Sudan Tribune

October 13, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's monthly inflation rate climbed for the sixth consecutive month reaching 18.32 percent in September compared to 18.15 percent in August, said the official Central Bureau of Statistics (CBoS) on Thursday.

A vendor sells vegetables during Ramadan at a local market in north Khartoum August 3, 2012 (REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)

Up to March the inflation rate was declining slowly and reached 11.70 percent while the government was trying to curb inflation rate to stabilize commodities and services prices.

According to the CBoS's monthly bulletin, the monthly inflation rate has risen to 18,32 percent due to the general increase in price of goods and services.

Prices and services have soared in Sudan since South Sudan seceded in 2011, taking with it three quarters of the country's oil output, the main source of foreign currency used to support the Sudanese pound.

The government decision to lift fuel and basic commodities subsidies in September 2013 pushed up the inflation. Also, prices of gasoline and diesel increased by almost 100%.

Also, price of the US dollar has witnessed sharp increase in the black market in Khartoum since last April settling at 15,5 pounds (SDG) while the official exchange rate still stands at 6.4 pounds. The dollar is needed for food and other essential imports.

In its latest report on Sudan earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) called on the government to tighten monetary policy to keep inflation in check.

“This would require continued adherence to limits on central bank advances to the government, limiting quasi-fiscal activities to levels consistent with monetary targets, and developing liquidity management instruments” said the report.

(ST)

October 14, 2016 (JUBA) - A leader of an armed factions who did not join the 2015 peace agreement, is advocating two solutions to end disputes resulting from a unilateral presidential decree expanding the number of administrative units to 28 states from the constitutionally recognised 10 states .

Gabriel Changson Chang (ST)

South Sudan's former Youth and Sports Minister Gabriel Changson Chang, now a Chairman and Commander in Chief of the Federal Democratic Party, proposed two options to resolving land disputes between communities resulting from the contested presidential order.

President Salva Kiir, on 2 October 2015, issued presidential order dissolving state government and legislatures and expanded the number of states from a previously constitutionally recognised 10 state to 28 states in violation of the peace agreement which recognises 10 states.

"This presidential order created land disputes between communities and made it impossible to enshrine the agreement into the current transitional constitution”, said Changson, according to a proposal extended to Sudan Tribune.

The proposal, which is dated on 16 September, advocates freezing the presidential order creating 28 states and revert to 10 states as the first option or creating 36 states as the last option to address land disputes. The proposal, however, fell short of how it would address concerns that the presidential decree itself divided some communities and annexed their lands to others.

It also did not address economic and political issues as many are concerned with how a large local government structure could economically be sustainable and socially cohesive amid declining resources.

The proposal divides the Upper Nile State into five states and leave Malakal town with a municipality status. It does not mention under which state it would fall if given municipality status. It further divides the Unity State into four separate states and leave Abiemnom with the status of municipality, without clarifying under which state it would fall.

Jonglei state, according to the proposal, should be divided into six separate states. It spilt Eastern Equatoria into two states and gives Raja County the status of a state separate from Wau and counties in Aweil to which it has been annexed, according to the presidential order. The proposal, however, did not split Tonj, Western and Eastern Lakes, Gok, Terekeka, Gbudue, Yei, Jubek, Aweil and Aweil East states into new more states.

All the opposition groups have rejected the creation of 28 states but agree on the need to review the 10 states. In the peace agreement it was agreed to discuss the matter and to reach a consensus to be endorsed in the new constitution.

(ST)

(ST)

OPEN LETTER TO US GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS AND UN PERSONNEL: URGENT ACTION IN RELATION TO THE CHEMICAL ATTACKS IN DARFUR

October 14, 2016

To: President Barack Obama;

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon;

Prince Zied, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

The Special Advisors on the Prevention of Genocide (Mr. Adama Dieng) and Crimes Against Humanity (Dr. Jennifer Welsh) to the UN Secretary General, respectively;

Key UN Personnel Dealing with Human Rights Issues;

US Senate Foreign Relations Committee; and,

U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR); U.S. Congressman McGovern (D-MA); and, U.S. House of Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Eliot Engel (D-NY).

From: Scholars of Genocide Studies from Across the Globe, Human Rights Activists, Anti-genocide Activists, and People of the Cloth

Re., Actions That Must Be Taken Immediately in Regard to the Chemical Attacks on Darfur

As most of you are no doubt aware of, this past week Amnesty International issued a report in which it decried and spelled out in great detail how the Government of Sudan has recently carried out chemical attacks against civilians in Darfur. In part, the report asserts that “horrific evidence,” including satellite imagery and more than 200 in-depth interviews with survivors, along with the analysis of dozens of images, suggest “at least 30 chemical attacks between January and September took place in the Jebel Marra region.” AI estimates that between 200 and 250 people were killed as a result of these attacks, “with many or most of them being children.” Whether you deem it a continuation of the genocidal actions against the Darfurians, a case of crimes against humanity, or war crimes, it is an outrage.

And the horror for the civilians of Darfur does not end there. Tellingly, AI cited satellite imagery that indicated that over 170 black villages had been damaged or destroyed between January and September, “the overwhelming majority” of which had no formal relationship with the rebel forces in the region.

What is it going to take to move the international community (the UN, the United States, the European Union, the African Union, etc.) to once and for all quell the violence in Darfur against the civilian population and then guarantee the million plus internal displaced persons and half a million (and rising) refugees are able to safely return to the land and villages from which they were forced off and out of as a result of the GoS's scorched earth actions between 2003 and today? Can anyone say? Will anyone say?

As you know, on September 9, 2004, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell announced to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, “The Government of Sudan had committed genocide, and was possibly still doing so.” As it was allowed to do under the UN Charter, the U.S. Government then referred the matter to the United Nations. The United Nations then chose to carry out its own commission of inquiry (UN Commission of Inquiry into Darfur). And while tens of thousands of innocent people (women, children, infants, the elderly) were shot and killed, sliced open and left to die where they dropped, not to mention burned to death, the UN took the rest of the month of September and all of October to complete the plans for its inquiry and then took all of November and part of December 2004 and January 2005 to carry it out. In late January, the UN issued a detailed and scathing report in which it declared that the GoS and its militia, the Janjaweed, had carried out crimes against humanity against the people of Darfur. The UN then referred the matter to the International Criminal Court (the ICC). The then ICC carried out its multi-year investigation into the mass destruction and death in Darfur at the hands of the GoS and Janjaweed.

An African Union peacekeeping mission was established in Darfur in 2004, followed by a hybrid AU/UN Mission in July 2007, when the AU found that it did not have the wherewithal to handle the crisis on its own. In light of the large number of civilians either forced from their homes between 2004 and today and/or killed, it is patently obvious that neither mission was effective as some had hoped they would be. And actually, if one could muster the will to place him/herself in the Darfuris' shoes then one is likely to agree with them that both missions were complete and utter failures. That must change, and it must change now! The time for talk, talk and more talk is not when innocents are crying and dying. The time for handling President Omar al Bashir and his regime with kid gloves should have been over long ago. The time for dithering (or, like Nero, playing the fiddle), while parts of Darfur (like Rome) are being poisoned to death must end — and now.

All of the eloquent words and promises of “Never Again” ring hollow in the face of what the black Africans of Darfur have been subjected to by both the GoS, the Janjaweed, and, yes, the international community (with the exception of those who have provided humanitarian aid) over the past thirteen plus years (2003-2016). Indeed, all of the promises have yielded nothing but more pain for the Darfuris, more gain for the GoS, and more pathetic examples of hypocrisy by the collective members of the international community. Shame on all bystanders. Shame on all of us!

It is not enough for one official or another, let alone the UN Security Council, to simply, solely, and lamely decry and denounce the latest atrocities perpetrated by the Government of Sudan. Words only go so far. Words have a tendency to evaporate into thin air. What is needed now is action: concrete action that is efficient, effective and sustained.

One has to ask: Where is the impact of the Responsibility to Protect? Why didn't the UN Special Advisors on Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity to the Secretary General, speak up about the critical need for concrete and effective action to stanch the use of chemical weapons back in January? And when none was coming, why did the Special Advisors continue to not only allow, but to take part in, bureaucratic games? Are they truly serious about stanching crimes against humanity and genocide? People are dying, people! Nice sounding speeches and policy papers don't do them one bit of good if they are not followed by solid action.

Where has President Obama's Atrocity Prevention Board been while all of these atrocities have been unfolding? And now that it is surely aware of the chemical attacks against the Darfurians, what is it doing? Or is the APB, to use colloquial phrase, more show than go? That is, is it more cosmetic than anything else?

