Southern Sudan takes to the polls for the second day amid reports of violence

It has been reported that at least 36 people have been killed in Sudan's Abeyi region in the clashes between tribes-people and the ethnic Arab Misseriya. A spokesman for the administration of central Abyei region, Charles Abyei, said members of the Misseriya began attacking the village of Make on Friday 7th January.

Abyei's Dinka Ngok tribe, in the south, also accused Khartoum of enabling the clashes by arming the Misseriya with weapons and added that they were expecting more attacks in the coming days.

In trying to counteract the accusations of initiating the attacks, Misseriya's leader, Mokhtar Babo Nimr, said it was the southerners who started the fighting, leaving 13 of his men dead.

"They attacked us because they don't want the Arabs to go south to water their herds. But the cattle need water and they will go. If they continue to stop us going south this fighting will continue," he said.

Reports of violence emerged as thousands of south Sudanese gathered in from of the polling stations for the second day of voting in the historic independence referendum. The vote, expected to divide Africa's largest country, has evoked both violence and joy as Southern Sudan's President Salve Kiir couldn't hold back the tears when the southern Sudanese took to the polls in the regional capital of Juba, on Sunday 9th January.

Experts says that the central region of Abyei is most likely to undergo biggest outbreaks of violence during and after the referendum, due to a troubled peace deal which ended decades of civil war.

Sources: The Daily Telegraph, Radio Netherlands Worldwide, Reuters

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Sudan needs a more transparent oil sharing deal

A new report published by Global Witness has called on Sudan for more transparent oil revenue disclosures in order to avoid conflict ahead of Sunday's [9th January] referendum on southern independence.

The report stated that with the upcoming “referendum on independence for southern Sudan just days away, oil sector transparency is now more important than ever to preserving the fragile peace between north and south."

The UK based resource lobbyist says that the unclear distribution of oil wealth has contributed greatly to the mounting tensions between northern and southern Sudan. Most of the country's oil comes from the south but the infrastructure remains in the north.

The current oil revenue sharing deal between the two regions indicates a 50:50 distribution, but Global Witness says the two sides need to come to a more transparent and effective agreement to replace the existing one that expires at the end of January.

"There has been much mistrust over whether the current revenue distribution system has been implemented fairly. Mistrust over revenue sharing was one of the primary reasons for the south's temporary pullout from the power-sharing arrangement in 2007. Evidence suggests that such concerns are not unfounded," the report said.

The upcoming referendum is part of the 2005 treaty that ended a two decade war between the north and the south. It is estimated that over 95 per cent of registered voters live in southern Sudan, while the remainder are in the north or abroad.

"With both sides hugely reliant on oil revenues from the south, this issue is paramount going into the referendum… so the single best way to ensure stability after the referendum is to put a transparent and verifiable new oil deal in place," added the report.

Sources: BBC News, CNN, FT, Bloomberg

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UN Security Council concerned for Sudan's oil rich Abyei region

The UN Security Council has expressed concern about the situation in Sudan's oil rich Abyei region, where a referendum on self-determination is expected to take place on January 9th 2011.

In a statement, approved by all its 15 members, the Council urged Sudan to reach an agreement on Abyei and appease the mounting tension in the region. In a separate development, the Council welcomed the conclusion of a peaceful registration process for the referendum in South Sudan. The head of UN peacekeeping, Alain LeRoy, said that although the situation in Southern Sudan appears to have stabilised the region remains fragile. He also noted that the security situation could become compromised during and after the referendum.

"As the Council is aware, we are working on options for a possible augmentation of U.N. troops in Sudan, to prevent any deterioration in the security situation after the referendum, and to increase our capacity to monitor possible ceasefire violations and protect civilians throughout the mission area," said LeRoy.

The US ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, told the Security Council that a peaceful referendum is essential in order to establish long-term peace and stability in Sudan. She added that if referendum protocol is followed polling will commence on schedule, but said that status of Abyei remains unresolved.

"Any resolution regarding the future of the Abyei area must respect the legally affirmed rights of the people of that region and it must be reached with the consent of both parties. We also face additional upcoming challenges, including the effective conduct of the Southern Sudan referendum itself," said Rice.

Sources: Voice of America, Global Security, UN

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Sudan: SAF and SPLA pen oil safeguard deal

Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) have penned an agreement to safeguard the flow of crude oil from Sudanese oil fields. The signing of the new deal coincides with mounting fears among oil companies over post-referendum violence.

The referendum - expected to take place on 9th January in southern Sudan - is key in the 2005 peace deal which ended a two decade civil war between the north and the south of the country. Under the deal, known as the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the south formed its own government, which has limited autonomy and in which the north has only a small representation.

The safeguard agreement stipulates unity between the SAF and the SPLA in protecting the country's oil fields up to July next year. This will be based on a political arrangement to be agreed once the referendum results are announced.

The build up to the referendum has triggered mass resignations by oil workers for fear of outbreaks of violence related to the vote.

"We reaffirm to those working in those companies, as cited by the content of this agreement, the full commitment of the Sudanese federal government and the government of south Sudan to provide security and safety to them and to their activities," said Sudanese vice-president Ali Osman Taha.

Sudan produces around 500,000 b/d and contributes to both the south and the north's budgetary revenues.

Speaking about the safeguard deal, Sudan's Oil Minister Garang Deng said, "We hope that crude oil will keep flowing in case of unity or secession. This is because by benefiting from oil, we have improved the living conditions of the Sudanese people up to a certain level, both in north and south Sudan."

Source: Tribune Business News

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