North Sudan's post-independence conflict spreads to Blue Nile state
As violence continues in Blue Nile and South Kordofan, the leader of the group fighting Sudanese government forces in the two border states called for a 鈥渉olistic, integrated approach鈥� to Sudan鈥檚 multiple conflicts.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not about Nuba Mountains, it鈥檚 not about Darfur, it鈥檚 not about Blue Nile,鈥� said Yasir Arman, the secretary general of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement- North (SPLM-N), the political arm of the opposition group, told Enough in a phone interview. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about democracy and transformation. The issue is about how Sudan is going to be ruled.鈥�
Arman said the current piece-by-piece approach toward resolving Sudan鈥檚 multiple conflicts has not worked. A 鈥渘ew roadmap鈥� based on consultations with all the political forces in Sudan is needed, he said.
Fighting between Sudanese government forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Army- North (SPLA-N) in South Kordofan has been ongoing since early June, when government soldiers attempted to disarm members of the SPLA-N in the state. The SPLA-N, comprised of residents of the two northern states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile, fought alongside their southern counterparts in the South during the civil war. But grievances in these two northern states remain unaddressed, as the specific provisions laid out for the two states in the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement were never fully implemented.
Last Thursday, a . The state governor and SPLM-N Chairman Malik Agar, who was popularly elected in April 2010, had . Shortly after fighting began, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir declared a state of emergency and named a military governor in place of Agar. The fighting has , according to the latest UN humanitarian report on the situation. Both the SPLM-N and human rights group ACJPS have reported on what appear to be throughout Sudan.
鈥淭he National Congress has two options: accept change, or it is going to be changed. Change is inevitable,鈥� Arman said, in reference to Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir鈥檚 ruling National Congress Party, or NCP.
According to the UN situation report, aerial bombardments have been reported in a number of towns in Blue Nile. The state capital of al-Damazine, which is under government control, and the area around the border town of Kurmuk, under SPLA-N control, are both tense. The government has denied UN agencies and international humanitarian organizations access to vulnerable areas, the report said, and food supplies already placed in the state by the World Food Program are only enough to feed 20,000 people for two weeks.
The US government鈥檚 top priorities should include securing passage for humanitarian operations across the Nuba Mountains, Blue Nile, and Darfur, the SPLA-N鈥檚 secretary general said. The US should also push for a Security Council-backed no-fly zone across those territories.
鈥淭here are a lot of new realities,鈥� Arman said when asked about the whether negotiations with the government will resume. The secretary general said that investigations into ethnic cleansing and human rights atrocities, a halt to government bombardments, and humanitarian access are needed. 鈥淲e need to first create a conducive environment,鈥� he said.
According to Arman, SPLM-N representatives are going to Addis Ababa to consult with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi in a few days, but he said he did not know what message the prime minister would have for them.
鈥� Amanda Hsiao blogs for the Enough Project at .