Where has the UN Security Council been in upholding the UN Charter in this regard? Silence in the face of cases such as this constitutes, in its own and inimitable (and inimical) way, complicity. If organizations, agencies and individuals are not actively involved in attempting to stanch such horrors, then they are bystanders watching it unfold before their very eyes, as if they have nary a worry in the world.

This is not the time for excuses by the international community, individual nations, and politicians — excuses such as we are over stretched, we are already dealing with a nightmare in Syria, we are dealing with hundreds of thousands of refugees on the front doorstep of Europe, we are dealing with ISIS, etc.! We know all of that! We also know that for all of the promises that have been made to the civilians of Darfur and all of the inept actions that have been carried out at the costs of hundreds of millions of dollars, the people of Dafur are no safer today than they were at the height of the killing back in 2004 and 2005.

The following is what we urge the UN Security Council and individual nation states, including the United States, Australia, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Kenya, Tanzania, and New Zealand, etc., to do immediately, and without fail:

1. Pass a resolution at the UN Security Council, which thoroughly condemns — and in no uncertain words — the latest round of atrocities perpetrated by the Government of Sudan;

2. Significantly ratchet up the UN sanctions against Sudan, which Sudan has largely ignored and been breaching on a regular basis;

3. Significantly ratchet up targeted sanctions against individuals and other entities in Sudan contributing to the conflict in the Darfur region — to the point just before the sanctions begin to cripple the aforementioned groups; and,

4. Significantly increase the number of AU/UN military forces on the ground, and implement a rigorous evaluation policy to determine whether the individual forces are actually carrying out their duties efficiently, effectively, and consistently.

5. Provide the latest and best health care for those Darfurians who have been burned and sickened as a result of the chemicals dumped on them by the Government of Sudan.

6. Once and for all, establish a no-fly zone over Darfur. It need not consist of a constant presence in the sky but rather a presence that makes itself known to the Government of Sudan.

Further, we support the following recommendations/call for actions issued this past week by the Darfur Women Action Group:

• We urgently call on the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to investigate the use of chemical weapons;

• We trust that the International Criminal Court (ICC) will also investigate and prosecute the latest crimes committed by the al-Bashir government and forces;

• We call on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to implement its existing resolutions condemning serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law by the government of Sudan, and to ensure that the Sudanese Government and its officials are held accountable and brought to justice immediately;

• We call on President Barack Obama and all world leaders of good conscience to condemn the ongoing genocide in Darfur and to lead the international community in calling for an immediate stop to all violence against civilians in Darfur and to impose more effective sanctions to prevent further atrocities by the Sudanese Government; and,

• The United States and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) must pressure the Sudanese Government to allow humanitarian aid organizations and the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) to deliver much needed aid and support to all affected communities in Darfur.?We call on all governments and intergovernmental organizations alike to match their resolutions with meaningful action to hold the government of Sudan and its officials accountable and to demand that these cruel acts of horror are immediately stopped and punished.

As the sage Hillel asked, “If not now, when?” Clearly, it is an admonition to postpone no responsibility. If what the civilians of Darfur have been facing and continue to face is not a situation that calls for moral responsibility on the part of the international community then what is? Truly, what is?

We, scholars of genocide studies, human rights activists, anti-crimes against humanity and genocide activists, and religious figures, concerned citizens all from across the globe, beseech you to act and act now on the behalf of the Darfurian civilians.

We would not only appreciate an acknowledgement of this letter but a response in regard to the substantive issues raised. Please email it to samstertotten@gmail.com

Thank you for your attention to these matters.

Signed:

Dr. SAMUEL TOTTEN

Professor Emeritus

University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

Author of Genocide by Attrition: Nuba Mountains of Sudan, and compiler/editor of An Oral and Documentary History of the Darfur Genocide

Baroness Caroline Cox

Cross Bench Member of the British House of Lords, and Founder of the Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART)

London, England

Professor Ben Kiernan,

A. Whitney Griswold Professor of History and

Founding Director (1994-2015), Genocide Studies Program,

Yale University

New Haven, CT

Author of Blood and Soil: A World History of Genocide and Extermination from Sparta to Darfur

Dr Herbert Ekwe-Ekwe

Researcher

Dakar, Sénégal

Author of Readings from Reading: Essays on African Politics, Genocide, Literature

Dr. Israel Charny

Professor Emeritus, and Director of the Institute of Holocaust And Genocide Studies

Department of Psychology

Hebrew University

Jerusalem, Israel

Author of The Genocide Contagion

Dr. Michiel Leezenberg

Professor

Department of Philosophy

University of Amsterdam

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Author of “The Anfal Operations in Iraqi Kurdistan.” In S. Totten & W.S. Parsons (Eds.), Centuries of Genocide: Essays and Eyewitness Accounts.

Dr. Eric Reeves

Senior Fellow

François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Author of A Long Day's Dying: Critical Moments in the Darfur Genocide

Dr. Helen Fein

Institute for the Study of Genocide

New York, NY

Author of Accounting for Genocide

Dr. Colin Tatz

Visiting Fellow, Political and International Relations

Australian National University

Canberra, Australia

Author of With Intent to Destroy: Reflecting on Genocide

Dr. Herb Hirsch

Department of Political Science

Virginia Commonwealth University

Richmond, VA

Author of Genocide and the Politics of Memory: Studying Death to Preserve Life, and Co-editor of Genocide Studies International

Dr. Maureen S. Hiebert

Associate Professor, Department of Political Science

Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Military, Security & Strategic Studies

University of Calgary

Author of Constructing Genocide and Mass Violence: Society, Crisis, Identity (forthcoming)

Dr. Victoria Sanford

Professor & Chair, and Director, Center for Human Rights & Peace Studies

Department of Anthropology

Lehman College

New York, New York

Author of Buried Secrets: Truth and Human Rights in Guatemala

Ms. Gillian Lusk

Writer on Sudan and South Sudan

London, UK

Dr. Rouben Adalian

Director, Armenian National Institute

Washington, DC

Editor of The Armenian Genocide in the U.S. Archives

Dr. Yair Auron

Historian

Open University

Ra'anana, Israel

Author of The Armenian Genocide: Forgotten and Denied

Dr. Henry C. Theriault

Professor and Chair of the Philosophy Department

Worcester State University

Worcester, MA

Co-editor of Genocide Studies International

Dr. Elihu D. Richter, MD MPH

Director and Researcher

Jerusalem Center for Genocide Prevention and Hebrew-University-Hadassah School of Public Health and Community Medicine

Jerusalem, Israel

Dr. Rubina Peroomian
Research Associate

Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures

University of California, Los Angeles

Dr. Taner Ackam

Professor of History?

Robert Aram, Marianne Kaloosdian and Stephen and Marian Mugar Chair in Armenian Genocide Studies

Department of History?

Clark University?

Worcester, MA

Author of The Young Turks' Crime Against Humanity: The Armenian Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing in the Ottoman Empire

Dr. Kimberley Ducey

Associate Professor

Department of Sociology

University of Winnipeg

Winnipeg, MB

Dr. Peter Balakian

Rebar Professor of the Humanities

Colgate University

Hamilton, New York

Author of The Burning Tigris: The Armenian Genocide and America's Response

Dr. John H. Weiss

Professor, and Founder, Caceres-Neuffer Genocide Action Group

Department of History

Cornell University

Ithaca, New York

Dr. Rick Halperin

Professor, Director of the Embrey Human Rights Program, and past Chair of the Board of Directors of Amnesty International, US

Southern Methodist University

Dallas, Texas

Dr. Salim Mansur

Associate Professor

Department of Political Science

Western University

London, Ontario, Canada

Dr. Paul Slovic

University of Oregon

Department of Psychology

Eugene, Oregon

Author of "If I Look at the Mass I Will Never Act: Psychic Numbing and Genocide.”

Professor Michael Bazyler ?

Professor of Law and The 1939 Society Scholar in Holocaust and Human Rights Studies

Dale E. Fowler School of Law

Chapman University

?Orange, CA

Dr. Linda M. Woolf

Professor

Psychology and International Human Rights

Webster University

St. Louis, MO

Dr. Waitman Wade Beorn

Lecturer

Corcoran Department of History

University of Virginia

Charlottesville, VA

Dr. Jan Colijn

Professor and Dean Emeritus

Richard Stockton College of New Jersey

Galloway Township, NJ

Author of Ruin's Wheel: A Father on War, A Son on Genocide

Dr. Jason J. Campbell

Assistant Professor

Departments of Conflict Resolution and Philosophy

Nova Southeastern University

Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Author of Planning a Catastrophe: On the Nature of Genocidal Intent.

