South Sudan political parties’ leadership to endorse the draft constitution in Juba
April 20, 2011 (JUBA) – Preparations are underway for a meeting next week of top leaders of all the political parties in South Sudan to review and endorse the draft constitution for the new, independent South Sudan, announced the vice president, Riek Machar Teny.
The people of South Sudan voted overwhelmingly for secession from the North in an internationally monitored referendum on self-determination in January in order to establish an independent country. The plebiscite was conducted in accordance with the provision in the peace deal signed in 2005 to end 21 years of civil war between North and South.
During his briefing of the secretariat for the Political Parties Leadership Forum on Wednesday, which he chaired, Machar announced that the leadership meeting is scheduled to take place from 26 April 2011. He directed the secretariat to make the necessary preparations.
The leadership forum of the political parties was established last year under the chairmanship of the president of the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) and chairman of the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), Salva Kiir Mayardit, as a platform for reaching the much needed consensus among the political forces on the transition to statehood and future governance of the region.
During the review of the interim constitution of Southern Sudan, eleven political parties were represented in the process before several of them withdrew their membership from the technical committee in protest of what they described as a lack of consensus in the exercise.
Dissidents accused the ruling SPLM of abandoning a consensus as the basis for the agreement with other political parties in the amendment of the constitution. It also accused the SPLM of adding dozens of its members to the committee, in order to block other parties’ contributions, using a simple majority vote in favour of the party’s position.
However, the leaders of the political parties, including those that had withdrawn from the constitutional review exercise, will participate in the leadership forum to review and endorse the draft constitution produced by the technical committee.
Machar also announced that the draft constitution document was presented to Salva Kiir on Wednesday. Kiir will table the document before the political parties’ leadership for endorsement.
Among the contentious issues that led to the withdrawal of some political parties from the constitutional review included disagreements on the percentage share of other political parties in the formation of broad-based government after 9 July and when to conduct the next constituent assembly elections. The declaration of South Sudan’s independence will take place on 9 July 2011.
After endorsement by the Political Parties Leadership Forum, the document shall be presented to the Council of Ministers for approval, then the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly for final endorsement.
It is also expected that the ordinary citizens of South Sudan shall contribute their ideas to the draft document during its deliberations by the parliament scheduled for May 2011.
After final approval by the regional parliament, the constitution shall be signed and operationalized by the President as the supreme law of the land.
(ST)