Panel #5B

 "Post-Conflict Sudan"



Postwar Development, Displacement and Moral Responsibility (with Special Reference to Sudan)

Peter Penz
York University

Post-war development has not only the normal task of improving the economic capacity of a country and alleviating poverty, but also the particular ones of facilitating demobilization, the return of refugees and internally displaced people and the avoidance of new conflicts.  However, part of the development process is the displacement of people.  This constitutes, prima facie at least, a social injustice.  Moreover, it can be the source of armed conflict, as has occurred in several countries.  As a matter of fact, it can be argued that the civil wars in Sudan have been, if not caused, then at least intensified by displacement that resulted from a particular approach to development.  The purpose of this paper is to take the findings of a Canadian project on the ethics of displacement by development, in particular the guidelines it has generated on what is ethically responsible development when displacement is involved, and to apply them to post-war development, such as what is needed in South Sudan at present and in Darfur in the hopefully near future.  The ethical grounding of the guidelines will also be explicated.  Finally, the paper will incorporate the issues of demobilization, refugee and IDP return and peacebuilding.

Alternative Futures for Sudan after the Machakos Protocol

B. Yongo-Bure
Kettering University


The Machakos Protocol is the nucleus of the Sudan Peace Agreement signed in Nairobi on January 9, 2005. The key points of the Machakos Protocol that will have considerable impact on the future of Sudan are that: the unity of Sudan is to be given priority by bringing about social, political, and economic justice for all the people of Sudan; the establishment of a democratic system of governance taking account of the cultural, ethnic, racial, religious, and linguistic diversity and gender equality of the people of Sudan; the people of Southern Sudan to govern their territory and participate equitably in the National Government; and the people of Southern Sudan have right to self-determination through a referendum in 2011.
The attainment of the above objectives and goals was to begin with the designing of the peace agreement, through to the creation of the institutions and mechanisms for the implementation of the agreement, and up to the implementation of the agreement. This paper examines the consistency of the peace agreement and the actions during the Pre-Interim period on the realization of the goals of the Machakos Protocol. It also speculates on possible scenarios during the Interim (implementation) Period that will probably influence the outcome of the referendum on self-determination.

The Sudan DMR Grassroot Peace Initiative as a Model  for Conflict Resolution in Sudan and Similar African Settings

Ahmed Abd Al-Rahman
CIPT, Sudan

Two years before the signing of the Naivasha Peace Agreement between the Government of Sudan and the SPLM in January 9, 2005, the Council for the International People’s Friendship launched its grassroots -peace -initiative among the adjacent major ethnic groups in Darfur and southern Sudan.  The Dinka, Messeiria, and Rezaigat tribes were chosen for their large sizes, extended heritage of clashes, and temporary traditional methods of conflict resolution. The initiative, which came to be known by the acronyms of the three tribes DMR, aspires to find permanent solutions for the age-long conflicts. The ongoing project of the Council for the International People’s Friendship is financed jointly by Sudan government, several UN agencies, and U.S.A ( Peace Fund ). In appreciation of the Initiative a Presidential Decree was issued in February 2004 creating  a Unified High Commission for the DMR under the chairmanship of Ahmed Abd-Rahman, the Secretary General of the CIPT. The SPLM sponsored the Initiative and is cooperating in its efforts.
The project has so far succeeded in holding several fruitful conferences among the three ethnic groups and by doing so has contributed to the nourishment of the growing culture of peace and reconciliation sweeping the country after decades of civil wars and intractable ethnic animosities. A lot remains to be done in the field and refining the methodology and analysis. The Council personnel and the local government officials are gaining experience
This paper assesses the development of the DMR Initiative and its potential in expanding the culture of peace in other hot areas of confrontation inside the south and Darfur themselves. The paper will also discuss the initiative as a new model of conflict resolution in Africa.

Beyond the Nation-State: Emerging Issues Related to NGO Activities in Kajo Keji County

Randall Fegley
Pennsylvania State University

Beyond the Nation-State: Emerging Issues Related to NGO Activities in Kajo Keji County

Based on extensive analysis of organizational documents, correspondence and interviews in both Sudan and the Sudanese diaspora, this paper explores the role of NGOs in Kajo Keji County on Sudan’s southern border. It examines the extent to which NGOs have taken over the County’s education, health, rural development and water sectors. Two sets of conclusions are drawn. Firstly, both NGOs and the civil authorities they work with are overwhelmed by movements of refugees and IDPs; food security problems, inadequate infrastructures, accountability issues and other difficulties which have emerged as a result of decades of instability. Secondly, to avoid any disruption of essential services, authorities and institutions emerging from the peace process must build on the relationships established during the war, or at very least, avoid harming them. Based on evidence from individual accounts and press reports from elsewhere in southern Sudan, the author of this paper assumes that the issues facing Kajo Keji are applicable in other parts of Sudan and beyond.

Rebuilding War-Torn Societies: The Case of Southern  Sudan

Mom K Nhial Arou
Independent Scholar
Canada

The challenges of rebuilding war-torn societies by far exceeds the betterknown challenge of development. Indeed the normal problems and challenges of development are, so to speak amplified, dramatized and compounded by the equally formidable challenges of relief, peace and security.
This paper will attempt to discuss peace,relief and development as triple objectives as well as demilitarization; political reconstruction; social reconstruction; economic reconstruction; external v.s local actors of reconstruction; and difficulties of international assistance.


Comparative Analyses of the Process of Resolving the Conflicts in Sudan

Akolda Man Tier
University of Khartoum, Sudan


Southern Sudan Education Project

Abraham Chol Gai & Kristy Swapp
Sudan

After 22 years of war, education is dismal in Southern Sudan. During a needs assessment trip in February 2005, we visited 1/3 of the schools in Bor South County of the Upper Nile Region of Southern Sudan and the situation in each school was similar. School attendance is 8.5% and less than 24% of students are girls. Most teachers are unpaid. Classes are large in lower grades and class size dwindling in the higher grades.
There are little to no supplies in school and buildings are crumbling. Attending school with no supplies and in dilapidated buildings is neither motivating nor effective for learning. Many students are encouraged to go to the cattle camp rather than attend school. Girls face additional barriers to education including heavy workloads at home and cultural pressure to avoid attending school with boys.
We met with several teachers, students, administrators, and government officials during our visit to Bor South County. Each person stressed the desire for effective education in the region. Leaders and parents committed to increase student attendance with a particular focus on girls’ attendance.
This project is working with local leaders and Southern Sudan government officials to distribute school supplies to schools in the region, support teachers, provide grain mills and water pumps so that more girls can attend school, and build permanent school buildings.
We propose to present an overview of education in Bor South County as a sample of education in the region and in Southern Sudan. We will share photos, video, and information gathered during the February 2005 Needs Assessment Trip and a June 2005 supply distribution trip to Southern Sudan. We will discuss schools, teachers, students, and barriers to education in Southern Sudan as well as plans to address these issues to improve education.