Sudan Tribune

June 15 (YAMBIO) - A reintegration project targeting conflict affected communities has been launched in Yambio by the governor of the newly created Gbudue state. The three-year project, supported by UNICEF, targets women, children and youth who have been demobilized from the armed groups operating in Western Equatoria state.

Governor Patrick Zamoi said the youth and community in general will be empowered with skills on peace building; while the returning armed youth will be provided with vocational training to enable them earn money to sustain their families.

“We really completely forget about vocational schools to provide skills to our people and we had been so busy with IT as the computer come as new way to us but not vocational training. We need to provide skills to these people so that they will be in position to provide jobs for themselves and take care of their families,” Governor Zamoi said.

He also said Boda-boda [motor bikes business] cannot lead the youth anywhere, saying it is the obligation of the government with the partners from the international non-governmental organizations to find the best solution to the youth who are idle and creating problems in the state.

Following the signing of peace agreement between the government and the South Sudan National Liberation Movement (SSNLM) on 2 April, 2016, in Yambio, the government through its relevant structures has embarked on peace building and reintegration activities as an effort to restore hope, peace and security of the conflict affected people.

State minister of education, gender, child and social welfare, Pia Philip, said his ministry will champion the three years project, adding it has secured funds from UNICEF to organize workshops on conflict resolution and peace building in the five counties of Gbudue state.

Pia stated that the objective of the project is to create conducive environment for the proper reintegration into the society of the children, youth and women associated with conflict.

“The stakeholders need to understand the different paradigms of conflict, acceptance and forgiveness, forge a local mechanism of managing conflict at the Payam levels,” he said.

He added that realities for the youth are changing including the loss of traditional livelihoods and widespread urbanization.

Jobs are being created in urban areas but these are offered to foreigners who have the requisite skills.

“With no jobs or skills, he added, the marginalized youth choose violence and that means coming together based on shared tribal and political interests and poverty also contribute to the conflict [and] gangs on the roads in South Sudan,” he said.

The opening ceremony started with a three-day workshop which drew participants from various payams in Yambio county. The project will be extended to other counties and in schools to inculcate peace into the community and youth in particular.

(ST)

June 15, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's Minister of Information Ahmed Bilal said the opposition Sudan Call forces are divided and fragmented and wouldn't unite and pointed they are waiting for the outcome of the pressures to compel them to sign the Roadmap Agreement.

Sudanese Information Minister Ahmed al-Balal Osman speaks during a press conference in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on June 9, 2013. ( Photo AFP/ASHRAF SHAZLY)

Last March, the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) and the Sudanese government signed a framework agreement calling to stop war in Blue Nile, Darfur, and South Kordofan and to engage in the national dialogue process.

However, four of the Sudan Call forces refused to sign the peace plan saying it excludes important opposition groups, acknowledges the internal dialogue process and ignores important confidence building measures such as ensuring political freedoms and release of political prisoners and detainees.

On Monday, leaders of the Sudan Call forces issued conflicting statements regarding a proposed meeting of the alliance to decide whether or not to meet the chief African mediator Thabo Mbeki to discuss the peace deal.

The rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) accused several quarters including the Sudanese government of obfuscating on the Sudan Call meeting.
However, Osman described the SPLM-N accusations as an “attempt to justify the opposition failure”, saying the government has nothing to do with the opposition meeting.

Osman, who is also the government spokesperson, told the pro-government Sudan Media Center (SMC) that the SPLM-N and the Sudan Call forces failed to achieve unity in several meetings including in Paris and Berlin, adding the opposition parties can't agree with each other.

He pointed that the government didn't receive any official notification from any party that the opposition has agreed to sign the Roadmap Agreement despite the pressures that have been exerted on them, saying “we are waiting for the results [of these pressures]”.

Sudan Call forces had earlier disclosed that international parties including the United States (US) are making efforts to convince them to endorse the Roadmap Agreement.

MAHDI'S COMMENTS ON THE DIALOGUE OUTCOME

Meanwhile, the ruling political secretary of the National Congress Party (NCP) Hamid Mumtaz has described the recent remarks of the National Umma Party (NUP) leader al-Sadiq al-Mahdi on the outcome of the dialogue conference as proof of the inclusivity of the national dialogue.

Last week, al-Mahdi disclosed he got a copy of the recommendations that the internal dialogue conference has reached and stressed they are surprisingly identical with so many agendas that the opposition forces are calling for.

