Libya vows to support South Sudan choice of independence: Kiir
June 30, 2009 (WASHINGTON) — The First Vice president of Sudan and the president of semi-autonomous South Salva Kiir disclosed yesterday that the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi promised him to support South Sudan should vote for secession in the 2011 referendum, according to Reuters.
Kiir told audience at the St. Theresa’s Roman Catholic Cathedral in Juba that during his visit to Libya last week, Gaddafi informed him that if Southerners vote for independence “they shouldn’t be frightened of anybody” saying that he “will stand with them”.
Furthermore he quoted Gaddafi as saying that the British colonial power made a mistake when they allowed South Sudan to be part of the North when the country gained its independence in January 1956.
“[Gaddafi said] they should have been separated either to become an independent state or join any country in east Africa,” Kiir was heard saying on the recording obtained by Reuters.
The London based Al-Sharq Al-Awsat contacted Libyan foreign ministry officials who declined to comment on the report.
However, other unnamed Libyan sources told the newspaper that Gaddafi’s remarks were probably “exposed to misunderstanding”.
The sources speaking from Sirte where the African Union (AU) summit will be held this week said that the official Libyan position is to support the unity of Sudan and strengthening its sovereignty.
“It Is not known that Gaddafi has ever been a supporter of separation of South Sudan or dividing the country between Northerners and Southerners. On the contrary he is a proponent of unity and against division” the sources said.
Libya along with Ethiopia and People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen were the earliest supporters of the Southern rebellion that broke out in 1983 led by late John Garang who formed Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM).
The support afforded by Gaddafi at the time was motivated by his tense relations with Sudanese president Ga’afar Nimeiry. It is widely believed that Libyan planes were behind an air raid on the Sudanese twin capital city of Omdurman in 1984.
(ST)
oshay
Libya vows to support South Sudan choice of independence: Kiir
That’s great for Gaddafi to profess this, Southern Sudanese should be given every opportunity and every right to establish their own independent sovereign state. I hope this way they’ll implement the policies they want Khartoum to do in the North, such as good governance, financial transparency, accountability, freedom of the press,a secular government which all of which the Government of South Sudan has failed to do in the past 6 years. With the $7 Billion dollars from Oil revenue that they’ve received they’ve failed to build one single paved road outside Juba and most schools and churches have been built by foreign NGOs. With a population of only 8 million, they’ve could easily nearly spent one Billion dollars per 1 million people and their lives would’ve been completely changed by now but instead they opted to go for weapons for a war with the North. Clearly still they’re in no match to the national army and so there wasn’t any reason to spend such an amount of money.
Also to Southern Sudanese, Gaddafi has been called a mad dog by Ronald Reagan so don’t take his words so easily.
Akol Liai Mager
Libya vows to support South Sudan choice of independence: Kiir
Well, both Neighbours, Regional and International Community supports is a crucial move needed by an emerging Nation to get her place regionally and internationally as well.
However, such signals from Gaddafi can be appreciated but, with care. I am saying people should be careful because any independence State in the North will be a Taliban or Iran like state and that will endanger neighbouring countries including the new state in a geographical place known as South Sudan.
Secondly, we must be very, very careful with NIF tactics about South Sudan referrendum of which Egypt might be behind.
I urge anyone who think this referrendum for the South is easy to revisit what Mr Ahmed Atheir, the NIF Parliament Speaker has said last week which was published in most NIF newspapers in Khartoum.
Mr. Atheir said this; “we will not make a referrendum easy in this parliament to southerners, we will make it tough as we want not to legalise the separation of the South”.
Look carefully into that document if you can obtain it and think twice before you could say independence can be brought by this referrendum alone.
Remember, I said it in more occasions that; a Russian/China like Giant that’s armed to teeth neighbour in the North will be very dangerous to the next generations. This generation have a soley responsibility on the future ones.
BUSTA 2
Libya vows to support South Sudan choice of independence: Kiir
Who is Gaddafi to Kiir??
The present of Gaddafi is failure of CPA. Gaddafi is Arab and Kiir is a Dinka therefore, these two people no matter what happen will never give purely assistant to one another.
If Kiir is not careful with Gaddafi, CPA will fail because he is going to give him a hell of money as the result he (Kiir) will forget to implement CPA and will be busy counting dollars as his behavious.
South Sudan people should be very careful with so called Gaddafi otherwise we are going to zero point of 1983.
To hell with Gaddafi fake politics
Ezibon Kenyi Morbe
Libya vows to support South Sudan choice of independence: Kiir
People dealing with a person like the Libyan leader should really find ways of reading his mind and carefully analyse his remarks, otherwise there is likeliness of mis-interpretations.
Nevertheless, His Excillency Salva press people and diplomatic advisors should i think always work closely to find him more diplomatic ways to convey the message to the faithful in the Cathederal if this is the only way, to avoid any embrassments like the response from the Libyan authorities.
The same people should also help His Excellency make use of South Sudan TV (SSTV) or Radio to address or convey messages to southern sudanese on a weekly or monthly basis, because i don’t think all southerners attend Sunday Mass in St. Theresa Cathederal (Kator).
jualian daniel
Libya vows to support South Sudan choice of independence: Kiir
Dear Readers,
The Statement of the Libyan leader to support self determination for Southernn Sudan in the 2011 referendum is good and hailed widely by well informed Southern Sudanese, but the question is how serious is this leader at the time of uttering this words?
We should know that He [Gadaffi] once said Museveni of Uganda should rule for life. Whereas he is hailed for being a true leader in Africa, He is one of the worse dictator Africa has ever known. This is true in that since he came to power in 1969, he has never permitted DEMOCRACY TO TAKE PLACE. We hope he is NOT betraying us, but supporting the SOUTHERN SUDANESE to gain their self determination that they have been paying for dearly since Sudan’s Independence Jan. 1956 using sons and daughters of southern sudan.
We Southern Sudanese now know that we need self determination more than we did before. Time for Change is ripe.It is here and is now.
While in the 1960s a stong wind of Self determination was blowing across Africa as a whole, it is now more felt in Southern Sudan than any other part of Africa in particular and any other part of the World in general. We now need freedom,Justice, Transitional Justice, respect for Human Rights and the Rule of Law and above all good Governance to accomplish the
Southern Sudanese, Through the Comprehensive Peace Agreement Our Destiny for Freedom to self determination is at hand here and now, Together for self determined Southern Sudan.
paul baak anyaar
Libya vows to support South Sudan choice of independence: Kiir
By saying that he would support South Sudanese choice of independence, Gaddafi had just made a political promise. Therefore, if you are a political baby like Salva Kiir and some people we know, you might prematurely celebrate and dance yourself lame only to be disillusioned later. Let me give you some tips that will surely guide you and protect you from political deceit. Gaddafi’s vision for the United States of Africa (USA) of which he is supposed to be the president, has made him to say words from his mouth but not from his heart. Surely you can not fail to mention a kind word to your ‘would be’ voter. And that’s politics.
So my dear President Kiir, you have got to tread carefully when making trip to that part of the world. Gaddafi is a good man, yes. But then you should not utterly depend on his say-so such that you come back with your mouth widely opened and say,’ He promised to support our choice of independence.’ Let this be a matter of wait and see.