Dr. Yael Stein MD

Co-founder, the Jerusalem Center for Genocide Prevention, Jerusalem , Israel

Jerusalem, Israel

The Rev. Heidi McGinness

Presbyterian Clergy (PC-USA)

Denver, Colorado

(Twelve year witness of Khartoum's genocide and enslavement of

Sudanese citizens.)

Dr Kevin Simpson

Professor of Psychology

John Brown University

Siloam Springs, AR

Author of Soccer under the Swastika: Stories of Survival and Resistance during the Holocaust

Dr. Robert Skloot

Professor Emeritus

Department of Theatre

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Sister Deirdre Byrne

The Little Workers of the Sacred Heart

Washington, DC

Alexander Ramadan Tarjan

Member

End Nuba Genocide

Nuba Mountains, Sudan

Dr. Paul Mojzes

Professor emeritus

Rosemont College

Rosemont, PA

Author: Balkan Genocides: Holocaust and Ethnic Cleansing in the Twentieth Century

Slater Armstrong

Founder/Director

Joining Our Voices & co-leader of End Nuba Genocide

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

John Jefferson

Co-founder

End Nuba Genocide

United States

Dr. Michael Minch

Professor of Philosophy and Peace and Justice Studies

Utah Valley University

Orem, Utah

Dr. C. Louis Perrinjaquet, MD, MPH

Vice President and Medical Director

Doctors to the World

Breckinridge, Colorado

Dr. Dick Bennett,

Professor Emeritus, and Founder, OMNI Center for Peace, Justice, and Ecology

University of Arkansas

Fayetteville, AR

Compiler, Peace Movement Directory

Dr. Gagik Aroutiunian

Associate Professor,

Department of Art, Media & Design,

DePaul University,

Chicago, IL

Dr. John K. Roth

Edward J. Sexton Professor Emeritus of Philosophy

Claremont McKenna College

Claremont, California

Author of The Failures of Ethics: Confronting the Holocaust, Genocide, and Other Mass Atrocities

Dr. Edward Kissi

Associate Professor

University of South Florida

Tampa, FL

Author of “Obligation to Prevent (O2P): Proposal for Enhanced Community Approach to Genocide

Prevention in Africa,” African Security Review

Dr. Debórah Dwork

Rose Professor of Holocaust History and Founding Director of the Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies

Clark University

Worcester, MA

Author of Flight from the Reich

Dr. Michael Berenbaum

Former Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum's Holocaust Research Institute (1993–1997); currently, Director of the Sigi Ziering Institute: Exploring the Ethical and Religious Implications of the Holocaust

American Jewish University

Los Angeles, CA

Author of Witness to the Holocaust, and The World Must Know: The History of the Holocaust as Told in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Dr. Khatchik Der Ghougassian

Professor

Universidad de San Andres

Victoria, Buenos Aires, Argentina

“Genocide and Identity (Geo)Politics: Bridging State Reasoning and Diaspora Activism” in Genocide Studies International

Dr. Alejandro Baer?

Associate Professor and Stephen C. Feinstein Chair & Director of the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies

Department of Sociology

University of Minnesota

Minneapolis, MN

Dr. Deborah Mayersen

Historian

University of Wollongong

Wollongong NSW

Australia

Author of On the Path to Genocide: Armenia and Rwanda Reexamined

Dr. Norman Naimark

Department of History

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Author of Stalin's Genocides

Dr. Yehuda Bauer

Professor Emeritus of History and Holocaust Studies

The Avraham Harman Institute of Contemporary Jewry

Hebrew University

Jerusalem, Israel

Author of Rethinking the Holocaust

Dr. Kjell Anderson

University of Amsterdam/NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust, and Genocide Studies

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Author of A Criminology of Genocide: Killing Without Consequence (forthcoming)

Dr. Eric D. Weitz

Distinguished Professor of History

The City College of New York

New York, NY

Author of Century of Genocide: Utopias of Race and Nation

Dr. Alex Alvarez

Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice

Northern Arizona University

Flagstaff, AZ

Author of Genocidal Crimes

Dr. Gregory Stanton

Research Professor in Genocide Studies and Prevention

School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution

George Mason University

Arlington, VA

Ms. Rebecca Tinsley

Journalist and Human Rights Activist

London, England

Author of When the Stars Fell to Earth

Dr. Tetsushi Ogata, Ph.D.

Lecturer

Peace and Conflict Studies — International & Area Studies Academic Program

University of California, Berkeley

Dr. Ervin Staub

Professor Emeritus

Founding Director of the Doctoral program in the Psychology of Peace and Violence

University of Massachusetts at Amherst

Author of The Roots of Goodness and Resistance to Evil: Inclusive Caring, Moral Courage, Altruism Born of Suffering, Active Bystandership and Heroism

Dr. Mukesh Kapila CBE

Professor of Global Health and Humanitarian Affairs

University of Manchester

Manchester, England
Author of Against a Tide of Evil: How One Man Became the Whistleblower of the Twenty-First Century

October 10, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the estimates from Sudan's Commission of Refugees (COR) indicate the country has received 100,000 Syrian refugees since 2011.

In its latest weekly bulletin, OCHA pointed out that only 5,515 Syrian refugees have been jointly registered by the COR and UN High Commissioner for by the end of August 2016.

According to OCHA, “UNHCR provides registered Syrian refugees with access to the same services and assistance as other registered refugees living in Khartoum, including targeted financial assistance issued through ATM cards for those who are identified as extremely vulnerable”.

It pointed that main concerns of Syrian refugees pertain to “economic hardship, including accommodation and living costs, lack of access to income-generating opportunities, and lack of access to psychosocial support particularly for children”.
Unofficial estimates say the number of the Syrians in Sudan has exceeded 250,000 refugees.

The current policy of the Sudanese government is to receive all Syrian nationals coming to the country with no visa required for entry. Syrians are granted access to state health and education services.

The majority of refuegees have settled in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum and have become integrated into urban host communities, including an older pre-existing Syrian community.

Last May, the UNHCR provided $ 10 million to the government of Sudan in support to the Syrian refugees.

October 10, 2016 (JUBA) - A South Sudanese journalist abducted on Friday was severely tortured and dumped near a graveyard, colleagues and relatives said Monday.

State journalists tour Yambio FM, as part of their training (ST)

The incident is the latest attack on the media, following an incident in which a veteran journalist was found dead after being kidnaped by unknown gunmen.

Malek Bol, a journalist with Al-Muogif newspaper, went missing on Friday and was found after being tortured by unidentified group.

He was found at a graveyard in a Juba suburb on Monday morning.

It was not immediately clear as to what prompted government agents to target him.

Colleagues and family members attributed the cause to a critical article he wrote and posted on social media about the performance of the government under President Salva Kiir. The article focused on the economic crisis and corruption in the country.

According to medical reports, the journalist had broken ribs that resulted from severe beatings.

Similar incident also happened earlier this year when two journalists were tortured and dumped on two different graveyards in Juba town.

“It is very unfortunate indeed. We found him in a bad condition, beaten and burned," one of his colleagues at the newspaper told Sudan Tribune on Monday by phone.

The journalist further added that the paper is operating in a difficult situation and was no longer able to balance their stories, only being forced to write and publish a version that suit the interest of the government and allied opposition and views targeting non alliance opposition to the government.

“It is very hard to maintain any level of professional standards these days,” said a reporter who preferred anonymity.

“You know that what happens these days is that security personnel who are deployed to the newspapers ensure that they read all that is going to be published the next day. When they find something which is not in favour of the government, they remove it if they respect you", he added.

(ST)

By Eric Reeves

We are left to wonder—twelve days after Amnesty International's compelling report on the Khartoum regime's devastating assault on the Jebel Marra region of Darfur this year—whether the international community is prepared to move beyond the few brief moments of condemnation that followed release of the report (“Scorched Earth, Poisoned Air: Sudanese Government Forces Ravage Jebel Marra, Darfur,” Amnesty International | 109 pages; released September 29, 2016).

