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SA Church aids Sudan vote By CLAIRE MATHIESON
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UDAN, Africa’s biggest country, is on the verge of being divided as locals await the verdict of the historic referendum on secession that took place in early January. Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Archbishop of Durban was present as a guest of Archbishop of Juba, Paulino Lokudu Loro, as part of an ecumenical monitoring team from all over Africa. According to information officer for the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC), Fr Chris Townsend, the SACBC has been “strongly supportive of the people of Southern Sudan since 1994”. Initially, this was by hosting a Sudan desk as part of the Justice and Peace Department of the Conference at the SACBC Secretariat in Pretoria. Fr Townsend, who was also part of the delegation that visited Sudan said later, with the formation of the Denis Hurley Peace Institute as an Associate Body of the Conference, much work has been done to facilitate peace building in Sudan. Cardinal Napier called the referendum “historic”, and encouraged the people of Sudan to be patient and peaceful. Cardinal Napier was accompanied by Fr Sean O’Leary, Director of the Denis Hurley Peace Institute who said: “This vote is an important vote, not only for the people of Southern Sudan but as a potential sparking point for rewriting many of the artificial boundaries created in Africa during the 1876 Berlin Conference. This has Africa-wide significance. We might see the beginning of a new wave of independence drives. Like South Africa in 1994 what we are witnessing is the birth of a new nation.” The historic vote has seen much international attention. American president Barack Obama hailed the voting process, calling it a “new
Cardinal Wilifrid Napier meets with South Sudanese president Salva Kiir Mayardit and a delegation of Church officials from Sudan. (Photo: Fr Chris Townsend) chapter in history”. The department of international relations and co-operation said a team of 35 South African MPs, government officials and members of civil society joined the African Union observer mission to assist in ensuring a conducive environment for a credible, free and fair referendum. Minister of International Relations and co-operation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane said in a statement that “we are convinced that the governments and the people of that country want to close the chapter of war and conflict and desire peace and development”. She added that South Africa will continue to lend its support to such efforts. Reporting from Sudan during
the week-long vote, Fr Townsend said the mood was “peaceful, smooth and comprehensive”. He said there was a positive mood in the long queues of those waiting to place their votes to decide whether the predominantly Christian South succeeds from the predominantly Muslim North. “As one man told the Cardinal, ‘We’ve waited 55 years for this day—we don’t mind waiting in the sun for 12 hours’,” Fr Townsend said. Those voting in Southern Sudan were faced with two symbols to choose from on the ballot paper: a single hand for independence or two clasped hands to remain one country. With only 15% of Southern Sudan being literate, and with less than 50km of tarred road in
the region, the voting process was catered to be as simple as possible with enough time for those wanting to vote to reach the polling stations. Fr Townsend said while the voting ended on Saturday, January 15, there is still an extensive process to vote and verify the vote. Turnout in the referendum was one of the important factors validating the vote with 60% of the 3.8 million registered voters were required to take part. This was achieved by day four of the voting process. Fr Townsend said the biggest losers in this process will be Khartoum, the northern capital of Sudan, which will lose a third of its land, nearly a quarter of its
population and much of its oil if the south secedes. “There is no arable land, only 30% of the oil and there will be the loss of much of the labour,” he said. Cardinal Napier, who met the president of South Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit, asked for the people of Sudan to be kept in prayer, “not only during the referendum but also in the period after the results are made public.” The region has seen much violence over the last quarter century and the referendum is part of the peace deal that ended the 19832005 civil war between the north and south. Northern Sudanese had no say in the voting process and the western region of Darfur, which belongs to the north, is not affected by the vote. Most, including Sudan’s President Omar Al-Bashir, agree that the south will secede from the north. Mr Bashir said in a press conference that he understood why many southerners wanted independence, but he expressed concern at how the new nation would cope. Mr Bashir, who was indicted for war crimes in Darfur also denied any involvement in clashes over the voting period which saw 23 people killed near Sudan’s north-south border. The Cardinal and his delegation met with foreign officials including former US President Jimmy Carter, Senator John Kerry and actor and Sudan activist George Clooney in Juba for the start of the vote. Cardinal Napier called the opportunity to test the will of the people “historic, as it allows ordinary people who have endured the brunt of civil war and development exclusion a chance to reclaim their own dignity.” The final result is due February 6 or if there are appeals, February 14 and the South could become the continent’s 54th nation on July 9.
Social activist Clooney devotes efforts to Sudan By CLAIRE MATHIESON
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MERICAN actor and activist, George Clooney was in Sudan during the recent referendum for secession of the South from the North. Mr Clooney shot to fame in the television series ER during the nineties, starred in the box office success Ocean’s Eleven and is an Academy Award winner for his role in the 2005 Middle East thriller Syrianna. However of late, Mr Clooney has been active as a United Nations Messenger of Peace—specifically working in Sudan. Mr Clooney, who is of Irish descent and was raised a strict Catholic, has been active in advocating a resolution of the conflict in the western Sudanese area of Darfur.
His most notable efforts have included appearing on American talk shows, involvement in rallies and an open letter to German chancellor Angela Merkel, calling on the European Union to take “decisive action” in the region in the face of Omar al-Bashir’s failure to respond to UN resolutions. Mr Clooney is also involved with “Not On Our Watch”, an organisation that focuses global attention and resources to stop and prevent mass atrocities, along with American actors Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Don Cheadle. The organisation has been responsible for the production of several documentaries including Darfur Now—a call to action film for people all over the world to help stop the ongoing crisis in Darfur.
January saw Mr Clooney return to Sudan to raise awareness about a potential return to war. He was most concerned with the oil rich area of Abyei—an area currently contested by both the north and south. Mr Clooney said in a press conference that if a deal is not reached on the future of Abyei— whether it goes with the north or south—then the secession process could implode. “If you underestimate that, that will bring us back to war,” he said. Mr Clooney met with South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit as well as a delegation from the Catholic Church which included Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Archbishop of Durban, during the Actor and social activist George Clooney meets Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Archbishop of Durban in Juba, Sudan. secession vote of early January.