legislation with a view to stabilising the situation in the country and reaching consent in society,” the minister said in a separate interview.

Anthony Sebit, a political analyst told Sudan Tribune Friday that such statement from senior military officials shows the army would stand with the president to bring down the rebellion.

“The statement by the defence minister is a signal to the rebels that they need to find a compromise with the government if they do not have a strong ally in the region,” said Sebit.

“The president has no choice. Either he defends South Sudan statehood and quashes the rebellion provoked by the failure to address internal differences with the SPLM [Sudan People's Liberation Movement] or the outside forces or he risks losing power, and mounting chaos and an internal conflict, from which no exit can be seen,” he added.

Fighting broke out in the South Sudanese capital, Juba in mid-December last year after a dispute among president Kiir's bodyguards, but rapidly extended to three of the country's 10 states killing more than 1,000 people with half a million homeless.

(ST)

January 31, 2013 (ADDIS ABABA) – The African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) on Wednesday urged South Sudan's warring parties to “faithfully” and “fully” abide by provisions last week's ceasefire, seeking to effectively end hostilities and hostile propaganda.

IGAD mediators and South Sudan negotiating teams at the sigining of the ceasefire agreement in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia January 23, 2014 (IGAD/CEWARN Photo)

In a communiqué issued at the end of its 114th meeting of African head of states in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the AUPSC also expressed concerns at the reported skirmishes between the parties, which it said, undermines the truce.

“(..) Any violation of commitments made in this respect should be fully documented by the AU Commission of Inquiry, as part of the efforts to ensure accountability and fight impunity,” partly reads the communiqué.

Talks between South Sudan government and rebels loyal to its former vice-president Riek Machar dragged on for long, before the two parties, under the mediation of regional leaders, inked a deal last Thursday.

Members of the AU Council, however, vowed to fully cooperate with IGAD towards the early operationalization of the Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (MVM) provided for in the Agreement on Cessation of Hostilities.

“In this respect, Council welcomes the ongoing IGAD efforts for the establishment and effective functioning of the MVM and AU's contribution to those efforts,” the communiqué further stated.

The council further urged all the parties to ensure unfettered and secured access by humanitarian agencies to all the people who are in urgent need for assistance, especially women, children and the elderly.

Both government and the rebels have lately accused each other of violating the agreed ceasefire, days after they signed the deal at a colorful event in Addis Ababa.

AUC DEPLORES KILLINGS

The AU commission chairperson had earlier reiterated the call for an immediate cessation of hostilities by South Sudanese parties, expressing support to the mediation team led by IGAD.

Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, in a statement, expressed serious concern about the situation in South Sudan, saying she "deplores the senseless killing of innocent civilians and the humanitarian tragedy unfolding on the ground".

She, however, lauded the AUPSC decision to urgently establish a commission of inquiry to investigate human rights violations and other abuses committed during the armed conflict in South Sudan and make recommendations on the best ways and means to ensure accountability, reconciliation and healing among all South Sudanese communities.

As a follow up to this decision, the AU Commission also took steps to develop the terms of reference of the commission of inquiry, select its members and mobilize the support required for the effective discharge of its mandate.

More than 1,000 people, according to the United Nations, have been killed and half a million displaced in the country in the worst-ever outbreak of violence in South Sudan since it broke away from Sudan two years ago.

(ST)

January 31, 2014 (ADDIS ABABA) – The US special envoy to the two Sudans, Donald Booth, has urged South Sudan's government to engage in talks on political reforms, pointing out that governance issues that caused the current armed conflict need to resolved to achieve lasting peace.

From left: IGAD's executive secretary Mahmoud Maalim, acting head of the South Sudan delegation, Makuei Lueth, IGAD special envoys Lazarus Sumbeiywo, Seyoum Mesfim and Mohamed Ahmed al-Dabi, head of South Sudan's rebel delegation Taban Deng hold a joint press conference in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, on 6 January 2014 (Photo: AFP/Carl De Souza)

Since violence broke out in the new nation in mid-December, Booth has worked together with the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) mediators to end hostilities between the two warring parties.

The new nation needs to “establish frameworks and principles for creating more democratic institutions”, said Booth in statements to the press on the sidelines of an IGAD summit on Friday in the Ethiopian capital to discuss the six-week-old conflict.

Booth said questions around the formation of more meaningful institutions, governance, social structure, and the organisation of political parties in South Sudan needed to be addressed, adding that these “fundamental questions should be embodied in the constitution of the country”.

The US special envoy's statements reflect the dominant idea in Washington that the current crisis unfolded due to South Sudan's lack of necessary constitutional and institutional structures allowing a democratic and transparent governance.

“The current crisis brings home the fact that South Sudan's political institutions were much too weak and unable to manage the competing ambitions and other demands of a new state. Its army - more a coalition of competing militias than a unified military - fragmented in the crisis,”, former US special envoy to Sudan and South Sudan Princeton Lyman wrote in an article for the New York Times.

Booth and the US ambassador to South Sudan, Susan Page, met president Barak Obama on 24 January after the signing of a cessation of hostilities agreement and briefed him on the deal. The meeting further discussed the steps forward needed to restore peace and stability in the world's newest nation.

US officials were criticised by lawmakers and commentators for failing to avert the armed conflict and ignoring different warning signs that had emanated from Juba prior to the outbreak of violence.