Much of the report was given over to the use of chemical weapons in Khartoum's military offensive, directed overwhelmingly against civilians. Given the massive evidence assembled there can be no reasonable doubting the use of chemical weapons—certainly not in light of the professional analysis by experts in non-conventional weapons and the scores of photographs that reveal destruction of human flesh, internal organs, and illnesses that cannot be accounted for my any known human pathogen. We lack physical evidence in the sense that we don't have soil or bomb fragments samples, or blood samples. But there is simply no other reasonable explanation for what is revealed in these gruesome photographs, or in the remarkably consistent accounts that came from widely separated areas of the Jebel Marra massif.
Moreover, Khartoum's previous use of chemical weapons has been frequently reported by highly reliable sources, including Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (see http://sudanreeves.org/2016/09/29/7469/). We may well conclude that what brief round of condemnation we have heard will exhaust international concern, and reflects how little comprehension there has been of the larger conclusion of the Amnesty report: as a means of crushing the rebellion in Darfur once and for all, the Jebel Marra redoubt of the Sudan Liberation Army/Abdel Wahid (SLA/AW) has been laid waste. Civilians were overwhelmingly the targets of Khartoum's military offensive, and many times more victims died, were wounded, or displaced by conventional weapons than by chemical weapons. The attacks included indiscriminate assaults by military aircraft on civilian villages with no military presence. Looting, village destruction, rape, murder, and a general destruction of civilian life were the primary goals of the offensive—again, typically in areas with no rebel presence. Amnesty estimates that 250,000 civilians were displaced by the violence.

In short, the counter-insurgency in Darfur remains genocidal in character: those targeted in Jebel Marra were overwhelming members of the Fur tribe, non-Arab/African and perceived as the civilian base of support for the SLA/AW. Destruction of civilian life in Jebel Marra, by ethnically-targeting the Fur population as a means of waging war, leaves no room for skepticism about the relevance of the various genocidal acts delineated in Article 2 of the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

WILL THERE BE AN INVESTIGATION?

Obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention

Chemical weapons, as hideous as they are, are simply targeting the civilian destruction by other means. They are, as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has declared (speaking of chemical weapons use in Syria), a “moral obscenity” (notably, Kerry has offered no similar expression of outrage in the case of Amnesty's crushingly persuasive evidence about what has occurred in Jebel Marra). But the use of such weapons must be investigated—they are banned by the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC—see Article 10); and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has a clear mandate to investigate credible allegations of chemical weapons use. Indeed, the OPCW “Mission Statement” could hardly be clearer:

The mission of the OPCW is to implement the provisions of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in order to achieve the OPCW's vision of a world that is free of chemical weapons and of the threat of their use, and in which cooperation in chemistry for peaceful purposes for all is fostered. In doing this, our ultimate aim is to contribute to international security and stability, to general and complete disarmament, and to global economic development.

To this end, the Secretariat proposes policies for the implementation of the CWC to the Member States of the OPCW, and develops and delivers programmes with and for them. These programmes have four broad aims:
to ensure a credible and transparent regime for verifying the destruction of chemical weapons and to prevent their re-emergence, while protecting legitimate national security and proprietary interests;

Member states of the OPCW represent approximately 98 percent of the world's population, and Sudan is a signatory to both the CWC and the OPCW. The United States has an elaborate Web page given over the CWC (http://www.cwc.gov/).

Realistic Assessment of prospects for an investigation

Of course, there will be no investigation of Khartoum's use of chemical weapons in Jebel Marra. The regime will never permit such an investigation, and international acquiescence will again follow such obduracy. Moreover, as the West dithers, the obstacles to investigation grow greater. As Sudan Tribune reports today, Khartoum's génocidaires are now receiving help from the hopelessly ineffective and morally compromised UN/African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID):

Sudan's Foreign Ministry has said that the head of the hybrid peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) Martin Uhomoibhi stressed that his mission didn't receive any piece of information that chemical weapons have been used in Darfur….

In a press statement extended to Sudan Tribune on Sunday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Gharib Allah Khidir said Uhomoibhi told [Foreign Minister Ibrahim] Ghandour that in spite of the almost 20,000 UNAMID personnel on the ground in Darfur, none of them has seen any Darfuri with the impact of the use of chemical weapons as described by Amnesty International's report.

He added the UNAMID chief informed Ghandour that not one displaced person meeting such description has shown up at any UNAMID Team Site clinics where they would have naturally gone for help.

Perhaps we may leave aside the habitual mendacity of Ghandour, given the fact that Nigerian Martin Uhomoibhi has proved as feckless and ineffective as the disingenuous and corrupt previous heads of UNAMID, most notably Rodolphe Adada and Ibrahim Gambari. He is all too likely to have said what Ghandour has attributed to him. Uhomoibhi is simply untrustworthy and has proved himself a tool of Khartoum on too many occasions—nowhere more conspicuously than in these comments.

It should be noted first that it has been years since UNAMID has had any real access to Jebel Marra, in particular to the areas where chemical weapons are reported by Amnesty. It is telling that Uhomoibhi does not explain why his force of 20,000 personnel doesn't gather evidence disconfirming Amnesty's findings. The reason is simple: the Mission can't gain access to the areas specified in Amnesty's report.

As a reporting source, no one seriously engaged in assessing realities in Darfur regards UNAMID reporting as anything but a failing Mission trying to do what it can to disguise that failure. To be sure, we can't know whether UNAMID has indeed failed so miserably as to have heard none of what Amnesty reports on the basis of more than 250 interviews that serve as the evidentiary backbone of its report, along with the searing photographs of chemically ravaged flesh—or whether there is lying or concealment of evidence at some level in whatever passes for a “reporting chain of command” in this deeply demoralized and impotent force. It is difficult to know which of these failings is greater, given the history of UNAMID over the past nine years (as of January 1, 2017).

The international community, then, has a stark choice:

[1] Believe UNAMID chief Uhomoibhi—and Ibrahim Ghandour, who represents a regime that has lied and abrogated treaty obligations on countless occasions, including continuously denying access in Darfur to UNAMID, despite having signed the Status of Forces Agreement of January 2008, which explicitly guarantees unfettered access to the Mission;

[2] Even in accepting that Khartoum will refuse to allow an investigation under the auspices of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, demand that such an investigation be conducted, thereby compelling Khartoum to violate again, and conspicuously, its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention.

The head of the UN's Department of Peacekeeping operations, Hervé Ladsous, has a dismal record on Darfur, but was cited by the UN News Center, several days after the release of the Amnesty report:

Regarding allegations that the Government had used chemical weapons in Jebel Marra, Mr. Ladsous said that the UN had not come across any evidence to support such claims. He pointed out, however, that UNAMID had consistently been denied access to conflict zones in Jebel Marra, and that the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) had stated, in an initial assessment, that it was not possible to draw any conclusions without further information and evidence being made available. (UN News Centre, October 4, 2016)

In fact, Ladsous seriously misrepresents here what OPCW has said to date; it does not include language supporting Ladsous' claim that OPCW had declared “it was not possible to draw any conclusions without further information and evidence being made available.” Here, in its entirety, is all that OPCW has reported on its website:

OPCW Examining NGO Report on Allegations of Chemical Weapons Use in Sudan

Thursday, 29 September 2016

In response to questions regarding the Amnesty International report, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is aware that Amnesty International issued the report, “Scorched Earth, Poisoned Air: Sudanese Government Forces Ravage Jebel Marra, Darfur,” which includes some allegations of the use of chemical weapons in the Darfur region of Sudan. OPCW shall certainly examine the reports and all other available relevant information.

Such disingenuous construal of the OPCW statement does little to encourage belief that the UN will take any meaningful part in at least forcefully demanding an investigation, even as it is the only way in which Amnesty's conclusions can be confirmed or disconfirmed on the basis of physical forensic analysis. In the end, Khartoum's view of things as represented at the UN by the regime's representative, Omer Dahab Fadl Mohamed, will prevail by default:

Sudan's UN Ambassador Omer Dahab Fadl Mohamed responded in a statement calling the Amnesty report “baseless and fabricated” and denying that his country had any chemical weapons. (Associated Press, October 1, 2016 | New York)
It is hardly headline news, but the Parliament of the European Union has demanded an investigation of Khartoum's chemical weapons use; but, conveniently for the countries nominally represented, the Parliament has negligible power or influence within the EU. In another quarter, France, Britain, the UK, and the U.S. have been mooted as possible initiators of a petition for investigation by the OPCW; but every day that passes makes this look less likely. The “moral obscenity” of chemical weapons use, as John Kerry would have it when it was expedient to say as much, is but another obscenity in an unfathomably grim and destructive genocidal counter-insurgency, now very nearly fourteen years in duration.

Eric Reeves has written extensively on Sudan for almost two decades; he is a Senior Fellow at Harvard University's François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights

October 10, 2016 (JUBA) - Several passengers traveling from the Ugandan capital, Kampala, across the border to Juba in South Sudan, are feared dead when three passengers' buses came under attack on the road on Monday by unknown gunmen.

