South Sudan Peace in ‘Jeopardy’

Nairobi, Oct. 7th: A peace agreement that put an end to decades of civil war between north and south Sudan is in jeopardy because relations between the two sides have become “poisonous”, the US envoy to Sudan has warned. The comments from Andrew Natsios were a reminder that while international attention has focused on violence in the western province of Darfur, the animosities behind a conflict that has killed more people have been rising to the surface once more. Referring to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in 2005 by the Khartoum government and southern rebels, Mr Natsios said at the weekend: “We are deeply concerned about the health of the CPA . . . Tensions are rising. This is dangerous.”

Officials from the north and from the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, a non-Muslim group running the southern government, accuse each other of holding up the implementation of key provisions of the CPA. Disputes between the two sides centre on the demarcation of the north-south border and the sharing of revenues from oil reserves, which have been found close to the border area. Mr Natsios, speaking at the end of a 10-day visit to Sudan, said the risk of clashes between the two sides was high and stressed the importance of Sudan holding an election in 2009, as envisaged in the CPA. That is set to be followed in 2011 by a referendum on independence for the south.

In Khartoum, the hardline National Congress party and the SPLM are part of a government of national unity. The US played a key role in forging the CPA after the Islamist NCP, fearing a US backlash following the September 11 terrorist attacks, began to accept the idea of talks to end the civil war.
By Barney Jopson for the The Financial Times
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