IGAD WANTS INCLUSIVE PROCESS

Meanwhile, regional leaders from IGAD have demanded that talks on political reforms in South Sudan be inclusive and provide an opportunity for nationwide consultations on the political agenda of the peace process.

At an extraordinary summit to discuss the South Sudan crisis, regional bloc leaders, directed their three mediators tasked with monitoring the peace process to develop an inclusive framework for upcoming negotiations.

IGAD special envoys have been asked to “develop a framework for the next phase of negotiations in South Sudan, including specific modalities on structure, representation, and timeframe, so as to ensure dialogue is truly inclusive,” a statement released at the end of the summit said.

IGAD leaders further directed mediators to ensure that “such a framework is developed with a view to involve a broad range of South Sudanese government, political, and civil society actors in a reinvigorated constitutional process”.

Summit participants also welcomed the commitment of president Salva Kiir and the rebel SPLM/A in Opposition to widen consultations with all stakeholders in order to ensure an inclusive process to resolve the conflict.

In line with these commitments, IGAD leaders tasked mediators with organising a series of public consultations with a variety of South Sudanese actors “with the aim of generating input for a framework of political dialogue and national reconciliation”.

The consultations are expected to include political parties, traditional and religious leaders, business communities and other stakeholders, as well as groups representing women, youth, intellectuals, refugees and internally displaced people.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) has adopted a dual reform track that would address both domestic and foreign issues, a senior party official said today.

The head of the foreign relations sector for Sudan's ruling National Congress Party (NCP), al-Dirdeeri Mohamed (Photo: Ahmed Ebrahim Hamid/AFP)

The head of the foreign relations sector at Sudan's al-Dirdeeri, Mohamed Ahmed, acknowledged the difficulty in conducting genuine national dialogue in the absence of freedoms, saying that the NCP seeks to secure them in order to demonstrate its good intentions.

Ahmed pointed to the recent decision to lift a ban on the opposition Popular Congress Party's (PCP) newspaper, Ray al-Shaab, describing it as positive indicator in this regard.

The National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) last week lifted a two-year suspension on the daily, but stipulated 19 conditions for the resumption of its publication, all of which were swiftly rejected by the editorial board and the party.

In an interview on government-run Radio Omdurman on Friday, the NCP official said that limits of freedoms would be defined by the current laws and constitution during which time all political forces will engage in a dialogue to draft a new consensual constitution.

He stressed that his party would exert every effort possible to provide guarantees for political forces and Sudanese people, revealing that president Omer Hassan al-Bashir will soon meet with opposition leaders to discuss major national issues and develop mechanisms to implement anything decided on.

Ahmed reiterated that the NCP seeks to engage in unconditional dialogue with opposition forces, declaring that preparations are underway for a simultaneous dialogue with the international community similar to that which is taking place between Iran and the western countries.

He said the NCP has reviewed Sudan's foreign policy during the last 24 years in order to shape a new vision different from the previous one.

“We agreed to adopt a new foreign policy which seeks to secure the Sudanese citizen's livelihood and safety,” he added.

The statements by the NCP official suggest a move by Khartoum to mend ties with the west and particularly the United States.

Sudan's human rights record and its hosting of Islamic militant groups since the 1989 military coup, which brought Bashir to power, has created a rift between Khartoum and the west as well as Arab and African countries.

Over the last decade, however, the Sudanese government has managed to improve relations with several of its long-time regional foes and reduce tensions with the west particularly after signing the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which ended Africa's longest civil war.

But the outbreak of the Darfur conflict in 2003 and the humanitarian crisis that ensued put Sudan's quest for normalisation of ties with the international community at a standstill. The wars that erupted later in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan states further frustrated Khartoum's efforts.

The US has so far refused to heed to Khartoum's demands to remove it from the list of states that sponsor terrorism or lift decade-long economic sanctions.

These sanctions have blocked Sudan access to US financial markets and prohibited US companies from trading or investing in the East African nation.

While the European Union (EU) has not followed Washington's steps of imposing an economic embargo, European companies have also largely shunned Sudan so as not to jeopardise its dealings with the US.

Furthermore, rich Arab Gulf states and particularly Saudi Arabia have lately grown suspicious of Sudan's links with Iran and as such have been reluctant to lend help to Khartoum, which has been suffering from a cash crunch after the secession of the oil-rich South.

Analysts also say that relief for Sudan's hefty $45 billion debt is contingent upon the political backing of the west.

Khartoum appears to be eyeing a deal similar to one sealed last year between Iran and the West which enabled the former to secure a partial lifting of sanctions in return for Tehran curbing its nuclear programme.

But any such move may face stiff resistance from hardliners within the Islamist-backed NCP who would refuse to make concession to appease the west.

In 2012, Sudan's foreign minister, Ali Karti, revealed that he sent a note to the presidency objecting to receiving Iranian warships and warned that this could endanger Khartoum's relations with Arab Gulf states.

But while the government took his advice initially, it ignored it subsequently and allowed Iranian navy to dock in Port Sudan.

NO FOREIGN PRESSURES

Meanwhile, the NCP political secretary and Sudan's investment minister, Mustafa Osman Ismail, said that Bashir's recent address to the nation was not triggered by foreign or domestic pressures such as wars, pointing to the victories of the Sudanese army on several battle fronts.

Ismail, who addressed the closing ceremony of the second tourism and shopping festival in the River Nile state's city of Shendi, called upon all political forces to engage in a national dialogue in order to draw a roadmap for Sudan's future through drafting a permanent constitution.