General view of Juba Nimule road leading to Nimule Park and neighbouring Uganda (Pinterest photo)

The buses, according to eyewitnesses' accounts, were bombed at Jebel-Lein, about 40 kms from Juba on the road to Nimule, a South Sudanese border town to neighboring Uganda. One bus, belonging to Eco Bus company is burnt and two buses belonging to Friendship and Gateway Companies, respectively, were stopped at gunpoint by armed men, masked with black clothes. The passengers were abducted, one survivor told Sudan Tribune on Monday.

"When I passed the buses at Jebel-Lein, Eco Bus was burning. One can see human remains in the bus and blood all over the place. Two other passengers were empty," said Jobn, a traveler from Nimule who preferred to be identified by only first name.

John said he also helped in lifting survivors on to his vehicle and were carried to Juba teaching hospital. One survivor said she escaped from the gunmen who took several others hostage.

"The armed men fired at the first bus and it blocked the road. People started to jump down from the other buses but we were all held at gun point," said Mary, a woman in her 30s. Mary said she managed to escape and returned to the main road where she and two others met John.

John said his car was escorted by soldiers who have responded to the attack. The buses were traveling to Uganda and most of the passengers are South Sudanese and Ugandans. It is not clear how many people were onboard.

Juba-Nimule highway connects to neighboring Uganda, an important route which supplies the South Sudanese capital, Juba. But attacks on passenger buses and other commercial trucks have increased since fighting erupted in July between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and soldiers loyal to Riek Machar, the leader of the armed SPLM In Opposition (SPLM-IO) and former First Vice President in the Transitional Government of National Unity, who was ousted in a controversial process following the violence.

Machar fled Juba and remains in Khartoum, Sudan. He is replaced by his former chief peace negotiator, Taban Deng Gai, in a move criticized by his supporters as illegal. Gai, who has pledged to end the war, seems to lack military support among the SPLM-IO commanders.

Highway attacks, including killing of over 20 civilians on Juba-Yei road on Sunday have surged and appeared to be targeting the Dinka ethnic group, the tribe of President Kiir. Survivors of the attack on Yei road said they were singled out after being identified as Dinka and summarily executed, claims Sudan Tribune could not verify.

Two weeks ago, a car carrying Dinka Bor cattle keepers was attacked near Juba on Kajo-Keji road, killing over 10 people. No arrest has been made.

(ST)

African Union United Nations Mission in Darfur

Though the region of Darfur is relatively peaceful at this time, a small portion of Jebel Marra within Darfur continues to be intermittently volatile.

As the UN Secretary-General has always stressed, there can be no military solution to the conflict in the region. The challenge is: how can UNAMID best assist the Government of Sudan and the armed/non-signatory movements to stop fighting and engage in genuine political dialogue towards sustainable peace.

I welcome the unilateral declarations of cessation of hostilities in Darfur and call for the maintenance of these.

I welcome and support the on-going discussion on a cessation of hostilities document under the auspices of the African Union High Level Implementation Panel.

I met with Abdul Wahid in Paris, where he resides on July 11; upon my request he agreed to hold a meeting of the Sudan Liberation Army leadership cadres in mid-September of this year to consider joining the peace process. He asked for UNAMID's assistance. I agreed to assist but asked for a formal written letter to process the request. He agreed to write immediately but till date, has failed to do so in spite of my writing two reminders.

I would like to use this opportunity to call on all members of the United Nations and respective Special Envoys of influential countries to exert necessary pressure on the Sudan Liberation Army/Abdul Wahid, to join the peace process.

A major plank of UNAMID's mandate from the Security Council is to protect civilians in Darfur. UNAMID has encountered some challenges in implementing this responsibility in a small portion of Darfur.

Both sides in the conflict in Jebel Marra continue to hamper or deny access to the remaining enclave of the concerned armed movement in Darfur. UNAMID is not an interposition force. It is a peacekeeping force and needs collaboration of both sides in the conflict to protect all civilians.

I call on the International Community as well as all Special Envoys of countries concerned to exercise influence and ensure UNAMID has unrestricted access all over Jebel Marra.

However, UNAMID's request for humanitarian access for protection of civilians purposes has no link with the recent Amnesty International's claims on chemical weapons since the mandate to investigate use of chemical weapons belongs to a different organisation. Even with full access as agreed in the Status of Forces Agreement, UNAMID lacks mandate to investigate on use of chemical weapons.

Nonetheless, UNAMID has been requested to shed light on the claims in the Amnesty International's report and the facts are as follows:

In spite of the almost 20,000 UNAMID personnel on the ground in Darfur, none of them has seen any Darfuri with the impact of the use of chemical weapons as described by Amnesty International's report;

Not one displaced person meeting such description has shown up at any UNAMID Team Site clinics where they would have naturally gone for help.

Amnesty International claimed to have made calls into Jebel Marra but did not for once call any of the almost 20,000 UN personnel all over Darfur, including in places like Sortony and Nertiti within a stone throw from the places where chemical weapons were reported to have been used.

Not one among the leadership of the Armed Movements in Darfur discussed use of chemical weapons with me or my Deputy during several meetings spanning January, April, May, July, August and September this year.

9 October 2016

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

October 10, 2016 (ADDIS ABABA) – The Ethiopian government has declared a state of emergency in the wake of continued anti-government protests across its Oromia region.

Demonstrators chant slogans while flashing the Oromo protest gesture during Irreecha, the thanksgiving festival of the Oromo people, in Bishoftu town, Oromia region, Ethiopia, October 2, 2016 (Reuters Photo)

The state of emergency, passed by the Council of Ministers, was announced on Sunday by Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn for the next six months.

"The state of emergency was declared following a thorough discussion by the Council of Ministers on the loss of lives and property damages occurring in the country”, Desalegn said in a televised address to the nation.

According to the government, the state of emergency was declared in order to restore order and contain violent protests expanding to many parts of the Oromya region.

Renewed protests erupted earlier this month when a religious festival taking place in Oromia's Bishoftu town turned into a violet anti-government protests, claiming the lives of 55 in a stampede that was triggered after police fired tear gas to disperse protesters.

Following the deadly incident, the protests spread to many areas of the Oromia region.

Multiples sources told Sudan Tribune that protesters have so far attacked 11 factories, destroyed public and government properties since attacks in the region began.

They have also continued to block roads linking the region with the capital, Addis Ababa, and burned down many trucks and passenger buses among others.

"We put our citizens' safety first. Besides, we want to put an end to the damage that is being carried out against infrastructure projects, health centers, administration and justice buildings," said Desalegn, urging people to stand by government to restore order.

The state of emergency, which become effective from Saturday, 8 October, seeks to reverse the danger posed by forces working in collaboration with foreign enemies to undermine the safety of the people and security and stability of the country.

The Oromos initially staged demonstrations in late 2015 in protest to government plans to expand the capital's territory to parts of the Oromia region.

However, protesters are now calling for regime change alleging that the Ethiopian government has failed to respect political and economic rights of Oromo people.

Human Rights Watch said up to 500 people were killed in protests within the region.

Meanwhile internet access remained impossible in almost all parts of Addis Ababa.

Government blocked access to fixed line internet service and mobile data nearly a week ago, without any official explanations for the shutdown, although the move appears aimed at suppressing the protests since social media has played a huge role.

Access to internet was allowed Monday afternoon, but turned off after about an hour.

This is the second time since August for Ethiopia to block internet access. However, blocking internet access in the capital for nearly a week is unprecedented in the Horn of Africa nation.

(ST)

October 10, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir on Monday has declared the extension of the unilateral cessation of hostilities in war zones for two months disclosing that a national mechanism would be established to draft a permanent constitution for the country.

Al-Bashir, who addressed the closing session of the National Dialogue Conference on Monday in the presence of the presidents of Egypt, Chad, Mauritania and Uganda, vowed to take the necessary measures to implement the national document, saying he would continue to consult with all political and societal forces to follow up on the implementation of the national dialogue's recommendations.

The national document, which was approved by the political and armed forces participating in the dialogue conference, is expected to be the basis for drafting the permanent constitution.

The Sudanese president also announced the formation of a national mechanism to draft the permanent constitution on the basis of the national document in order to achieve political stability in the country, pledging to develop a national strategy to carry out the state reform in accordance with the dialogue's recommendations.

Al-Bashir renewed the call to the opposition groups to join the dialogue “in order not to miss the historic opportunity” of being part of the unprecedented national consensus that has been achieved through the national dialogue.

