UN Gears up for the South Sudan Referendum
| Mundri, Sudan
Earlier this week, I flew to Mundri, in the fertile green state of Western Equatoria, to attend the United Nations Mission in Sudan鈥檚 unveiling of its first 鈥渃ounty referendum base.鈥� Per the request of the National Congress Party and the south鈥檚 ruling SPLM, the UN is upping its support and assistance to the referendum process. Part of this bigger effort is establishing a presence in each of the south鈥檚 79 counties, a step that clearly shows the UN will be playing a bigger role in pulling off the southern vote鈥攆rom a technical and logistical standpoint鈥攖han it did in supporting the nationwide elections in April.
The real takeaway, however, from the day trip to Mundri occurred during the speeches given by various southern government officials and by David Gressly, the top U.N. official in the south. Crammed into a sweltering white plastic tent, which will become one of the makeshift offices at the county base, these officials had strong messages about the referendum. The Governor of Western Equatoria State Joseph Bakosoro urged鈥攎ore like ordered鈥攖he citizens of his state to 鈥渞egister and vote,鈥� then emphasized that everyone must 鈥渧ote wisely.鈥� 鈥淟et us not repeat any mistakes,鈥� the governor said. 鈥淭he mistake we [could] repeat will be a final mistake that you will regret all of your life and for the life of your children,鈥� the governor said, recalling history. Meanwhile, the southern government鈥檚 minister of cabinet affairs Kosti Manibe said that if the referendum vote didn鈥檛 occur on time (on January 9 to be exact), then the south would have to opt for a 鈥減lan B.鈥� The minister didn鈥檛 go into the details of what this plan would entail.
Finally, as if to reassure the crowd, the U.N.鈥檚 Gressly begin his address by announcing that 鈥渢he referendum is real.鈥� In other words, the UN is preparing for Plan A. Later, while speaking with reporters, Gressly conceded that "there are a lot of decisions pending," but argued that "it would be wrong to do anything but move ahead." The U.N. plans to pitch tents, build fences, and deploy staff to hastily constructed referendum bases in 63 entirely new locations across the south in the coming months.
Stay tuned for more on the UN鈥檚 expanded effort to help pull off the referendum in time.
Maggie Fick is a journalist based in Juba in southern Sudan and
