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Southern Sudan Referendum Head Threatens to Resign

   Alan Boswell | Juba, Sudan 16 August 2010

   South Sudanās leaders huddled in strategic discussions in Juba for the
   fourth  straight  day today, as an internal battle within the southern
   Sudan referendum commission continues to plague the vote preparations

   The  emergency  meeting  of  the  Sudan Peopleās Liberation Movementās
   political  bureau  in  southern  Sudanās  capital,  Juba,  dragged  on
   throughout  the  weekend with no word from the SPLM leaders as to what
   might is being decided inside.

   One  of  the  key issues facing the southern Sudanese former rebels is
   that  with less than five months to go before the region is to vote on
   independence, the referendum preparations have barely begun.

   The Southern Sudan Referendum Commission is tasked with organizing the
   vote,  but  was formed late and has been troubled with divisions since
   its inception.

   In  an  interview  with Reuters yesterday, the head of the commission,
   Mohammed  Khalil Ibrahim, threatened to resign after accusing its five
   southern  members  of voting in a bloc and of viewing the commissionās
   issues through a regional rather than national lens.

   The  SPLM is demanding that the powerful secretary-general position be
   given to a southerner since Ibrahim, a northerner, sits as chairman.

   Already,  preparations  for  the  referendum  are far behind schedule.
   According  to  the  referendum  law  passed late last year, an initial
   voters roll was supposed to be published by the end of this month, yet
   registration has yet to begin.

   In  Jubaās  streets,  concern  over  an  uncertain immediate future is
   evident.

   āWe  have  mistrust  there, because we see the National Congress Party
   and  SPLM  are  not  on  good  terms,ā said Garang Atem, a 32-year-old
   government  employee.  āBut we need the referendum to be on the 9th of
   January,  2011.  We donāt need any more delays. That is our feeling as
   all Sudanese.ā

   Others,   like  James  Dor  Mathiang,  a  student  a  Juba  University
   originally  from Unity state, fear the Khartoum-based NCP could ignore
   the choice of the people for secession, which could lead to war.

   āThe  war,  it  can come. And this war may come during the time of the
   voting.  When  I  vote now for separation, and then the leader of this
   self-determination  [commission]  is an Arab person, maybe he can even
   avoid my vote, to turn my vote to unity,ā he said.

   The southern referendum was a core component in the 2005 Comprehensive
   Peace Agreement signed between the SPLM and NCP, ending the two decade
   conflict which killed 2 million people, mostly southerners.

   Ā

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