He said the national document would remain open for the holdout opposition groups who decide to join it in the future, declaring the extension of the ceasefire until the end of the year in order to create climate conducive for dialogue and peace.

Last June, al-Bashir declared a four-month unilateral cessation of hostilities in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan states where the Sudanese army has been fighting the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) rebels since June 2011.

In January 2014, al-Bashir called on political parties and armed groups to engage in a national dialogue to discuss four issues, including ending the civil war, allowing political freedoms, fighting against poverty and revitalizing national identity.

However, the political and armed opposition refuse to join the process, saying a genuine dialogue must start by stopping the war, delivering humanitarian assistance, allowing freedoms and releasing political detainees and convicts and then coming together in a forum that is not controlled by any party.

For his part, the Chadian President Idriss Deby called for the implementation of the dialogue's recommendations, demanding the opposition to join the process in order to resolve the country's problems peacefully.

The Egyptian President Abdel-Fatah al-Sisi described the national dialogue as “important milestone in the history of Sudan”, praising al-Bashir's bravery for making fateful decisions to maintain his country's sovereignty.

Mauritania's leader Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, for his part, said the national dialogue would give strong boost to peace and development efforts in Sudan.

Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, also hailed as “great and important achievement for the political class in the country” the consensus that has been achieved by the national dialogue.

He pointed that Sudan missed a lot of opportunities in education and development during 60 years since independence, vowing that Kampala would exert every possible effort to help achieve peace in Sudan.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Opposition's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), led by Mayada Soar al-Dahab, announced on Sunday its withdrawal from the heterogeneous alliance of Future Forces for Change (FFC) just hours after the latter signed an agreement with the national dialogue mechanism, accordingly it accepted to participate in the national dialogue conference.

Presidential Assistant Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid and FFC Deputy Chairman Abdel Gadir Ibrahim Ali Saturday signed a framework agreement titled "Areas for an agreement on cooperation and solidarity'' providing they will discuss "joint political initiatives to promote the dialogue, especially those relating to the participation of any other political force".

Also, to advertise for the political event the dialogue body released banners and posters with pictures of the participants in Monday's conference. The CCF leader Ghazi Salah al-Din appears in these banners besides political figures from the ruling party and other participants.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune Sunday, the LDP reiterated its rejection for any dialogue with the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) that does not pave the way for political inclusiveness, stop war and ensure freedoms. Also, it refused to take part in the current national dialogue.

The social democratic group, LDP, has vowed to work with all political forces that seek "to meet Sudanese's people aspirations for democratic reforms" .

"The National Dialogue General Assembly is held at a time where is missing the minimum of requirements that serve Sudanese people. Also it does not achieve the minimum of possible demands such as ending the ongoing war in Darfur region, South Kordofan and Blue Nile states," said the LDP.

The statement stressed that the party's leadership decided to withdraw from the FFC in line with the General Convention of the party which mandates the leadership to decide what it believes appropriate regarding the political alliances.

Ii went further to say that since its general convention, the LDP has kept calling for change with all peaceful means.

The liberal party pointed to its adherence to the confidence building measures included in the African Union plan for peace in Sudan and accepted by all the opposition parties as prerequisite to create conducive environment before to participate in the dialogue process.

It further said that it would join the national dialogue when the regime implements these measures by stopping war, allowing humanitarian access, ensuring freedoms and transitional justice and establishing a comprehensive dialogue.

"Any dialogue that is not based on the accountability of perpetrators of (human rights) violations during the rule of this regime can not be credible,” further added the opposition group.

The FFC, which gathers NCP splinter Islamist groups, liberal or left parties, held a series of meetings facilitated by the African Union mediation to prepare them to join a holistic process. At the same time, the coalition agreed with the opposition Sudan Call to coordinate efforts for an inclusive dialogue within the framework of the African Union roadmap.

October 9, 2016 (JUBA) – The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby has appointed the bishop of Kajo-Keji Diocese in South Sudan, Rt. Rev. Anthony Poggo as his new adviser for Anglican Communion affairs.

Kajo-Keji Diocese Bishop Rt. Rev. Anthony Poggo (ENS photo)

“I am absolutely delighted that Bishop Anthony is joining the team at Lambeth,” Welby told Episcopal News Service (ENS).

“He brings the experience of his ministry in one of the most challenging provinces in the Anglican Communion where he has faithfully served the church as a pastor and teacher,” he added.

Throughout his ministry, Poggo has reportedly been engaged with the profound issues, which many parts of the Communion face, where famine, war, and violent ethnic tensions destabilise society and leave whole communities living in poverty.

“He is well known and respected throughout the Communion and I am most grateful to Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul for releasing Bishop Anthony as a gift to the wider church. His appointment provides a necessary voice and perspective from the global south in the team at Lambeth. I look forward to working with Bishop Anthony to strengthen our relationships around the Provinces at a significant time in the life of the Communion,” Welby stressed.

On 4 October, according to ENS, Deng Bul joined Poggo in the Diocese of Kajo-Keji where the news of the appointment was given.

His appointment comes following an extensive selection process which attracted applications from across the Anglican Communion.

Meanwhile Poggo said he was delighted to accept Welby's invitation and appointment to join the team at Lambeth Palace.

“I look forward to working together with colleagues at Lambeth to support the Archbishop of Canterbury in his ministry,” he told ENS.

He further added, “I appreciate the support from Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul in releasing me from our current role in Kajo-Keji so as to make a contribution in the global Anglican Communion. Jane, Joy and I are excited at this next phase of our ministry.”

Before his ordination in 1995, Bishop Poggo worked with Scripture Union. From 2002, however, he served with ACROSS, becoming its executive director in 2004. He was elected bishop of the Diocese of Kajo-Keji in the Episcopal Church of South Sudan in 2007.

In 2012, Poggo was awarded an honorary doctorate for his role in the mobilizing the church in service of the community. He holds a Master of Arts in biblical studies from Nairobi International School of Theology, now called International Leadership University, and a Master of Business Administration from Oxford Brookes University.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (JUBA) – The Swiss-based coffee maker Nespresso has announced a temporary halt in coffee operations in war-torn South Sudan.

A woman handpicking Arabica cofee (restorethebean)

"We had to temporarily suspend our operations in the country. It is the third time this happened since we started working there," Nespresso spokeswoman, Jacquelyn Campo told Reuters.

"The situation has deteriorated and is very difficult at the moment," she added.

The U.S. aid arm (USAID) has injected $3.18 million over the next three years to train smallholder farmers to boost production in South Sudan's coffee sector. The funding is reportedly part of a public-private partnership with Nespresso and international development consultancy TechnoServe.

Last year, Nespresso shipped its first volumes of coffee production from South Sudan, marking the first non-oil exports out of the country in over a generation.

Since it started revive coffee production in the war-torn nation in 2011, around 1,000 smallholder farmers have reportedly been trained in agribusiness techniques and about three-quarters of them now commercially-engaged.

At least six coffee cooperatives have since been established, in addition to having in place the first wet mill processing unit in the world's youngest nation.

According to Nespresso, the company's investment of over US$ 2.5 million in reviving the production of high-quality South Sudanese coffee since 2011 demonstrates the potential for commercial coffee production in the country.

As part of the expansion of its sustainably quality program in Africa, Nespresso says it aims to ensure it has invested over US$ 3.4 million in the project by end of 2016.

Although South Sudan has vast and largely untapped natural resources, beyond a few oil enclaves, it remains relatively undeveloped, characterized by a subsistence economy. South Sudan is the most oil-dependent country in the world, with oil accounting for almost the totality of exports, and around 60% of its gross domestic product. On current reserve estimates, oil production is expected to reduce steadily in future years and become negligible by 2035.

According to the World Bank, livelihoods in South Sudan are mainly concentrated in low productive, unpaid agriculture and pastoralists work, accounting for around 15% of GDP.

“In fact 85% of the working population in South Sudan is engaged in non-wage work, chiefly in agriculture,” it says.

The South Sudanese conflict had a significant financial impact on the country as increase in military expenditure greatly reduced availability of resources for service delivery and capital spending on the much-needed infrastructure.

According to South Sudan's Petroleum ministry, oil prices decreased by 40% from $29.75 per barrel in December 2015 to $18 per barrel in January 2016. Production also significantly declined over the same period, cutting gross oil revenue by more than half from $29.7 million in December to $10.8 million in January.

The decline in oil revenue has reportedly also had a negative impact on macro-budgetary indicators, requiring austere fiscal adjustments in South Sudan's economy.