He said the upcoming elections would be conducted in a favourable climate that meets aspirations of all political parties, adding that Bashir's speech aimed to invite political force to participate in drafting the new constitution.

“Through joint dialogue, we would agree to develop a mechanism which contains a timeline for the meeting of all political forces in order to shape a roadmap for the future of the country,” he added

The long-awaited speech by Bashir, expected to unveil a major reform proposal, created a wave of disappointment among those who followed it including opposition leaders who were present.

Bashir announced a 4-point plan for reform "to stop the war and bring peace, free political society, fight against poverty and revitalise national identity", calling for political forces to engage in dialogue to agree on the implementation items though he did not specify practical steps to do so.

Opposition figures who were present made statements either personally or through their parties criticising the lack of specifics and excessive generalities that gave no real signs of concessions on the part of the ruling party.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan's foreign minister, Ali Karti, said that his country is most qualified for mediating between the conflicting parties in South Sudan and that Khartoum had taken on the role through the initiative of the East African bloc, Inter Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

Sudanese foreign minister Ali Ahmed Karti says his country should play a key role in mediating the conflict in South Sudan (Photo: Getty))

Fighting began on 15 December between forces loyal to former vice-president Riek Machar and the South Sudanese army in support of president Salva Kiir, following weeks of tension within the young nation's ruling party (SPLM).

Karti made the statements following the arrival of the Sudanese delegation, headed by president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir, in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, where they were attending the 22nd African Union (AU) summit, which focused on urgent issues currently facing the continent, particularly the ongoing conflict in South Sudan.

He noted the IGAD's heads of states had discussed the South Sudanese conflict in detail at the meeting, as well as the outcome of negotiations between the warring parties which was held under the auspices of IGAD represented by Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya.

“There exists a cessation of hostilities agreement and there are observers on the ground to ensure implementation of the agreement, and Sudan has observers among them”, he added

The South Sudanese government and the rebel delegation signed a ceasefire deal in Addis Ababa on 23 January, but the two sides have since traded accusations over violations of the agreement.

The deal, received with caution from citizens, is supposed to halt military engagements between the two warring parties and pave way for discussions about the root cause of the conflict, which has displaced more than half a million people and claimed between 1,000 and 10,000 lives, according to different estimates.

Sudan is represented in the AU mediation team by Mohamed Ahmed al-Dabi, along with the Kenyan, Lazarus Sumbeiywo, and Ethiopia's Seyoum Mesfin.

The Sudanese foreign minister further said warring parties would resume meetings on February 7th to approve a final ceasefire, affirming IGAD's ministerial meeting raised some observations on the crisis particularly resorting to tribalism by some fighters.

He reiterated IGAD's keenness to follow developments of South Sudan's crisis on daily basis, saying Sudan is the country most qualified for playing the role of the successful mediator between the conflicting parties due to its historic and strong ties with South Sudan.

“Sudan decided to play that role from within IGAD through its representative Mohamed Ahmed Al-Dabi”, he added

Karti called upon conflicting parties to cease fire and halt propaganda campaigns and open safe corridors for humanitarian assistance until they achieve permanent peace.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan's National Council for Press and Publications (NCPP) announced that it received formal notification from the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) that they had agreed to lift all restrictions on the Popular Congress Party (PCP) newspaper known as Ra'y al-Sha'b.

A man protests against the storming by security forces of two newspaper offices in Khartoum in May 2010 (© 2009 AFP)

The PCP revealed this week that the NISS had first informed the opposition party that it had lifted the ban imposed on Ra'y al-Sha'b more than two years ago.

However, the PCP said that the security apparatus had attached 19 conditions for the daily to resume publication, including refraining from criticszing officials or dealing with corruption-related issues, all of which were swiftly rejected by the editorial board and the party.

NCPP secretary-general al-Obeid Marwih said in press statements that the newspaper can now resume publication once they comply with the NCPP's usual procedural and administrative regulations.

NCPP chairman Ali Shummo thanked the NISS for its decision, while also expressing hope that restrictions imposed on other dailies would also be lifted.

The paper was targeted during a security crackdown and was suspended several times, with copies also seized before distribution.

The PCP split from the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) following 1999's bitter power struggle between president Omer Hassan al-Bashir and the Islamist leader, Hassan Al-Turabi, who was ousted from his post as parliamenaryt speaker.

Al-Turabi went on to establish the PCP and has since been a vociferous critic of the very regime whose army-backed seizure of power in 1989 he orchestrated.

The NISS routinely seizes newspapers after publication and shuts down others while imposing pre-publication censorship to prevent dailies from reporting on sensitive political, military and security issues.

Dozens of columnists have also been banned from writing in newspapers under NISS orders.

The NISS has continued to intensify its crackdown on press in the country, introducing tough new measures to prevent media outlets from covering recent anti-government protests, which erupted last September following the lifting of subsidies on fuel.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (JUBA) - At least 42 people have been confirmed dead in South Sudan following an attack on two separate areas in Warrap state's Tonj North county, local officials and residents said on Saturday.

South Sudan's Warrap state highlighted in red

Armed gunmen reportedly carried out simultaneous attacks on Friday in Juer in the Alabek payam in Lou Mawien Ariik and Keng in the Aliek payam in the Kongor area.

