Sudan activists: international intervention required to prevent ‘diplomatic meltdown’ over referendum
19 September, 2010 (KHARTOUM) – Activist groups gathered in Sudan365 are calling upon the international community to prevent the civil war envisaged if the referendum on Sudan is botched.
Today thousands of activists were gathering at events in 14 countries in a coordinated global day of action, calling on world leaders to take urgent steps to prevent a collapse in diplomacy in Sudan that could to the world’s deadliest war in 2011. The referendum process is currently way behind schedule and intervention is the only foreseeable solution, activists warned on Sunday.
The referendum will offer the southern Sudanese the opportunity to vote to either remain united with northern Sudan, or to form a new country. The referendum is a stipulation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) which was signed when the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, of the south, and the Government of Sudan, of the north, agreed to lay down arms after 22 years of war.
Southern officials have said that if the referendum does not happen on time, they may declare their independence irrespective of what the north wants – this could be cause for conflict.
Celebrity musicians including Will Champion of Coldplay, Angelique Kidjo and Hugh Masakaela have collaborated on a music video for Sudan that will be released on 19th as part of the campaign’s global ‘beat for peace’. The campaign is already supported by the world’s most famous drummers including Nick Mason, Pink Floyd; Middle Eastern star Mohammed Mounir and Mustapha Tettey Addy from Ghana. Activists will drum along to the celebrities’ ‘beat for peace’ as part of global events.
Guarantors of the CPA will be meeting at the United Nations (UN) in New York next week to discuss possible solutions. Last week Sudan365 brought a delegation of northern and southern Sudanese to the White House and various other high level meetings in order for them to express their plight.
The campaign is targeting the ‘Guarantors’ of Sudan’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement; those governments and institutions such as the US, UK, Kenya, Egypt, African Union, League of Arab States and EU who promised that they would ensure the peace agreement was upheld. Activists are staging events in all eleven Guarantor states to call on those leaders to honour their pledge to Sudan and to prevent diplomatic meltdown.
The ‘Guarantors’ of Sudan’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement are: The African Union (AU), European Union (EU), United Nations (UN), League of Arab States (LAS), Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Egypt, Norway, UK, USA, Netherlands and Italy
“We are at the eleventh hour. Preparations for the referendum are woefully behind schedule and the risk of conflict is increasing,” said AlBakir Mukhtar Alafif, a Sudanese activist with the campaign which includes the support of Human Rights Watch [www.hrw.org] and Save Darfur Coalition [www.savedarfur.org].
North and south of Sudan are still hammering out the basics, such as border demarcation along the oil-rich north-south frontier and how to share oil revenues. There are also concerns regarding the South Sudan Referendum Act [http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article36277], which sets out the legal framework of the referendum and post-referendum period. It has serious omissions that could be cause for dispute.
The group urged actors such as the UN and the US “to honor their pledge to Sudan and to prevent diplomatic meltdown.”
This week Sudan365 has released a music video performed by a host of international stars. “A beat for peace” calls for public support for the campaign by raising awareness, with the intention of viewers then putting pressure on the bodies which can act to aid the referendum process.
The Sudan365 campaign has been organised by a coalition of groups including Human Rights Watch, Save Darfur Coalition, Italians for Darfur, the Norway Sudan Forum, Refugees International, Darfur Consortium and Arab Coalition for Darfur.
(ST)