---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: John Ashworth <[email protected]> Date: Sun, Feb 17, 2013 at 3:15 AM Subject: [sudan-john-ashworth] Sudanese warplane destroys Nuba school To: Group <[email protected]>
"the Khartoum Government denied access to international aid organizations to provide assistance in the SPLM-North controlled areas" It's worth emphasising this in the light of some reports which do not make it as clear as it should be. It is the Khartoum government which is preventing humanitarian access to the areas controlled by SPLM-N. The SPLM-N itself welcomes humanitarian actors, just as it has welcomed a host of independent international observers. However it is virtually impossible for aid agencies and churches to implement a proper humanitarian operation while Khartoum's forces are bombing and shelling civilians in the area and doing everything they can to restrict access. John BEGIN 1. SUDAN WARPLANE DESTROYS NUBA SCHOOL, TARGETS CHURCH Monday, 11 February 2013 14:31 | Catholic Radio Network An Antonov from the Sudanese Air Force bombed Boram and Tiess localities of Nuba Mountains destroying a secondary school and targeting a church. SPLM-N spokesperson Arnu Ngutulu Lodi wrote in an e-mail message CRN received that the attacks took place Saturday morning. He said the Antonov hit Boram Secondary School with four bombs causing major destruction to the building. Two bombs were dropped near the church of Tiess. No casualties were reported. Mr Ngutulu added that the bombings were nonstop crimes committed by the Khartoum regime against innocent civilians. SCR could not verify the claims with independent sources. http://catholicradionetwork.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9281:sudan-warplane-destroys-nuba-school-targets-church&catid=2:south-sudan&Itemid=84 END1 2. NUBA MOUNTAINS HUMANITARIAN CRISIS WORSENS Tuesday, 12 February 2013 13:59 | Catholic Radio Network The head of an international NGO operating in Nuba Mountains has shown concern over the worsening humanitarian crisis in SPLA-North controlled areas. The official whose name was withheld for security reasons said the Khartoum Government denied access to international aid organizations to provide assistance in the SPLM-North controlled areas since June 2011. He said his organization is collaborating with national and local NGOs who are assisting the needy with their meagre resources. The official questioned what the international community was waiting for to intervene and force the warring parties to stop to play for time. He said the people of Nuba Mountains were denied basic needs of food, drugs, vaccines and education despite of two agreements signed between the warring parties and the international community to allow humanitarian access to SPLA-N controlled areas. He added air raids are not allowing people to cultivate and destroy crops. He said people were dying; hunger and malnutrition were increasing while the humanitarian crisis worsened in the region. He added that those who were able to travel to the refugee camps in South Sudan would survive but the people staying in SPLA-North controlled areas might die of starvation or illness. He urged the Sudanese Government and the SPLM-North to resume negotiations in order to protect innocent civilians’ lives. http://catholicradionetwork.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9299:nuba-mountains-humanitarian-crisis-worsens&catid=2:south-sudan&Itemid=84 END2 3. The forgotten war in Sudan Deutsche Welle 16.02.2013 Author Eric Segueda / csc Since mid-2011, a conflict in the south of Sudan has been smoldering between government troops and rebels, largely ignored by international press. The African Union is calling for dialogue. Since mid-2011 human rights organizations have been denouncing the attacks of the Sudanese arm on civilians in the province of South Kordofan and have spoken of "ethnic cleansing." African media has been reporting of bomb attacks by the Sudanese air force. The most recent reports, at the beginning of February, said a school building was hit and 17 people were killed. "The north Sudanese army is still trying to conquer this region and occupy it," said Raphael Veicht from Cap Anamur, a German relief organization. For four years, he has been responsible for healthcare provision in South Kordofan and neighboring province, Blue Nile. There are airstrikes almost daily and now, in the dry season, there is fighting on the ground, he told DW. The African Union demanded the Sudanese government to go into talks with the rebels - the ultimatum ended on Friday (15.02.2013). The United States also called on Khartoum to negotiate with the rebels. Experts have said Sudan is interested in the oil reserves in South Kordofan and Blue Nile. Tension has run high along the border of Sudan and South Sudan since the south's secession and independence in July 2011. In April 2012, tensions almost escalated to a war. Tensions on the border South Kordofan and Blue Nile are in southern of Sudan, on the border with South Sudan. Originally, the provinces were supposed to hold a consultations to decide whether to remain part Sudan or become part of the newly independent South Sudan. Such consultations have not taken place. Raphael Veicht at work in South Sudan "Because the people in the Nuba Mountains felt that they were not being represented adequately by the government in Khartoum, they decided again to rebel," said Ernst Jan Hogendoorn from think tank International Crisis Group. The rebels fighting the government call themselves the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) - it is an offshoot of the SPLM, which fought for the independence of South Sudan in a long civil war. A peace agreement signed the government in Khartoum and SPLM led to the eventual independence of South Sudan in 2011. More than 3.5 million people live in South Kordofan and Blue Nile. Most of them are dark-skinned and believe mainly in Christianity or traditional religions, as opposed to the population in the north which tends to be lighter-skinned and Muslim. This could also be part of the conflict, according to Jehanne Henry, who heads the Africa Department at Human Rights Watch in Kenya. The rebels don't want really want to be part of South Sudan or create their own country, she