Thirty-five people, mostly women with children and the elderly, were killed in Juer at about 2am, with another 10 wounded in the attack.

Seven people were confirmed dead and 21 others injured after a separate attack in Keng, with some of the dead losing their lives before they were able to reach a local medical clinic for treatment, witnesses told Sudan Tribune on Saturday.

Multiple sources also said an unknown number of cattle had also been driven away or raided by the assailants during the attacks.

It remains unclear who carried out the attacks and the armed group allied to former vice-president Riek Machar, currently leading an armed rebellion in the country, has not yet claimed any responsibility.

However, local officials claimed the attacks appeared to be coordinated and were carried out by a well-armed group dressed in military uniforms.

Officials from communities bordering Unity State have repeatedly accused the Warrap state government under the leadership of Nyandeng Malek - the sole female governor in the country – of failing to engage with the central government in Juba or adequately protect the civilian population.

Malek has also faced criticism for an ineffectual disarmament campaign, particularly in the so-called triangle areas straddling Lakes, Unity and Warrap states, where an illegal arms business continues to thrive.

Gogrial East county commissioner Wol Anei Anei said he had been briefed on the attack, but did not provide further details.

“We heard that there was attack yesterday. We will give you more details once we get them. What we have now is the report of 42 people killed and more others are wounded”, Anei said on Saturday.

The commissioner denied that governor Nyandeng had failed to provide adequate security.

“Some cows have been recovered when youth and the police received the information and run after the attackers. This was because the government was quick to share the information and mobilised resources. The youth also managed to capture more weapons, including RPGs and some light guns”, he said.

However, local legislators and residents claimed none of the lost cattle had so far been recovered, despite attempts by the home guard.

They claimed that the response to the attack had been slow and that the attackers had long since fled by the time youth were mobilised.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (JUBA) - The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the number of people displaced by conflict in South Sudan had risen to 740,000, with the largest increase in Unity state following ongoing fighting in its southern counties.

Displaced people walk around Tomping camp in Juba, where some 15,000 people who fled their homes are sheltered by the United Nations, Jan. 7, 2014 (Reuters)

Sporadic violence has also been reported in Jonglei and Lakes states despite the signing of a ceasefire agreement between the South Sudanese government and its breakaway rebel forces.

In its latest weekly bulletin ending 30 January, OCHA said displaced people have fled to over 100 locations, with more than 18 sites reportedly hosting over 10,000 people each. Another 123,400 people have crossed into neighbouring countries, including Uganda, Sudan and Ethiopia.

According to OCHA, the UN and its partners have so far assisted close to 300,000 displaced people, however, the response continued to be hampered by ongoing hostilities, the number and remoteness of host locations, as well as the looting and destruction of humanitarian assets.

In Unity state where fighting continues to displace communities in Leer and Koch counties, OCHA said the humanitarian response has remained confined to Bentiu, although humanitarian agencies are stockpiling supplies in preparation to mount a response in other locations when the security situation allows.

Elsewhere in South Sudan, the situation remains relatively calm, although insecurity in Jonglei was still preventing aid workers from moving freely outside the UN base.

Inadequate food supplies and the risk of malnutrition remain among the key issues facing displaced people, with security conditions affecting relief deliveries in a number of areas.

Ongoing looting has also contributed to food shortages, particularly in Upper Nile and Jonglei states, where humanitarian agencies are facing the prospect of running out of supplies.

OCHA said there is a need to improve law and order within UN bases, where some 80,000 civilians are currently seeking shelter.

The agency also expressed concerns over continued reports of clashes and subsequent population movements despite the signing of a ceasefire agreement on 23 January in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.

DIRE HUMANITARIAN SITUATION

During her visit to South Sudan, Valerie Amos, the UN humanitarian coordinator said the forced displacements had left civilians vulnerable to physical and sexual violence, targeted destruction of property, separation of families and psychological trauma.

"The current crisis comes on top of an already challenging humanitarian situation in the country, where 3.7 million people are now severely food insecure," said Amos.

"The violence and abuses we have seen since 15 December threaten the future of this young country," she added, reiterating the importance of reconciliation and peace in the aftermath of the six-week conflict.

Amos, who also doubles as the UN emergency coordinator, further said she was encouraged by the agreement to cease hostilities that was signed last week in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia between the South Sudanese government and its rebel delegation.

"I hope the agreement will lead to an environment where people will feel able to return to their homes and rebuild their lives," she told reporters in Juba Wednesday.

The senior UN official also urged all parties in the conflict to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and ensure that all civilians are protected, regardless of who they are or where they come from.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (JUBA) - Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said ongoing insecurity had forced 240 of its local staff in South Sudan's Unity state to abandon its medical facility on Friday and flee into the bush along with dozens of patients.

Ongoing insecurity has forced Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) to suspend its operations in Unity state's Leer town (Photo: Kim Clausen/MSF)

In a statement released on Friday, the medical charity said staff had taken several dozen of the most severely ill patients from Leer Hospital with them into the bush, while other patients who were well enough to leave on their own also fled.

MSF said it remained “extremely worried” about the safety and well-being of both staff and patients in Leer.

There are now no longer any patients or staff remaining at the hospital, where MSF has worked for the past 25 years.

MSF was one of the last remaining humanitarian organisations still working in Unity state after violence engulfed Sudan following clashes between rival tribal factions of the presidential guard in mid-December.

