TEXT- Rebecca De Mabior Briefing in Washington on peace implementation

Feb 5, 2006 (WASHINGTON) — Attached is the speech of Southern Sudan minister of Roads and Transport, Madam Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, at the American University In Washington DC. on 5 February 2006.

Madam Rebecca accompanied by Cdr. Pagan Amum and some delegation from GoSS government arrived to Washington DC on Tuesday 31 January, 2006.

The following is the full text of her speech:

“My dear countrymen and women, American friends ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of my delegation and on my own behalf, I extend greetings from our President, H.E. Lt. General Salva Kiir Mayardit, my colleagues in the cabinet of GOSS, Parliament and Southern Sudanese people.

My heartfelt greetings to our people who are here in Washington D.C and those who have come from far places in the neighboring States and beyond. I greet and thank the people of the United States of America and their government for having opened the doors of their country to host the suffering Sudanese migrants during the war.

I specifically salute the Church groups for their commitment and support to our people both at home and in the Diaspora. I urge them to continue praying for peace in the Sudan and continue their support for our people.

My dear compatriots, Ladies and Gentlemen, life in Juba and Southern Sudan is beginning to take shape. I know that all of us were shocked by the tragic death of our late hero, Dr. John Garang De Mabior, with whom we dedicated our lives for the liberation of our people. However, as I stood firm to encourage our people not to despair during the mourning, I will maintain this position until our people are free after the exercise of the referendum at the end of the interim period.

I am aware that you would also like to be briefed about the Sudan Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) on whether it is being implemented as expected. Yes, there are a lot of difficulties in the implementation process and we have come far this past year; seeing many successes and failures. So far, some achievements have been made such as:

– a. Formation of governments at all levels
– b. Formation of Assemblies at all levels
– c. Enactment of the National and Southern Sudan interim constitutions
– d. Formation of Commissions
– e. Establishment of the Bank of Southern Sudan (BOSS)

However, there are also some critical delays in the implementation process and these are:

– a. Redeployment of SAF north of border 1/1/56
– b. Abyei report not being implemented
– c. Oil revenue shares not being transferred as expected
– d. Lack of functioning of commissions
– e. Boundary Commission 1/1/56 has not been formed

My mission to the United States of America was initiated by the US Government. I have been privileged to be invited by President of the United State of America, President Bush and the First Lady, Laura Bush, to attend the State of the Union Address. During these two weeks, I will also been meeting with other Officials of the government including appointments in the White House, the State Department, Congress, Churches and friends of the SPLM and GOSS.

My brothers and sisters in the struggle, we have just celebrated the first anniversary of the CPA signing. It was a proud moment for Southern Sudan, but one that needs to be followed with great care.

Before his death, my late husband predicted problems – he knew our National Congress Party (NCP) partners well. He knew the implementation of the peace agreement would be a tough mission and warned us to be on guard.

We are working hard with President Salva Kiir, Parliament and my colleagues in GOSS to guard the CPA. I have always reiterated that I am the watchdog to the CPA. I want to guard the CPA and make the people of Southern Sudan experience the freedom and dignity they have been yearning for many years. Even though my husband is dead, I am now left with the CPA as my only husband! It is not an easy task: many hurdles, many pitfalls, and many challenges are ahead of us. Therefore, making our unity of paramount importance if we are to achieve our goals and objectives.

At this juncture, I would like to inform you about a useful event that we just concluded in Juba – Gen. Paulino Matip of SSDF has made a great move towards unity by closing ranks with the SPLA and the SPLM-led Government of Southern Sudan. We have signed what is now favorably known as the Juba Declaration. Let us all congratulate Gen. Paulino Matip for the heroic move and we urge all our people to unite for a higher goal, total freedom of the marginalize people of Sudan.

Brothers and sisters, our biggest challenge so far is, unfortunately, with our partners the National Congress Party. As President Kiir stressed last past weekend in a press conference, they are not complying with the implementation of the CPA. Instead they are doing their best to water down the process by delaying, manipulating and hampering the implementation process. It hurts me to say it, but it is what we are seeing. Our partners are trying to re-negotiate the CPA by sidelining Abyei report, undermining our status in the seat of National Government (Khartoum), and our representation within the GONU and setting up of the all-important commissions.

If you look closely at the governing institutions in the Sudan, you will see that the NCP have set up other parallel institutions to the one outlined in the CPA. Most governing institutions remain unaccountable to the people, with unclear objectives, and all-too reminiscent of the old regime we agreed to dispose of with the CPA.

