Sudan’s peace partners discuss referenda and popular consultations bills
By James Gatdet Dak
February 22, 2009 (JUBA) – The Joint Executive Political Committee between the National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) have resumed discussions on a number of bills to be enacted into laws ahead of forthcoming national elections and referendum on secession in the South.
This is in the spirit of implementing the 2005’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed by the two parties.
Among top on the agenda for this week’s meeting, scheduled to take place in Khartoum from Sunday, include the two referenda for Southern Sudan and Abyei as well as popular consultations for Southern Blue Nile and Nuba Mountains.
The Chairperson of the SPLM component of the Joint Executive Political Committee, Riek Machar, told the press at Juba International Airport that his committee had already presented its proposed bills to the NCP on the two referenda.
On Southern Sudan referendum bill, Machar said the NCP’s opinion was to concurrently discuss the bill with post-referendum arrangements, which it will present to the SPLM for study.
For referendum on Abyei he said some circles within the NCP committee thought it was not necessary to enact a law for Abyei referendum, but the SPLM has presented its proposed bill.
Machar added that on popular consultations for the two regions of Southern Blue Nile and Nuba Mountains, the two parties have not yet agreed on which level of government between national and concerned states should enact the laws governing the exercise.
He said the SPLM also withdrew the two bills on Land and Human Rights, which he said were sent to the National Assembly by the NCP for enactment into law without the final input of the SPLM legal committee.
Machar explained that the SPLM should scrutinize the two bills, and then the two parties send it to their respective Caucuses in the National Assembly before it is passed by the Assembly.
He said a significant progress had been made on Press and Publication law, adding that the NCP has, however, expressed some observations to present on the bill before it reaches the National Assembly.
Also to be discussed in the meetings are the Penal Code, Criminal Code and Civil Code.
On National Security Law, Machar revealed that the two parties have not yet agreed on composition of structures of the security organ, powers of arrest and period of arrest.
The joint committee co-chaired by the Vice President of Sudan, Ali Osman Mohamed Taha and the Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan, Dr. Riek Machar Teny, revived debates on CPA implementation amidst imminent issuance of arrest warrants against President Omer Al-Bashir by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Machar, who traveled back to Khartoum on Sunday after spending weekend in Juba where he chaired the Council of Ministers meeting to discuss ‘Security Strategy for Southern Sudan’, acknowledged that there were difficulties over the bills leading to a deadlock for sometime between the joint committee of the two parties.
He however added that resumption of discussions by the parties was a step forward. “There is progress because we started from a position where the joint committee reached a stalemate, now we have resumed discussions,” he said.
(ST)