The agency said Leer Hospital was the only fully functioning hospital in southern Unity state and its closure means more than 270,000 people will be without access to healthcare services.

In early January, MSF staff in Bentiu were forced to relocate to Leer town due to the deteriorating security situation, with the agency warning at the time that thousands of people in the capital would be deprived of healthcare as a result.

The decision came after the Bentiu medical facility was looted as rebels aligned with former vice-president Riek Machar withdrew from the town after government forces retook the town, which changed hands several times during the conflict.

MSF head of mission Raphael Gorgeu said local staff had managed to keep the Leer medical facility running as long as possible despite “incredibly challenging circumstances”.

“However in the past three days, the situation became too unstable and the only way to provide medical care was to take patients out of the hospital and to flee with the population into the bush”, she said.

On 21 January, MSF evacuated 12 international staff members, although many locally-hired staff chose to remain in Leer and continue providing medical care.

Gorgeu said local medical teams had shown “tremendous dedication” in continuing to care for patients with only basic medical supplies and equipment at great personal risk.

“In the last six weeks in South Sudan, our staff have worked in extreme conditions – we've been forced to evacuate multiple times, our facilities have been looted and our teams have operated in areas of active conflict,” she said.

Tens of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes in southern Unity State since the conflict began, including more than 10,000 displaced from the fighting in Bentiu who had fled to Leer only to be displaced for a second time.

Gorgeu said many of those displaced were without access to adequate food, clean water or shelter and remained vulnerable to disease outbreaks and malnutrition.

With dwindling medical supplies and the hospital's closure, she said the humanitarian situation in Leer was likely to become even more dire.

Gorgeu said MSF's Leer facility has provided outpatient and inpatient care for children and adults, surgery, maternity, HIV/TB treatment, and intensive care services. She said the agency was ready to return to Leer once the security situation allows.

In the first five weeks of the crisis, MSF has carried out 71,973 consultations, including 27, 688 for children under 5 in the first five weeks of the crisis.

It is continuing to provide medical and humanitarian services to refugees from South Sudan in Kenya and Uganda, and will soon begin operations for refugees in Ethiopia

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese government has defended its decision to suspend the work of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) saying that the latter needs to comply with the humanitarian work guidelines and the voluntary work law in order to continue its activities in the country.

The ICRC distributed essential household items to vulnerable families in the eastern Chadian town of Tissi who have fled violence in the west of Darfur (Photo: ICRC/A. Moubarak)

The Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Suleiman Abdul-Rahman said in statements carried by Sudan's official news agency (SUNA) on Saturday that the ICRC still wants to consult and negotiate with relevant governmental bodies to reach an acceptable formula for its work in Sudan.

Earlier today ICRC spokesperson Adel Sherif told Reuters that "we have stopped our work across all of Sudan".

The reasons were related to "technical issues" surrounding the implementation of the organization's work this year, Sherif said, adding he could not give more details as discussions with authorities were continuing.

Dafalla al-Qureshi, another spokesman for the organization's office in Khartoum, said that HAC sent them a letter asking them to suspend their activities until they comply with certain conditions.

He said that among these stipulations is placing the ICRC budget and funds at the disposal of the Sudanese Red Crescent and not to undertake any activity on the ground before informing Sudanese authorities about its nature and timing.

Qureshi said that these conditions are unfair and that the ICRC cannot accept them pointing out that all ICRC offices throughout the world work independently of the authorities of the countries in which they operate .

The ICRC began working in Sudan in 1978 according to its website. The organization says it is helping people affected by the conflict in Darfur, providing seed, tools, food and water and re-establishing contact between people separated by the fighting.

The ICRC also promotes international humanitarian law and the protection of civilians affected by the conflict.

(ST)

January 30, 2014 (RUMBEK) - Officials in South Sudan's Lakes state on Thursday appealed to citizens in its Yirol West county to assist the country's army (SPLA) battling rebellions in neighbouring states for six-weeks, with food items.

A wounded Sudan Peoples Liberation Army soldiers lies on the ground April 21, 2012 (ANP/AFP)

At a meeting held in Yirol West, the caretaker governor, Maj-Gen Matur Chut Dhuol, reportedly instructed that each family in the county contributes a tin of both groundnuts and sorghum.

Representatives from only three of Yirol West's seven payams [districts] reportedly attended the meeting. These included Abang, Geng-geng and Yirol town payams.

A payam administrator, who requested anonymity, said the meeting was not well organised, but added that officials warned of serious consequences, if citizens declined to avail the army food.

"We believed instructions were coming out from governor Matur Chut Dhuol. What happened was that Yirol West county executive director Macuor Anyith appeared in front of us with papers and ordering us to speed up with implementation of order," said a source who attended the meeting.

The new directive has since caused fresh tension between Dhuol and Yirol West residents who complained of poor harvests over the year, due to absence of rain.

Peter Ijong, a native of Lakes state, said that the policy of asking local populations to provide food for the army was outdated and had not been practiced since the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement ended decades of civil was between the SPLA and the Sudanese government.

South Sudan became independent in 2011, but the new nation has since mid-December last year been struggling to cope with a large-scale rebellion led by its former vice-president Riek Machar against president Salva Kiir's leadership.

"Where is governor Matur getting those orders from? How can we mobilise food to army?" Ijong asked, pointing out that the army has its own supplies from the capital Juba.

