Africa Action statement on John Garang’s death
Africa Action
Tuesday August 2, 2005 (Washington DC) – Upon the death of Vice
President John Garang de Mabior on Sunday, Africa Action offers its
condolences to John Garang’s family and the people of Sudan, in
particular the southern Sudanese people and the progressive
pro-democracy forces throughout all regions of Africa’s largest country.
Today Dr. Garang’s widow, Rebecca Garang was quoted as saying that, “It
is the body who has gone. His spirit, his vision, his program, we’re
going to implement them. We want to keep his legacy alive, keeping the
peace is how we can honor his memory.” In the spirit of upholding Dr.
Garang’s vision, Africa Action urges the Sudanese government, all
African governments and the international community more broadly to
ensure the diligent implementation of the North-South Peace agreement
and to stop the genocide in Darfur, Sudan.
Three weeks before his death, Dr. Garang became the Vice President of
Sudan, as part of the peace agreement signed in January by
representatives of the Khartoum government and Dr. Grang on behalf of
the South. A new national government cabinet was to be announced next
week. At the time of his death, Vice President Garang was working to
establish an autonomous government for southern Sudan and promote the
economic, social and political development of the people of southern
Sudan. Dr. Garang was also seeking a way to stop the genocide in the
Darfur region of western Sudan. On several recent visits to the U.S.,
Dr. Garang proposed that the 10,000 United Nations Peace Keeping Troops
being sent to southern Sudan be moved instead to Darfur to stop the
violence and protect the 2.5 million people who are now homeless in camps.
At this moment of Dr. Garang’s death, Sudan is a country simultaneously
at war and peace. While the North-South peace accord signals the
historic end to Africa’s longest running war, the genocide in Darfur
continues to claim untold numbers of mainly civilian lives. The end of
the North-South conflict is tantamount to the end of apartheid in Sudan
whereby, since independence in 1956, northern Arab-led governments have
discriminated against, oppressed and exploited southern Sudanese on the
basis of racial and religious identity. The North-South accord, known as
the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), represents a victory for
southern Sudanese and the acknowledgment of their right to
self-determination. John Garang, as the head of the Sudanese People’s
Liberation Army and Movement, provided the crucial leadership that
resulted in the agreement. Dr. Garang articulated a vision of a “New
Sudan” where all Sudanese enjoyed equal rights regardless of their
region, race, or religion, and where no minority government could impose
its will on the majority of Sudanese. His vision has inspired millions
of Sudanese and now serves as one possible template for Sudan’s future
and an alternative to continued violence and destruction.
In the weeks, months and years ahead, all people committed to peace in
Sudan can honor John Garang’s vision by increasing their efforts to
support the southern Sudanese struggle to achieve meaningful
development. This must include support for the hundreds of thousands of
southerners from among the millions displaced who are now beginning to
return home. We must increase our efforts to help stop the genocide in
Darfur and support the strict implementation of the CPA, which will
alter the composition of the central government in Sudan and may change
its very nature and that of political life throughout the country. John
Garang’s legacy is that of a soldier for human dignity and
self-determination who finally brought peace to his home region and
created the concrete prospects of peace for a nation that is in part
still at war.
Africa Action commits to honor the words of Rebecca Garang today by
working towards U.S. policy that supports the continued implementation
of the CPA and an end to the genocide in Darfur.
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—
“The only thing dark about Africa is our ignorance of it,” Anon.
– Mvuselelo Ngcoya
– Dpt. of Policy Analysis and Communication
– Africa Action
– 1634 Eye Street NW, #810
– Washington D.C. 20011
www.africaaction.org
– Tel: 202-546 7961 Fax: 202 546 1545