Investing in coffee offers a unique chance to diversify South Sudan's oil-dependent economy, build peace and offer a glimmer of hope for the country.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's Foreign Ministry has said that the head of the hybrid peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) Martin Uhomoibhi stressed that his mission didn't receive any piece of information that chemical weapons have been used in Darfur.

Late last month, Amnesty International reported that over 200 people had been killed in Darfur Jebel Marra area by banned chemical weapons since January 2016. But the government denied the claims.

The group published pictures and accounts of 56 witnesses of the alleged chemical attack who spoke about "poisonous smoke" vomit blood, struggle to breathe and watch as their skin falls off.

The Sudanese government dismissed Amnesty's allegations as “fabricated and unfounded accusations”, pointing that it aims to obstruct “the pioneering efforts” to achieve peace and stability and to promote reconciliation in Sudan.

The U.N. peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous Tuesday said the United Nations had no evidence on the use of chemical weapons by the Sudanese government in Darfur, and called on Khartoum to cooperate with future investigations by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

On Sunday, Sudan's Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour has discussed with Uhomoibhi the recent developments in Darfur besides his contacts with the non-signatory groups of the Doha peace document.

In a press statement extended to Sudan Tribune on Sunday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Gharib Allah Khidir said Uhomoibhi told Ghandour that in spite of the almost 20,000 UNAMID personnel on the ground in Darfur, none of them has seen any Darfuri with the impact of the use of chemical weapons as described by Amnesty International's report.

He added the UNAMID chief informed Ghandour that not one displaced person meeting such description has shown up at any UNAMID Team Site clinics where they would have naturally gone for help.

The statement pointed that Uhomoibhi said not one among the leadership of the Armed Movements in Darfur discussed use of chemical weapons with him or his deputy during several meetings spanning January, April, May, July, August and September this year.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (JUBA) – South Sudanese SPLM-In Opposition has criticized the United States (U.S.) for renewing military support to the government under the leadership of President Salva Kiir, saying it was a “wrong decision” to support an army that allegedly “rapes, tortures and kills” civilians in the country.

A U.S. Special Forces trainer supervises a military assault drill for a unit within the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) conducted in Nzara on the outskirts of Yambio November 29, 2013. (Photo Reuters/Andreea Campeanu)

The opposition group also said the support would help the government to afford the ongoing civil war and encourage it to continue with the military offensives against the opposition forces under the leadership of the ousted former First Vice President, Riek Machar.

On Friday, President Barack Obama issued a decision to continue U.S. military assistance to the troubled South Sudan despite the use of child soldiers in the troubled country and against the suggestion by the international community to impose arms embargo on the nation.

The waiver also circumvents the 2008 Child Soldiers Prevention Act, which is meant to block military assistance to countries recruiting children in their armies.

While the South Sudanese government has welcomed what it described as a positive policy shift by the U.S. and the “right thing to do,” the opposition faction l, said this showed how the outgoing U.S. administration had “confused” on how to approach the situation in South Sudan.

“This is a very unfortunate wrong decision to support the regime's army which has committed documented civilian massacres, war crimes and crimes against humanity for the past three years,” said opposition leader's spokesman, James Gatdet Dak, in reaction to the U.S. military assistance to Juba.

“The outgoing U.S. administration should not reward with military assistance an army known for killing and torturing ordinary citizens, and for raping women, including United States citizens, as recently occurred at Terrain Hotel in Juba. The United States should not reward the undisciplined army of the leadership whose soldiers shot at American diplomats within the vicinity of the Republican Palace in Juba. And why would the United States government support the factional army which has renewed the civil war in the country by violating the August 2015 peace agreement and has been on offensive against opposition forces in escalating the war,” Dak further inquired.

He suggested that the opposition faction would have expected the U.S. government to rather push for imposition of arms embargo on South Sudan's government instead of supporting the government's “war machinery” in the country.

Dak claimed that President Kiir's government has not been directing the security sector budgets to security sector reforms but has been rather purchasing weapons to fight internal wars which he keeps on creating in order to maintain his dictatorial rule and give no chance for peace and democratic processes.

He challenged that supporting with military aid President Kiir's army which is also commanded by some of the U.N. and U.S. sanctioned senior officers is a “great confusion” on the part of the “outgoing” U.S. administration on how to approach the situation in the country.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (JUBA) - South Sudanese President, Salva Kiir, has dispatched a high-level delegation to Yei state over the rising insecurity in the area south of the national capital, Juba, where roads have been blocked by armed local forces allied to the SPLM-In Opposition.

President Salva Kiir addresses the nation from the State House on September 15, 2015, in Juba (Photo AFP/Charles Atiki Lomodong)

The delegation which flew into Yei by air on Saturday is tasked to find out the causes of the rising insecurity in the state and to come out with a way through which the situation can be addressed.

President Kiir, according to multiple presidential aides, has mandated the delegation led by former governor of Central Equatoria state, Clement Wani Konga, who is the current presidential advisor for special affairs with Daniel Awet Akot, presidential advisor on political affairs, to assess the security situation in the area, particularly the causes behind the targeted killings and massive displacement of civilians in the state, which has been blamed on government forces.

Also the area's members of council of states, national parliament and security organs are among the delegates.

The delegation arrived Yei town, the administrative headquarters of the new state, on Saturday afternoon by air, just hours after commercial vehicles fell into ambush by gunmen, resulting in the death of up to 21 people. Several others fled into the bush while many others sustained injuries.

The identity of the group responsible for the attacks remains unclear. Government accuses dissident armed youth from the area allied to the former First Vice President Riek Machar of allegedly being responsible for the attacks and called for regional designation of the group as “terrorists.”

Yei State Information Minister, Stephen Lado Onesmo, confirmed the arrival of the delegation and said they are expected to hold a public rally on Monday after meeting with security organs, members of state parliament, religious leaders, and traditional leaders in Yei.

He said the purpose of the visit of the delegation to the area is to investigate the root causes of the ongoing violent conflict in order to find amicable approaches to the problem in the state and to take the grievances of the people of Yei to President Kiir.

The state government under the leadership of the former Yei County Commissioner, turned governor, David Lokonga Moses, said it prioritizes peaceful dialogue as a viable means to resolving the conflict.

They have been clashes between rival forces in Yei state with the opposition forces threatening to close all the roads in the state and attack towns.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (JUBA) - South Sudan army (SPLA) issued a statement on Sunday, seeking regional support that could see its armed oppostion faction (SPLM-IO) led by the country's former vice-president, Riek Machar designated as a "terrorist" group.

Rebel fighters aligned with former vice-president Riek Machar gather in a village in South Sudan's Upper Nile state on 8 February 2014 (Photo: Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

The army spokesman, Brig. Lul Ruai Koang told the state-owned SSBC that 21 people were confirmed dead after several commercial vehicles travelling along the Yei-Juba road were attacked at Ganji area Saturday morning.

“Yes, I would like to confirm that this unfortunate incident has occurred. It took place yesterday morning on Saturday when vehicles carrying citizens who were going to Juba came under attack. They were ambushed by the opposition at an area called Ganyi and they killed 21 people, and about 20 others were wounded," said Koang.

He further claimed a man, 15 children and five women lost their lives, while 20 others sustained injuries. The attackers, he added, also burnt a commercial vehicle.

“We are heading to the area to bury those people now," said the army spokesperson, who claimed a faction allied to Machar carried out Saturday's attack.

“We always tell people that Riek Machar has no programs. He has no vision. We always tell this to the international community that there will not be peace because of Riek Machar. His interest is only to return to power at expense of the suffering of the people of South Sudan. He is a violent man. So we call upon IGAD,Troika, and friends of South Sudan to declare Riek Machar's forces as terrorists," Koang, an ex-SPLM-IO stressed.

Survivors of the attack, family members and eyewitnesses said several passengers were killed after a vehicle travelling to Juba from Yei came under attack near Lainya.

The attackers, a survivor narrated, wore masks when they attacked the vehicle.

"Few people jumped out of the vehicle and ran into the bush when the lorry came to a halt. Afterwards the gunmen systematically started separating people on the basis of ethnicity from others by asking people whether there were members of ethnic Dinka, a tribe of president Salva Kiir or not," he told Sudan Tribune Sunday.

Those found to be ethnic Dinka, an eyewitness said, were executed, including women and children and then burnt the vehicle, claims Sudan Tribune could not easily substantiate.

*Among the dead were four children who were 13, 11, 8 and 7 years old. The bodies of the children were brought to Juba. Many of the bodies have not yet been recovered and the exact number of the people who died among the 200 passengers has not yet been ascertained," explained the eyewitness

The attack comess in the wake of another incident in which 14 members of ethnic Dinka were killed in a similar ambush a week ago just few kilometers outside Juba.