"I did not get a good harvest because there was rain problem [...] I received more than 10 people who fled conflict in Jonglei and I ate the little I have with them," he added.

Ijong further said he was now receiving help from people displaced from neighbouring Jonglei "because they get the food from humanitarians".

"Now where will I get food as a contribution to army?" he asked.

Governor Dhoul has been at odds with many in Lakes state since he was installed a year ago to replace the sacked elected governor Chol Tong Mayay. His critics say he rules the central state with an iron fist.

Thousands of SPLA troops are deployed in Lakes state to quell insecurity in the counties that border Jonglei and Unity states where the fighting has been at its worst.

Authorities also claim say that army deserters from the South Sudan capital are now trying to pass through Lakes state to reach Unity state.

Civil society and activists have repeatedly called for the removal of Dhuol and for elections to be held. South Sudan's transitional constitution states that a by-election be held within three months, should the president remove a governor.

But Kiir has so far declined to hold an election in Lakes, Jonglei and Unity states, where the democratically-elected governors were removed last year.

(ST)

February 1, 2014 (JUBA) - South Sudan's president, Salva Kiir, through his spokesperson, praised the ceasefire agreement inked on Thursday between his government and Jonglei-based rebels led by David Yau Yau.

South Sudan president Salva Kiir (Reuters)

Presidential press secretary Ateny Wek Ateny said the document widened the room for further negotiations with the group.

"This is a very important step which the president appreciate for peaceful settlement of political differences," said Wek at press briefing on Saturday in Juba.

The government declared unilateral ceasefire with Yau Yau's group on January 6. It was and accepted David Yau Yau a day later but it took until January 30 to for a deal to be signed.

The cessation of hostilities agreement ends two years of insurgency which Yau Yau has led from his home county of Pibor county with young men from his Murle tribe.

However, Yau Yau's fighters are mainly armed civilians who engage in cattle rustling and analysts are skeptical about the viability of any agreement.

South Sudan's government moved quickly to reinvigorate its efforts to end Yau Yau's rebellion after fighting within the army on December 15 spread into a conflict that has mainly affected Jonglei, Unity and Upper Nile states.

This is not the first time that Yau Yau has accepted an amnesty from president Kiir.

Yau Yau rebelled against South Sudan's ruling party - the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) after elections - in April 2010 when, as an independent candidate, he lost his campaign to represent the Gumuruk–Boma constituency in Pibor county at the Jonglei state assembly.

In 2011 Yau Yau joined the South Sudanese army (SPLA) and was made a General despite his lack of military experience. He had previously trained as a pastor.

However, he rebelled again in April 2012 leading the SPLA to announced that it was suspending the civilian disarmament campaign in the area to focus on nullifying the rebellion.

(ST)

• David Yau Yau

By Maker Acuoth Akot

February 1, 2014 - When Ethiopian rebels were on verge to overthrow the government of Magistu Haile Mariam in 1991 I was at Tharpam which is one hour a half journey from Itang refugee camp in Ethiopia. As the rebels were advancing towards Addis Ababa, Kuol Deng Kuol the man in charge of Red Army (jiech Ahmer) in Tharpam was informed that the rebels had defeated SPLA and Ethiopian forces in the fierce battle of Damdolla town which left many SPLA comrades dead as well as Ethiopian soldiers and the only way was to go back to Sudan in what was later named by UN agencies as Trek Back to Sudan.

Kuol Deng Kuol who perished in the bloody hands of Mr. Machar in coup of 1991 organized the Red Army of Tharpam for a long and tiresome journey which took several days from Tharpam to outside village. That village is called Pananyang a 45 minute walk from Nasir town on the east bank of River Sobat tribune. The journey was not an easy one. It was very exhaustive due to flooding of 1991 that coupled with lack of food. The little food that Captain Kuol Deng Kuol told us to carry got finished on the way.

The worries and anxieties that were caused by Riek's unwise decision of instigating coup at that wrong time were unbearable. From the summer of 1992 everybody not only those who ran away from Ethiopia but also within South Sudan was expecting deadly confrontation between Garang and Riek forces.

Having been caught up under Riek's command, he moved us from Pananyang Village to Ketbek which is on the western side of Sobat tribute. Ketbek is 30 minute walk from Nasir town. Buildings with corrugated iron sheets could be seen at a distance because the place is located at the edge of the desert.

By the time, Ketbek was the headquarters of Riek that was from 1991 to early 1994. This was after Riek forces and Nuer of Jikany also known as Gajok were chased away by Nuer of Lou in the battle which took place on 4th April 1994.

Riek, in most of his battles depends for his success on traditional spiritual leaders who boosted his unbridled desire and ambition of becoming the leader of South Sudan.

As well-known by all, Riek is being motivated by false and illusive vision of becoming the next president of South Sudan based on unfounded Ngun Deng's prophecy about hundred years ago. This prophecy seems to be one of the major causes of South Sudan problems and Dr. Riek has become so lunatic with the desire of getting power based on such vague prophecy.

What is not clear from the prophecy of Ngun Deng is how Riek or anybody he was prophesying about to get power. The means of that person getting power as prophesied by Ngun Deng was not clear. It was not clear whether it would be through coup or democratic means.

