Millions Vote In South Sudan

Sudan: Countdown Begins to a Free Southern Sudan

Charles Omondi and agencies

10 January 2011

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Juba — Millions of Southern Sudanese on Sunday turned up in large numbers to vote in a referendum that could see the region become Africa’s youngest state.
South Sudan President Salva Kiir declared the referendum a “historic moment” as he cast his ballot at the Dr John Garang Mausoleum in Juba, a few minutes after 8am.
And thousands of Sudanese living Kenya cast their votes in various towns, expressing their joy at finally voting to separate from the Khartoum government.

Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, former President Daniel arap Moi and Lt Gen (Rtd) Lazarus Sumbeiywo basked in the fruits of their efforts to find a long-lasting solution to decades of war in the Sudan.
In Southern Sudan, jubilant residents had queued through the night to be among the first to cast the vote they have yearned for for the last 50 years.
“This is the historic moment the people of south Sudan have been waiting for,” Mr Kiir said, holding up his finger to display indelible ink that showed he had voted.
He appealed to the region’s security machinery to ensure protection of the Northerners living in South Sudan, asserting that he expected Khartoum to reciprocate the gesture.

Joseph Kiheri

Jubilant Sudanese nationals march in Nakuru, Kenya, on January 8 ahead of the January 9 referendum.

“It was wonderful to see Salva Kiir vote. It was the culmination of a lot of negotiation and a lot of hurdles that had to be got over,” said senator John Kerry, who had shuttled between northern and southern leaders for months to pave the way for the vote to proceed on schedule.
Renegade
However, the celebrations were overshadowed by clashes with renegade militiamen in two remote oil-producing districts on the north-south border that were bitterly contested in the 1983-2005 civil war.
Clashes between Misseriya Arabs and Ngok Dinka in the disputed border district of Abyei killed at least eight people on Sunday, sources on both sides said.

About 3.9 million people were registered to vote in the referendum which ends on January 15, with the final results expected 10 days later.
The separation must be endorsed by at least 60 per cent of the registered voters to be valid. It is widely expected that most Southerners would vote overwhelmingly to separate from their mostly Arab and Muslim compatriots.
Though Sudan President Omar al-Bashir, on a recent visit to Juba, promised to respect the will of the majority if they voted for secession, his sentiments on return to Khartoum have raised questions over his sincerity.
He told al-Jazeera TV that South Sudan was ill-prepared for independence and was destined to face instability if it voted to secede.

US President Barack Obama, in an opinion article published by the New York Times on Saturday, said voters must be allowed to make their choice free from intimidation.
Former UN chief Kofi Annan, who monitored the voting with ex-US President Jimmy Carter said the enthusiasm shown by voters should be rewarded with concrete results.
“It is important that the energy and enthusiasm lead to solid results that are accepted by everybody,” he said.
Mr Carter, who held talks with northern leaders in Khartoum before heading to Juba for the vote, said he believed the prospects for the referendum to result in new violence had greatly receded in recent days.
Polling stations in Khartoum in the early hours of voting remained largely deserted in stark contrast with the jubilant scenes in the south.