That is why I and the people of Sudan need you, the international community, to share the role of watchdog. Help us call out the NCP on their failings, help us see this agreement implemented as it is supposed to.

At the same time, we need you to spell out the SPLM/GOSS shortcomings as well – we cannot ask you to loose sight of our weaknesses. Be critical in overseeing our role in delivering on our promises throughout the Interim Period.

I want to stress this final point on our partnership with the NCP because they may have representatives here today: unity will only happen when the NCP understands that they must demonstrate their trustworthiness and even-handedness to the people of Southern Sudan.

If the North tries to keep things as they were in the old Sudan, southern Sudan will vote to separate! And Darfur, Nuba Mountains, Southern Blue Nile, Eastern Sudan will also follow the same way. This is not a threat, it is an unfortunate reality and it saddens me to say it. Moreover the NCP is not making any serious efforts to make unity attractive as stipulated in the CPA.

The NCP and Sudan will only be successful when they realize that governing a country means giving your citizens what they want and these are: a representative government, a real democracy, equitable share of the countries wealth for development, and most importantly, respect for the lives and liberty of citizens. What is happening in Darfur now is inhuman and will not keep the country one anymore!

The CPA and our quest for peace have a profound impact on the stability of the region. There are problems in the region that are directly affected by the situation in Sudan, for example, refugees, border disputes, support for insurgent movements, manmade and natural famines, among others. That is why I will always emphasize that the stability of our borders is also our own stability.

However, I am confident that if we focus clearly on the implementation of the CPA in both the letter and the spirit in which it was written and signed, we will be on the right tract. As you know, we need a concerted focus on a solution for Darfur and Eastern Sudan and the CPA could be used as a formula to resolve problems in those areas. Like Southern Sudan, these areas are fighting for their own share in the running of the country. The regimes in our country do not always recognize the problems of these areas as being political but rather dismiss them as humanitarian and banditry.

Let me turn to development in South:

Development of Southern Sudan is another area my husband was passionate about. All of us know the desperate needs of Southern Sudan and I would like to highlight some of them.

I will detail one area in which I am focused on and passionate about: infrastructure development, particularly building roads and transportation networks. GOSS will ensure that Southern Sudan is connected within itself and with its neighbors.

Isolated and undeveloped areas like Nuba Mountains and Southern Blue Nile need to be connected to the rest of Sudan by roads built for commerce, not military purposes. The north needs to be connected to the south to make our partnership stronger and to build the ties that bind us together.

The south needs to be connected to itself – many isolated communities and regions have lost contact with each other due to lack of roads. There is also the issue of landmines which have acted as a barrier between communities.

I appeal to the Sudanese community at large and to you my comrades in the Diaspora that you have the tremendous potential to contribute to the realization of the vision of development in Southern Sudan and the marginalize areas. This will be the fulfillment of your contribution and efforts during the struggle. You have not been forgotten in our minds. There are a lot of programs and projects that we as SPLM/GOSS have initiated with donors and partners in order to encourage the involvement of the Diaspora in the development of post-conflict Southern Sudan. For example, last month Academy for Education and Development (EAD) funded by USAID sent 13 of your colleagues to assess the Ministries of Health and Education in Southern Sudan. We are working hard to ensure that you come back home to play a major role in rehabilitating your country. This message was given to me by our President, Salva Kiir Mayardit, who reiterated his call that our people in the Diaspora must come home and become part of the development of our country.

Similarly, we are now lobbying the US Government and other donor countries to write off student loans of our Diaspora to enable them go back and work in Southern Sudan. We are trying our very best to cater for the interest of our people both at home and in Diaspora.

Before I conclude, I appeal to institutions in the United States like American University and people of good will to initiate scholarship program for Southern Sudanese students. I want to bring to your attention that it is that scholarship programs that developed my dear late husband, Dr. John Garang De Mabior, former First Vice President of the Republic of the Sudan and President of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS). I have no doubt that such programs will have a great impact not only in Southern Sudan but Africa as a whole and the world at large because they will produce many other dedicated servants like my husband.

Finally, my sincere thanks to President Bush and his family, US Government, and the people of America for their unwavering support during all of our times of trouble and hardship. I would like to point out in particular the ongoing road repairs in Southern Sudan undertaken by the consortium of USAID, WFP and GOSS. I am now going around appealing for more support for WFP to complete their work before the rainy season and construction of the dykes. I urge you to continue supporting our people until we finally reach the end of our struggle for development, freedom, democracy, human rights, justice and equality for all. I pray that Almighty God continue to bless America to safeguard the peace in the world.

Thank you all for listening and God bless you all!

(ST)