The prophecy makes Riek instigate coup and runs to the region of Nuer every time he decides. This was the region he located his headquarters at Ketbek.
Ketbek was the place where Riek with help of chiefs and spear masters of Nuer organized the offences on Bor the town of Dinka and Garang the man they hate. The sections of Nuer that organized massacre of Bor community included Gajok (Jikany), Gaguang and Gajak at the border with Ethiopia and some Gajak are Nuer of Ethiopa.

Next to Bor at the border between Nuer and Dinka Bor are Lou Nuer, the largest group and where the prophet Ngun Deng, a man whose loose prophesy still haunts South Sudan came from. Lou Nuer, Gaweer, Gaguang, Gajak and Gajok (Jikany) are Nuer sections that form the rutheless army known as White Army (Jiech Mebor). This army is one of the strongest civilian fighters which are now fighting the SPLA forces.

Although I was young, I can recall the song they like singing, which I think they still sing it now when they want to attack Dinka. The song goes “Thile maleech thile maleech thile maleech thile maleech eeee, oooh thile maleech waa kaam den kon Jang(Dinka) thile maleec waa.”

The meaning is that there is no sorry (or forgiveness) between us (Nuer) and Dinka (Jang). Riek, unrepentantly enjoys all the atrocities committed by the White Army because his mission was, which is still is to get power and that is all, irrespective of how to get power. Riek does not care about the moral turpitude of his action.

From the above simple story I have narrated, it can be concluded that Riek is ultimately responsible for brooding hatred between tribes. He is seen as a potential leader for South Sudan but his parochial plans destroys such hope, which has huge negative impact on the nation building, peace and co-existing among people of South Sudan. The whole plot of Riek explains his lack of wisdom.

Such lack of wisdom and self-interest was also shown by the move he undertook at Ketbek. It was at Ketbek were the Red Army was relocated to which was also became known as K. Minor.

Riek Purposely moved us from Pananyang to Ketbek in order to have easy access to our food for himself and new bride Emma and his White Army who were organized for major offences against traditional rivals Dinka in the summer of 1992.

Riek, though struggling to become president of South Sudan, he needs the presidency of Nuer Tribe only but above all to eliminate Dinka from South Sudan politics, a dream I believe will die with Riek. Riek has deeply ingrained hatred for Dinka.

The destruction of Bor town and lives of five thousand lost was not a surprise to me, it was a punishment to Garang and his tribe of Dinka, the question is will Gat Machar(son of Machar) as Nuer call him lead the country with such unprecedented ethnicity affiliation, visionless attitude and myopia in dealing with national issues?

Absolutely not; Riek will never become one in my life time. This is because he is incapable and unwise. His lack of wisdom and care for the ordinary citizens of South Sudan was shown by his timing of coup.

Riek timed the coup at time when the SPLA was at the point of victory against the North, a time any ordinary and patriotic citizen would have not taken such unwise decision. His action of instigating coup in 1991 led to the split of the Mighty SPLA/M.

The split brought immense and devastating consequences which will never escape the memories of people of Sudan and South Sudan in Particular. Many lives were lost besides five thousand lives lost in Bor massacre.

What will never go away from my memory was the killing of 67 elderly women and men that were aging from 60 and above. If Riek, were a wise son of South Sudan he would have not allowed the enemy of South Sudanese that they had been fighting since 1955 to re-enter the liberated areas of South Sudan under control of Garang faction especially in Greater Equatoria and Upper Nile.

This traitorous act of Riek Machar gave the enemy an upper hand over the control of South Sudan and momentum which was gained before the attempted coup suffered a huge setback to the liberation of Sudan and in particular shattered the ambition of entirely liberating Southern territories within 1990s.

It was sad to see Riek acting like what our grandfathers did when they signed treaties with Arabs and Whites in 1947 that gave away the freedom of South Sudan in exchange of beats, clothes, and salt.

It is unbelievable to see how the man who has been bragging about of becoming the president of the South acted as such. It defeated my understanding to see Riek selling South Sudan for food and weapons which was parachuted down from Khartoum and some which were brought by steamers from Malakal to Nasir including ammunitions that he used to kill the people he wanted to lead, who were Dinka in this case. Such act was unbecoming and unbefitting of the man of caliber of Riek Machar.

Clearly, you can properly comprehend how Riek is full of miscalculations and contradictions, he wanted an independent South Sudan and at the same time he allowed the people whom he wanted to be independent from to enter the territories he wanted to govern. It is quite disgusting and ridiculous for a Phd holder to reason in such unwise, chaotic and messy manner.

As Garang proved to be resilient to both the enemy and Riek's forces, the traitor (Riek) went extra mile in betraying people of South Sudan by signing agreement with the enemy of our forefathers; the agreement has irreversible impacts on people of South Sudan, Nuba Mountain, Darfur and brothers in Blue Nile.

The signing of agreement was a clear indication of victory to the enemy because the exploration of oil in Southern regions was other than nothing but must case. Riek, the traitor, real enemy, and several militias managed to jointly push SPLA forces out of oil fields in South Sudan and quickly established Buffer Zone.

Although SPLA forces managed at times to blow off pipelines, it was just a minor disrupting effort. The creation of Buffer Zone with the help of Gat Machar has caused untold suffering of our people and tremendous consequences which include the continuous encroachment and extension of border line into South Sudan territories with oil potentialities as it can be witnessed now in areas of Abyei, Jau, Panthou (which enemy translated in their language as Heglig), and many other areas, there was widespread killings and displacement of inhabitants of oil rich areas.