said. "What they want are their rights," Henry said. "What they are trying to do is get power and wealth sharing arrangements in place, so that they can have more power in the central government, and they also talk about the new constitution having human rights be protected." Difficult access for humanitarian help The humanitarian situation in South Kordofan and Blue Nile is alarming. Around 700,000 people are threatened by hunger, according to the United Nations. But there's not much that relief organizations can do to help the people. "The Government of Sudan does not want to give access to humanitarian agencies in [...] north-controlled areas because they claim that that assistance would also go and support those forces that are fighting the government," Hogendoorn said. Refugees from the two provinces have a difficult time escaping In addition, the provinces are difficult to reach, German doctor Andreas Hansmann said. He volunteered for two months at a hospital in South Kordofan. "The only way to leave the provinces is through South Sudan," he told DW. But South Sudanese capital is 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles) away from the two provinces. Also, roads are impassable during the rainy season. Hard to flee There are few possibilities of places to flee to for anyone who wants to leave. The easiest place to reach is Yida, a border town in South Sudan. At the moment, there are more than 65,000 people there in the refugee camps, according to Doctors Without Borders. Around 300 new refugees arrive daily. That makes the provision of health care difficult, said Doctors Without Borders' Jordan Davidoff. "There are essentially children who do die because of things like diarrhea and also malaria," he added. Aid organization said they were concerned about the increase of the population in the refugee camps. They are planning to build additional refugee camps in South Sudan because the conflict looks like it is far from over. http://www.dw.de/the-forgotten-war-in-sudan/a-16603395 END3 4. SPLM-N to hold talks with Sudanese government in March - Arman February 15 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) will hold talks with the Sudanese government in Addis Ababa on 5 March, announced Yasir Arman, the secretary-general of the group on Friday. In a written statement emailed toSudan Tribune, Arman said the SPLM-N chairman, Malik Agar, had confirmed in a message to the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) that a 10-member delegation, led by the movement’s secretary-general, will take part in the talks. Last year, the Sudanese government and SPLM-N delegation signed an agreement on humanitarian assistance after indirect talks brokered by the AU mediation team. However, both sides later failed to implement the deal over disagreements on how to distribute humanitarian assistance to affected civilians in the rebel-held areas. The Sudanese government demanded that Juba should first cuts its links with the Sudanese rebel group before engaging in negotiations, while the SPLM-N wants a comprehensive and inclusive process dealing with the Two Areas and Darfur crises. “The SPLM-N delegation will go with a clear vision, including all the national and international commitments of the movement, Arman said, stressing that the humanitarian crisis in the SPLM-N-controlled areas should be at the top of the agenda at the talks. He went on to say that any political solution must be comprehensive, aimed primarily at developing a national agenda with the participation of all political forces and civil society groups in order to get an answer about “how to govern Sudan before who governs Sudan”. In a meeting held on 25 January, the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) demanded the AUHIP invite both parties to hold direct political talks before 15 February, with the aim to end ongoing conflict in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan states. On the humanitarian side, the council demanded the mediation propose a cessation of hostilities agreement in order to facilitate humanitarian access. The AUPSC considers that the agreement, sealed last August with the tripartite mechanism, should now be enforced. On Friday in Khartoum, Sudanese president Omer Al-Bashir repeated the position of his government regarding talks with the SPLM-N before members of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP). He reiterated that discussions should centre on the implementation of a protocol related to the Two Areas included in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) of 2005. Speaking at the opening session of the NCP Shoura Council, Bashir said there is a need to discuss how to disarm and demobilise “Sudanese youth carrying weapons” in the two states and to transform them to “good citizens”, he added . Regarding the “New Dawn” charter which calls to topple the regime and establish a secular and democratic regime in Sudan, Bashir said that the opposition parties can propose it to the Sudanese people and challenge the ruling party in a free election. He further asserted that Sudanese people prefer to stick to Islamic law, and pledged to defeat rebel groups in the Darfur region. Rebel groups in Blue Nile, Darfur and South Kordofan, the opposition parties and civil society groups signed the charter last January. The political parties nonetheless said more talks were needed on the deal, saying it is still a draft and not a final version. (ST) http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article45546 END4 ______________________ John Ashworth Sudan, South Sudan Advisor [email protected] +254 725 926 297 (Kenya mobile) +211 919 695 362 (South Sudan mobile) +27 82 050 1235 (South Africa mobile) +44 750 304 1790 (UK/international) +88 216 4334 0735 (Thuraya satphone) PO Box 52002 - 00200, Nairobi, Kenya This is a personal e-mail address and the contents do not necessarily reflect the views of any organisation -- -- The content of this message does not necessarily reflect John Ashworth's views. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, John Ashworth is not the author of the content and the source is always cited. You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "sudan-john-ashworth" group. 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