Khartoum and Juba need to dialogue
By Isaiah Abraham
March 28, 2012 — Events along the border between Sudan and its southern neighbor are a pointer for another renewal of violence between the two countries. The armies of the two countries are reported to be on the offensive along Jau and Panthou in Unity, a development that has been confounded by an already oil crisis when the later (South Sudan) stopped using the Sudan pipelines and refineries. The Sudanese leaders and their foot lieutenants are complicating things further, something that should have been left to activists to do it.
The Sudanese President, Field Marsha Omar Hassan Ahmed Al Bashir has gone to the Islamic drawing board by announcing popular jihad against the people of South Sudan. The theatrics are all about protecting the Islam and the Arabs, and not anymore the power under the National Congress Party (NCP). President Salva Kiir of South Sudan stroke a reconciliatory tone however, as his Information Minister still hopes for a Summit to take place on the 3rd of April 2012. The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement generally is hoping against any hope that the two leaders can still meet agree on matters related to border and security.
Unfortunately, Khartoum media houses have already proclaimed the suspension of the slated Summit, and the question is: what next from here if the two leaders aren’t meeting according to the African Union mediation efforts? Well, this author is optimist that the two leaders of the Sudan have leadership obligation to find amicable solution to their outstanding differences. Violence is a means and not an end, and must be avoided by any cost.
I see Juba as ready to negotiate, but somewhere Khartoum has their own hidden agenda, probably the problem of insurgents, where South Sudan becomes a scapegoat. Mr. Philip Aguer of South Sudan army echoed the same lines the other day. There is no justification therefore to fight your dissidents in the territory of another republic; it is a violation and unacceptable. The people of South Sudan will not sit back and watch their territories curb away by another army through the barrel of the gun. Khartoum should have known better that through dialogue, Juba could help them sought out their internal political problems with areas of Kordofan, Darfur and Blue Nile.
It is an act of aggression therefore to bomb and freely move soldiers into another country without the consent of that country. It is another aggression to renaming areas belonging to other nation. Chanting and invoking using the name of Allah is another provocation, and isn’t time to do just that. Give us a break from belligerency. We know it, because we have been there.
The Republic of the Sudan must slow down against the people of South Sudan and allow peace a chance. War is the last thing to do, and as things stand there is room to talk and dialogue. What is a hurry of declaring war against the people of South Sudan? President Al Bashir is a good man and must not allow himself to be deceived by Islamic bigots around his seat. These people are not going to help the two countries to stable and move on from anarchy of yester years. They have tried before to wipe the people South Sudan off the face of the earth, and that never happened. We urge strongly that it is time to talk and talk, not war.
Differently, I have read an apologist claiming that the Secretary General of the SPLM Party should be maligned, not to be listened by court on defamation case against former Minister Mr. Arthur Akuein. That friend or critic (author) ought to revisit facts before jumping to shout for any sacrifice of his imaginary foe. He must be careful when dealing with matters related to justice this time around. Politics (activitism) aside, this is a law ya pretender! Justice has been served and God bless the High Court presiding judge and Comrade Pagan Amum Okiech!
Isaiah Abraham lives in Juba; he’s on [email protected]