Welcome to Sudan365, the global campaign calling for a peaceful future for Sudan. Head over to our Get Involved page to find out how you can call for a peaceful future for Sudan, use our campaign countdown clock, and stay informed with our Sudan Watch alerts and our blog below.
31 August 2010
The BBC reports that the South Sudanese army have pledged to demobilise all child soldiers by the end of the year.
The Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) hopes to achieve this by using the newly established child protection unit. The BBC quotes William Deng, head of the south's commission for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration pledging that 'The SPLA by the end of this year will be child-free'.
Lise Grande, the UN's humanitarian co-ordinator, cautiously welcomed the SPLA's move and acknowledged 'the impressive steps forward that the SPLA have taken'. The BBC stresses that this is an ambitious but achievable goal. The UN children's agency estimates that the SPLA, thought to have already discharged more than 20,000 children, still includes about 900 in its ranks.
29 August 2010
Stop Genocide Now have released a video and campaign action targeting President Obama. The organisation calls for the US President to seize the moment for implementing 'a Sudan policy which, as you promised in 2008, leads a process for peace, helps prevent another deadly war in Africa, and holds those responsible for crimes against humanity to account'. Supporters are encouraged to repost this video on Facebook and to contact the White House about Sudan.
25 August 2010
As Sudan faces the prospect of possibly being split into two countries and giving painful birth to a new nation, world-leading scholar-diplomats on Africa's largest country will be speaking at a meeting hosted by the Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR) in Cape Town today. The meeting will be chaired by Ambassador James Jonah, former UN Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs.
Sudanese scholar-diplomat and Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide, Professor Francis Deng, will introduce his new book Sudan at the Brink: Self-Determination and National Unity. Dr Jan Pronk, a former UN special representative for Sudan and former minister for development cooperation in the Netherlands, and Ambassador Richard Williamson, a former US special envoy to Sudan will both speak.
The focus of the event will be 'the implications of South Sudan’s forthcoming self-determination vote' and 'a host of key post-referendum issues – such as security arrangements, sharing of water assets and oil revenues, and decisions about currency and national capitals'.
24 August 2010
With the release of a new video from Stop Genocide Now, Sudan Now, a campaign led by a group of anti-genocide and human rights advocacy organizations including Enough, is running ads in both The New York Times—out today—and the Vineyard Gazette (Friday) as part of a new campaign that aims to influence President Obama’s upcoming decision on the future direction of U.S. policy in Sudan.
Enough states that 'President Obama’s decision comes at a critical moment. The Darfur peace process has fallen apart as the security situation deteriorates, and four short months remain before a referendum that could split Sudan into two takes place'.
The ads, as well as a letter signed by 68 organizations, asks the president to choose a strategy that employs a balance of both incentives and pressures to urge Sudanese actors toward full implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and a sustainable peace agreement in Darfur. Twenty-one years of history with the Sudanese regime demonstrates that U.S.-led multilateral leverage and support to coordinated international negotiations can achieve meaningful results.
Go to Enough to email or tweet President Obama, asking him to choose the proven and effective policy for Sudan, Facebook the White House page and post: "Mr. President, please make the right decision on Sudan. Act on Sudan Now. www.SudanActionNow.com" or a message of your own.
This article is edited from www.enoughproject.org
20 August 2010
The Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars has just published Avoiding the Train Wreck in Sudan: U.S. Leverage for Peace, one paper of a two-part publication examining international engagement in Sudan.
The paper’s authors, the Enough Project’s John Prendergast and Laura Jones, identify areas where the United States has leverage that it is currently under-utilizing. They suggest that the National Congress Party's (NCP) desire for legitimacy and normalised relations with the US, the ICC arrest warrants for the President and other NCP officials, NCP's debt issues, China's economic interest in a peaceful Sudan, and Egypt's need for reassurance over water should be the foci for the US government in its work on Sudan.
The report stresses that the United States could be creating additional leverage if it adopted a 'unified' and 'vastly enhanced diplomatic strategy which in itself would support A.U-U.N efforts'. This strategy should be 'focused on peace', and should include the support of a single draft negotiation text for a comprehensive agreement for Darfur, internal diplomatic support for Sudan on post-referendum issues and unresolved aspects of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, and efforts to harmonise joint international support of Sudan.
In her blog, Jones explains 'If the U.S. and the international community don’t quickly realize the link that exists between the image they are presenting and the leverage that they possess, there doesn’t seem to be much hope that the current negotiations will bring change for the people of Sudan'.
Enough is a project working to end genocide and crimes against humanity.
Making Sense of Sudan Social Science Research Council reports on Sudan
Sudan Watch commentary on Sudan
South Sudan Info Video, audio and written reportage about South Sudan
Save Darfur Coalition Comprehensive updates
Radio Dabanga News from the heart of Sudan
XCHANGE Perspectives Inclusive, empowering film-making for peacebuilding
Sudan Votes Unique mapping project using updates from within Sudan
Politics Africa Online news on Africa
National Democracy Institute Strengthening democratic institutions worldwide
Small Arms Survey on Sudan a comprehensive resource on the flow of arms in Sudan.
Darfurian Voices documenting the views of Darfurian refugees on issues of peace, justice, and reconciliation.
Sudan Times in depth coverage of news in Sudan