People's Democracy

 Sudan Peace Accord And Human Rights 

S Kumar

THE Sudanese vice president, Ali Osman Taha, and Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), the main southern rebel group’s leader, John Garang signed a Peace Agreement in Kenya on January 10 that called for an end to one of the longest-running conflict in Sudan. The agreement is a positive development for peace in Sudan and will persuade the other groups of western Darfur region, which is not covered under the agreement, to work further for the peace processes.

This agreement initiates a six-year transition period call for assimilation of fighting forces, sharing of oil wealth and dividing governance seats between north and south. The centre and provincial governments of functional democracy will be initiated by providing some autonomy to build and strengthen their governance. The symbolic functional autonomy is initiated by announcing the following measures:

Both the Arabic and English will be treated as official languages

New paper money will be issued reflecting the country’s unity in diversity

Dual banking system is to be set up

Islamic law will be made applicable in north Sudan only thus helping in keeping the gun-battles down. 

It is hoped that this will reduce the mistakes towards peace processes and carry human development to the isolated southern region. Recently, the UN General Assembly resolution A/C3/59/L40, dated November 24, 2004,  titled “Situation of Human Rights in Sudan” was passed with the majority UN member states (91) voting in favour of it while 74 opposed and 11 abstained. This basically ‘no action motion’, allowed the peace process in Sudan to focus on their mandates unhindered and without outside pressures. It was a blow to US-led efforts.

The General Assembly result and peace accord clearly showed that common understanding on human rights and freedoms is of great importance for the full realisation of ridding the world of genocides. The US and the EU attitude in this conflict has been driven more by their oil interests in the country. However this agreement pushed aside EU and US suggestion dividing southern Sudan and forming a separate country because the oil in the ground and flowing through the pipeline to the Red Sea super-tanker port has driven expulsions from western Upper Nile/Unity State, the area of the main oil production today. The initial exploration areas in Blocks 1, 2 and 4, dangerously situated on the north-south conflicting region of Sudan, are producing 230,000 barrels per day crude oil since 1999.

Today, a large number of countries feel that human rights violations can be bartered with their economic interests. Sudan being an oil producing country invited a race from imperialists to seek more and maximum raw oil and to capture oil wealth. And for this they freely invoked either “anti-terrorism” or “human rights”. They tried their best to hamper the peace process in Sudan under the leadership of Africa Union and the UN. One of the important aspects in restoring peace in the country will be the transfer of the oil wealth to the people, particularly to all provinces through political federalism. This will forge a socio-political culture which will strengthen the bonding of cooperation of provinces towards the centre. The centre must provide the necessary minimum basic needs to all and move towards building a better civil society.