Mixed feelings in northern Sudan for South Sudan independence
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By Ahmed Elzobier
July 13, 2011 - In the north, following the declaration of southern
Sudan independence, one group appears to be happy and they are the
supporters of northern Sudan’s separatist party, the Just Peace Forum.
Nevertheless, most northern Sudanese are subdued and sad for various
reasons. Some see the secession as a destruction of the country but
they are helpless to do any thing about it. Other groups have mixed
feeling of joy and sadness. Joy that southern Sudanese people have
their freedom, and sadness for the great failure of Sudanese
nationalism as it loses what has been an important part of its
national character for hundreds of years.
The prominent Sudanese poet Mahjoub Sharif has expressed heartfelt
emotions of sadness in a new poem he calls “The trees have passed”.
The trees have passed Like imaginary dreams Nice and gentle people
Through shades and clouds The trees have passed
Where are you my dears? It’s a painful scene for me Where are you
going? Mary I will miss you I am shedding tears Yet we are citizens by
our marks In drawing we are neighbors The trees have passed
People started to realize the new reality when the Ministry of
Information and the Survey Department revealed in a press conference
on 4 July, that Sudan has lost, as a result of the separation, about
25% of its area, 80% of its forests, 75% of its oil and 20% of its
population. Abdallah al-Sadig, Director of the Survey Department said
Sudan will now have no borders with Kenya, Congo and Uganda and its
borders with Ethiopia and Central African Republic will be
significantly reduced.
But to rub salt into the wound he described the new map to the
helpless northern Sudanese folk as a “beautiful” map. The Minister of
Information Dr Kamal (and by the way this the same guy who told
southern Sudanese back in October 2010 that they would not receive
injections after separation) also added that the government presented
an exceptional example of peaceful coexistence and integration in
Africa – I am not sure, but either these two people are professional
comedians pretending to be politicians, or sadistic psychopaths. The
question remains, how many beautiful maps and integration strategies
they will be presenting in the future?
Meanwhile, in clear violation of the Human Rights Declaration article
15, “everyone has a right to a nationality” and that “no one shall be
arbitrarily deprived of his nationality”, the Council of Ministers
approved, on 7 July 2011, a new Sudanese nationality bill rendering
hundreds of thousand of southerners temporarily stateless. It was not
clear if the bill was even discussed in parliament. This was done
despite these southerners being habitually resident in the North and
many having no connection with the South. Dr Amin Maki Madani, a
prominent lawyer and the Director of the Human Rights Monitor
Organization in Sudan, considers the government act to be
unconstitutional as it violates the nationality laws of Sudan, and an
immoral act resembling Nazism. Meanwhile, all government institutions
have sacked their southern employees and government adverts in various
newspapers are calling for private sector companies to provide a list
of their southern employees. Last month the SPLM /NCP agreed to give a
period of nine months for southern Sudanese in the north to adjust
their status, a very vague statement having nothing to do with the AU
High panel proposal. However, in reality the NCP is adamant that
southern Sudanese will be treated as foreigners after 9 July. The
entire government attitude is vindictive and mean, and their soft
target is ordinary people from southern Sudan. This time they have
really sunk very low, even by the traditional sudanese standards. It
shows that northern Sudan is now infected by a serious ethno-fascism
virus that might destroy the remainder of the country.
For a reality check we should consider all the factors leading to the
current situation in Sudan: slavery raids and trade in the nineteen
century; the close district laws during the colonial period; the 1947
Juba conference and the hasty decision on the unity of Sudan; the 1953
consideration of Sudan’s status without consulting southern Sudanese;
the Torit rebellion in 1955; the promise of federation that was never
fulfilled by the first post-colonial government; the war that was
waged to Islamize and Arabise southern Sudan by 1958’s military
regime; the unfulfilled promises of the round table conference of
1965; the Addis Ababa agreement 1972; the violation and collapse of
the agreement in 1983; the reluctance to achieve peace in 1988; the
rise of Islamic extremism in Sudan; the military coup in 1989 that has
sealed the fate of the country and whose main objective was to stand
against the peace initiative; the declaration of Jihad on southern
Sudan; the proxy wars; the displacement and killing of millions of
people; the indifference of the majority in the north about the war in
the south; the 2005 CPA; the unfulfilled promises of the CPA, the
unresolved issues of extreme poverty, inequality, disrespect of
religion and cultural diversity, and lack of democracy.
Combine all these ingredients and it becomes clear why the southern
Sudanese were left with no option but to abandon the sinking ship of
Sudan and on 9 January 2011, to vote overwhelmingly for separation.
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