The allowance of the enemy to drill the oil, establishment of Buffer Zone and even fight alongside the enemy has changed the course of war in Sudan and caused catastrophic effects to Southerners, Darfuris, Nubians, and brothers in Blue Nile.

Apart from acquisition of deadly weapons by the Northerners to kill anybody who stands on their way, oil money was also used to pay Arab militias and South Sudanese militias who ruthlessly attacked those standing up against autocratic rule in South Sudan, Nuba Mountain, Blue Nile Darfur and Beja region.

The only people who are responsible of such enormous magnitude of suffering of Sudanese people are the killers in North, Riek and his comrades who planned 1991 coup.

Had Riek and his friends in Nasir did not revolt in1991 which gave brothers in the North an upper hand both militarily and economically CPA could not have been negotiated badly as it was. CPA has letdown the brothers in (Abyei, Nuba Mountain and Blue Nile) who selflessly sacrificed their lives during liberation in this country, but got more suffering at the last moment when they were supposed to enjoy with us together. Due to military superiority or superior weapons combined with economical aspects brothers in the North were so reluctant to implement CPA fully and even became more aggressive because they have the resources it takes to finance war for longer period.

The devastating consequences and numerous drawbacks of 1991 coup could have taught Riek big lesson in his life and have sense of humanity. Despite, the vast negative impacts and the polarization of our nation as that was not enough Riek Machar staged another coup which has now led to massive lost of lives, posing tribalism threat, shattering the effort of building our nation by destroying the little we have managed to put in place for the last two years, and disrupting the peace we desperately struggled for half a century.

I urge people of South Sudan not to stand and watch single person tearing apart their country, they should act decisively to prevent any selfish politicians who seek to fulfill their dreams on the expense of South Sudan people. Although Riek has caused unimaginable destructive drawbacks, there are other traitors and hungry wolves that are enriching themselves with our resources.

We people of South Sudan do not need guns, bullets, hatred, polarization, tribalism, nepotism, destruction of property, corruption, lack of accountability, and manipulation of any kind. We had enough of those, what we need now are; justice, roads, schools, equal rights and opportunities, medical services, peace and co-existence of people of South Sudan as one people and nation.

The writer is former Red Army of Tharpam who went to Ethiopia 1989, came to Sudan and lived in Nasir from 1991 to 1994, went back to Ethiopia in 1995 and came to Sudan in 1997. IS now in Nkumba University 2nd year, (bachelors of procurement and logistics management) and he can be contact by jamaaty2@gmail.com

February 1, 2014 (KAMPALA) - Thousands of displaced people were forced to flee Leer county in Unity state on Saturday due to an alleged attack by government forces on positions of the SPLM/A in Opposition - a group of defected soldiers and armed civilians who have been fighting the army since mid-December.

A Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) soldier, who was wounded in renewed fighting, arrives for medical attention at a clinic in the IDP camp in Minkamen, Awerial January 22, 2014. (REUTERS/Adriane Ohanesian)

Under a ceasefire deal signed in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 23 January the warring parties agreed not to move their forces from their current positions. Since then, however, both sides have been accused of violating the deal.

Treason charges slapped against the SPLM/A in Opposition leadership, including former Vice President Riek Machar, have cast doubt on the viability of the fragile ceasefire, according to analysts.

A large section of the army in Unity state defected on 21 December last year assuming control of most of the state, following a similar mutiny in Jonglei. Both incidences appeared to have been triggered by the fighting in the capital, Juba between soldiers from the Presidential Guards.

Tang Both, a resident from Leer who said he was forced to run into the bush due to the army's advancement, told Sudan Tribune on Saturday by satellite phone that many women and children were currently taking refuge in the bush after the town came under heavy bombardment.

"As am talking now we are on run, because this morning our area went under fire from government soldiers. We were forced out" he said, adding that "many children and women have died while trying to cross river [...] for safety."

Both claimed he saw two women and four children drown while trying to make it across the river.

Over 50,000 people left their homes in Bentiu town when it was retaken by the SPLA on 10 January, many of whom walked the 130-kilometers to Leer county.

The head of mission for Médecins Sans Frontières in South Sudan, Raphael Gorgeu, told the BBC on Saturday that 240 members of their staff have been forced to flee to the bush as the insecurity continued to spread.

MSF's hospital in Leer has received thousands of patients since fighting started.

The spokesperson for the SPLM/A in Opposition in Unity state, Peter Riek Gew, said that rebels had withdrawn from Leer after they were attacked by government troops because of the "massive population" in the area.

"We have not responded in fighting them back because we care for the lives of hundreds of population that we allow them peaceful to take control of the town", the rebel spokesperson said.

The South Sudan army, however, denied the rebels claims insisting it remains committed to the ceasefire agreement signed in Ethiopia last week.

"We remain committed to the cessation of hostilities agreement signed by both parties under IGAD mediation. I don't think what they [rebels] are claiming is true," said Phillip Aguer, the SPLA spokesperson.

Many patients have run to the bush despite the government claiming control of the town. Some residents say there are fears civilians will be targeted on the basis of their ethnicity.

The conflict started as a power struggle within the ruling party, but some of the fighting has been along tribal lines with both sides being accused of abuses.

East African ceasefire monitors are being sent to South Sudan over the weekend to observe whether the deal signed in Ethiopia under mediation from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), was in force.

Negotiations between South Sudan's warring parties are due to resume on 7 February.

(ST)