South Sudan President Salva Kiir is an ethnic Dinka and his performance is attributed to the role the Jieng Council of Eders (JCE) has been playing in managing the affairs of the young nation, resulting in alleged targeting of innocent civilians from other tribes.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The procedural session of Sudan's National Dialogue Conference on Sunday has approved the national document which would constitute the basis for drafting the country's permanent constitution.

Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir listen to the National anthem during opening session of Sudan National Dialogue conference October 10, 2015 (REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)

The document was signed by leaders of political parties and armed groups participating in the dialogue, while additional political parties are expected to endorse the document ahead of the final session on Monday.

Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir, who chaired the procedural session, said the national document reflects the will of the Sudanese people and serves as basis to govern the country.

He welcomed the Future Forces of Change (FFC), the National Forces Alliance (NFA) and the sacked figure of the National Umma Party (NUP) Mubarak al-Mahdi for joining the dialogue conference.

The Sudanese president stressed that the national document has expressed views and aspirations of all political forces including the opposition, adding the “door will remain open for anyone who wishes to join it”.

He further pointed that the consensus of the Sudanese political forces would shut the door on those whom he called the “conspirators” who target the country through war, economic sanctions and the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In January 2014, al-Bashir called on political parties and armed groups to engage in a national dialogue to discuss four issues, including ending the civil war, allowing political freedoms, fighting against poverty and revitalizing national identity.

Launched on 10 October 2015 for three months, the dialogue process was initially expected to wind up in January 2016 but it was delayed until October 10th.

Rebel groups and opposition parties refuse to join Khartoum process as they demand the government to end war and ensure freedoms in the country before. However, the U.S. backed talks brokered by the African Union are deadlocked, over the confidence building measures.

PHONE CONVERSATION WITH AL-MAHDI

Meanwhile, al-Bashir on Sunday disclosed that he had a phone conversation with Sadiq al-Mahdi the leader of the opposition National Umma Party (NUP) in which he urged him to join the government-led national dialogue.

In his address before the procedural session on Sunday, al-Bashir said he spoke with al-Mahdi just moments before the outset of the session, noting he told him that “your natural place should be among the participants in the dialogue”.

This phone conversation is considered the first of its kind since al-Mahdi left the country in August 2014 after he suspended his participation in the dialogue and forged a new alliance with the armed opposition Sudan Revolutionary Forces (SRF).

At the time, al-Bashir vowed to try al-Mahdi, who has been based in Cairo since, once he returns to Sudan unless he disavows his alliance with the SRF.

Also, the National Dialogue Secretary General Hashim Ali Salim on Sunday said al-Mahdi sent a letter to the general secretariat in which he underscored that if recommendations of the dialogue were implemented smoothly, they would pave the road for drafting a national constitution and establishing a national rule.

According to Salim, al-Mahdi pointed that Sudan is in dire need to stop the war and achieve peace.

Salim added that he responded to al-Mahdi's letter by saying “your seat [in the dialogue] is vacant and there is no reason for you to be away”.

NUP CRITICISES DIALOGUE CONFERENCE

In the same context, the NUP has criticized the dialogue conference saying it was dominated by the ruling party and its chairman.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune on Sunday, the NUP said that al-Bashir had previously agreed with them that no single party should have the right to decide on national issues including dialogue, peace and governance or isolate others.

It criticized al-Bashir's personal dominance over the dialogue's podium and sessions besides the works of the committees, saying the dialogue has turned into a “monologue”.

The statement described the national dialogue conference as “missing opportunity” and “mere play” that would bring nothing new, saying the NUP has nothing to do with this dialogue.

The NUP reiterated the call to hold a genuine dialogue preparatory meeting, saying dialogue must start by stopping the war, delivering humanitarian assistance, allowing freedoms and releasing political detainees and convicts and then coming together in a forum that is not controlled by any party.

The statement further described the dialogue conference as a meeting between the government and its allies, saying the political and armed opposition will never join such a dialogue.

(ST)

October 9, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors (CCSD) announced on Sunday that hospitals of regular forces joined a strike they started last Thursday.

CCSD, an independent doctors union, announced on Thursday that doctors will refuse non-emergency treatments to patients to protest the poor working conditions, lack of medicines and protection of doctors after increasing attacks on medical staff by frustrated patients and their families.

CCSD Spokesperson Dr. Hossam al-Amin al-Badawi told Sudan Tribune that doctors working at Al-Amal Hospital, run by the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) and Al-Silah Al-Tibi Hospital, run by the Sudan's Armed Forces (SAF) joined the strike, adding that the Police Hospital doctors are preparing to join the movement.

Al-Badawi pointed out that the doctors in the hospitals of regular forces are attached to the Ministry of Health, stressing that the strike is constantly widening as the number of striking hospitals reached 78 hospitals across the country compared to 65 hospitals last Friday.

He revealed that the directors of health centres in Khartoum are meeting and expected that they join the strike, as 26 medical centres in Omdurman joined the protest along with some private hospitals.

The spokesperson stressed that the strike will continue until doctors' demands are addressed despite the harassment faced by the doctors in a number of states.

The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) denounced the strike and minimized the impact of attacks on doctors. Khartoum State Minister of Health Mamoun Humaida said the opposition-backed strike is highly "politicized"

In a related context, the Chairman of General Union of Health and Medical Professions (GUHMP), Yasir Ahmed, said that health institutions run by the regular forces received a lot of civilian patients and offered the needed medical services after the public hospitals went on strike.

(ST)

October 8, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The opposition Future Forces for Change (CCF) and two rebel groups from Darfur region Saturday said they will participate in the dialogue conference next Monday.

The opening session of the first roundtable on Sudan's national dialogue in Khartoum on 6 April 2014 (SUNA)

The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and the allied forces participating in the conference endorsed the recommendations of the different panels as they prepare to hold a meeting in Khartoum by attended by several regional leaders.

The meeting will take place without the holdout armed and political groups that were initially meant by the process in order to end the armed conflict in the Two Areas and Darfur.

However, the CCF led by Ghazi Salah al-Din Attabani agreed on Saturday to "participate in the dialogue mechanisms established in accordance with the Roadmap Document of 2014.

The agreement which was signed by the Presidential Assistant Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid of CCF Deputy Chairman Abdel Gadir Ibrahim Ali, provides they will discuss "joint political initiatives to promote the dialogue, especially those relating to the participation of any other political force".

The head of the African Union mediation team, Thabo Mbeki sought in the past to encourage the CCF to engage discussions with the dialogue committee in order to include them in a future holistic process.

The Sudan Call also said they would include the CCF in a national process they would hold without the NCP, as they would not attend Monday's conference.

The government slammed the holdout opposition groups saying they are not serious about peace and dialogue and stressed they would go ahead with the outcome of the conference without waiting the opposition Sudan Call forces.

DARFUR GROUPS

The rebel Sudan Liberation Movement for Justice (SLMJ) led by Taher Hajer and the Sudan Liberation Movement-the Second Revolution (SLM-SR), led by Abul Gasim Imam told Sudan tribune Sunday they will attend the final session of the dialogue conference.

Although SLMJ and SLM-SR are not a signatory of the Doha document for Peace in Darfur, Imam and Hajer attended the opening session of the dialogue conference in October 2015 but he left the country on the plane of the Chadian leader Idriss Deby who convinced him to take part in the event.

Also, delegations from the two movement participated in the deliberations of the dialogue's six committees.

Hajer told Sudan Tribune on Saturday that they accepted the invitation to attend the National Dialogue General Conference in completion of their previous participation and to confirm SLMJ seriousness to achieve solution for Sudan's intractable problems.

He added his movement participates in the dialogue despite the fact that it didn't sign a peace deal with the government, pointing they seek to achieve national objectives to re-establish the Sudanese state on a new basis.

Hajer stressed that national dialogue is not a substitute for negotiation and peaceful solution with regard to the war-affected regions, saying issues pertaining to Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile must be discussed in the negotiations forums.

Imam for his part, also told Sudan Tribune he would travel to Khartoum on Sunday to attend the concluding meeting of the national dialogue; and the signing of a national document that establishes the Sudanese state on new bases".

Regarding the peace talks they are supposed to hold with the government, he added the conference will be followed by other steps to address the root causes of the crises in the war affected areas under the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur.

"This will take place after the end of the dialogue conference and the completion of consultations between the parties and the Qatari mediation," he said.

(ST)