Warrap starts advance celebration of secession vote
January 18, 2011 (ABYEI)- While Salva Kiir Mayardit, the president of the semi-autonomous regional government called on citizens not to start celebrating until official results of the recently concluded referendum vote on self-determination are announced, citizens of Turalei county, Warrap state, have already begun.
Colonel Dominic Kuoc Malek, commissioner of Twic county, told Sudan Tribune on 18 January that security had been beefed up in the area, following the conclusion of the referendum vote in the country on 15 January.
“We have increased number of security personnel in the county to look after people celebrating the referendum vote. We have done it because many people are out celebrating with relatives and friends,” said Malek.
Malek said celebration in his county started immediately after the last day of voting. Others started celebrations immediately after casting their votes. “It did not start at once. It started at an individual level until it started to grow and spread through villages,” said Malek.
Captain Manut Juuk Lang, in an interview with Sudan Tribune from Aweng payam (district) in Twic county confirmed continuation of the celebrations in the area.
“I can confirm to you that celebrations are in progress in our houses. We are celebrating with our wives and children. Not a single person was found to vote for unity after counting. All those who voted in our centre voted for separation. This is the great achievement that we must allow to pass with celebrating. Who knows what will happen in between the period results,” said Lang.
Lang who said joined the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) at the age of 11, said he did not know he would be among those who would cast their votes on referendum day.
“I am extremely happy and thankful to God for having kept me alive to reach referendum day. I did not know I would reach referendum nor did I know there would be a referendum. We were fighting for total liberation of south Sudan through bullets. There were no hopes for ballots and agreements were dishonoured by successive Khartoum based regimes,” said Lang.
However, Kiir said on 16 January at Saint Teresa Catholic Church in Juba, that people should not start celebrations even if they believe the majority have voted for separation.
He urged South Sudanese to continue recognising the national tools and symbols of the Republic of Sudan, despite indications that the South will secede from the North.
“Don’t attempt to bring down the flag of the Republic of Sudan in the South. I also urge you to respect the National Congress Party [NCP] and its offices based in South Sudan”, Kiir told the congregation at St Teresa Cathedral.
The SPLM leader also called on the South Sudanese to accept the referendum results, regardless of the result. Kiir also dismissed reports that South Sudan was arming itself in case the North rejects the results as “baseless and unfounded”.
Voting in the Southern Sudan Referendum was concluded on January 15, after a week-long vote that saw close to 3.5 million voters cast their votes.
On 15 January the Chairperson of the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC). Prof. Mohamed Ibrahim Khalil told the press that preliminary results will be announced on 31 January with the final outcome being declared on 14 February.
(ST)