South Kordofan’s MPs resign from Sudan’s parliament
September 19, 2011 (KHARTOUM) – Three parliamentarians affiliated to the banned opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N) have resigned in protest against military escalations in South Kordofan and Blue Nile State.
Sudan’s army (SAF) has been fighting SPLM-N fighters in the border states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile since June and August respectively amid reports of widespread violations of human rights.
The war is pitting SAF against communities who fought alongside the now independent state of South Sudan against the Sudanese government during the country’s second north-south civil war which erupted in 1983 and ended with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005.
In a statement released to the media on Monday, the three members who were elected to Sudan’s parliament from South Kordofan accused the government of committing blatant violations of human rights in Blue Nile and South Kordofan.
The UN accuses Sudan’s army and aligned paramilitary forces of “especially egregious” actions in South Kordofan, saying that if they are substantiated they may amount to “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity.”
South Kordofan violence erupted on the heels of disputed legislative and gubernatorial elections whose result was declared in favour of the ruling National Congress Party’s candidate Ahmad Haroun and against the SPLM-N’s candidate Abdul Aziz al-Hilu.
The SPLM-N alleged the vote was rigged and vowed to resist its outcome. The vote also elected four SPLM-N members to Sudan’s national parliament.
The resigned parliamentarians accused the NCP of wriggling out of its commitments to implementing the popular consultations in South Kordofan, a vote stipulated under the CPA in order to gauge local satisfaction with the implementation of the agreement.
The MPs also criticised the “illegal manner” in which the government banned the SPLM-N as well as the government’s blockade of humanitarian aid to the victims of South Kordofan’s conflict.
According to the MP’s, the war in South Kordofan had so far led to the killing of 2,132 people and displacement of more than 450,000.
(ST)