Mumtaz also told SMC that the ongoing dialogue's arrangements were meant to approve the recommendations according to the desires of the Sudanese people and the political forces.

He said that fixing the date of the general assembly has sent a message for those who doubted the feasibility of the dialogue initiative, adding that the dialogue is currently in its third phase and the general assembly would approve the final recommendations.

Following its meeting with President Omer al-Bashir on Sunday, Sudan's dialogue body known as 7+7 committee said that the national dialogue's general assembly would be held on August 6th.

Mumtaz stressed that his party would go forward to complete the political consensus and implement its outcome in order to achieve the national objectives that aim to unify the internal front to confront the challenges facing the country and on top of which realizing security and stability.

He praised the efforts of the African mediation to convince the opposition holdout groups to join the dialogue.

The internal dialogue conference was inaugurated in Khartoum on October 10th, 2015 amid large boycott from the major political and armed opposition.

(ST)

June 15, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood has split following differences between the Shura (Consultative) Council and the Controller General Ali Jawish on decisions made by the latter to postpone the General Conference and disband group's offices.

Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood Controller General Ali Jawish (SUNA file photo)

The Sudanese branch of the Brotherhood has undergone two famous splits over the last four decades. The first split occurred in 1969 when a group led by the late Hassan al-Turabi founded the Islamic Charter Front (ICF) while the second spilt was led by the late Suleiman Abu Naru in 1991.

An emergency meeting of the Shura Council on Wednesday has decided to relieve Jawish and appoint the former Controller General Al-Hibir Youssif Nour al-Daem in his place on a temporary basis and until the General Conference is being held.

Member of Shura Council Omer al-Hibir told Sudan Tribune that the emergency meeting followed a series of decisions taken by Jawish to disband the group's organs including the Executive Office and the Shura Council as well as postponing the General Conference which was scheduled to take place in July and appointing a committee to run the group's affairs temporarily.

He described Jawish's decisions as an “unjustified coup” to impose a new reality within the group in order to maintain the interests of specific members before holding the General Conference.

Al-Hibir stressed that the meeting Nour al-Daeam was assigned to carry out the tasks of the Controller General until holding the General Conference in mid-October.

He pointed that the emergency meeting, which Jawish didn't attend despite his membership in the Shura Council, also decided to suspend membership of all those whose names appeared on the list of the committee which was appointed by Jawish to run the group's affairs and to replace them by other members in the Executive Office.

Al-Hibir further described the move as “a de facto split”, saying it was caused by an old difference regarding a decision to merge with the group that had split in 1991.

Last January, the two groups signed an agreement to merge in one group under the name of the Muslim Brotherhood.

It is noteworthy that the Muslim Brotherhood led by Jawish had abandoned its partnership with the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) following the latter's recognition of the Egyptian President Abde-Fatah al-Sisi who overthrow the regime of the former President Mohamed Morsi.

For his part, Jawish said his decisions were aimed to make the group avoid serious risks that could lead to a third split as has occurred in 1969 and 1991.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune

Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood Controller General Ali Jawish (SUNA file photo)

Wednesday, he said that a small group has been meeting since four years ago to control the Muslim Brotherhood and change its course during the upcoming General Conference.

He said that he was forced to make those decisions in order to maintain the unity, history and future of the Muslim Brotherhood.

“The General Conference has been delayed and the existing organs [of the group] including the Shura Council, the Executive Offices and its subcommittees within measures that seek to maintain the unity and coherence of the group,” he said.

Jawish further called upon the members to name a group of secretaries to run the work alongside the Controller General, pointing that a new Shura Commission has been formed from the states' officials to approve a temporary plan until the General Conference elects new leadership and develop a comprehensive work plan.

(ST)

June 15, 2016 (JUBA) – South Sudan's national army, the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), said they have repulsed “bandits” who had earlier on overrun Raja, the administrative capital of the newly-established Lol state in Greater Bahr el Ghazal region.

A SPLA soldier stands in front of a vehicle in Juba on December 20, 2013. (Photo Reuters/Goran Tomasevic)

The SPLA spokesperson, Brig. Lul Ruai Koang, acknowledged that fighting erupted inside Raja town on Wednesday morning when fighters he described as “criminals” and “bandits” overran the town and chased out of the town senior government officials, including the state governor, Rizik Zachariah Hassan who fled in disarray.

“In the early hours of Wednesday, June 15, 2016, armed criminals and bandits attacked SPLA's defensive position in Raga town. The attackers have been repulsed and mopping operations is going,” Koang said.

“More updates will follow,” he added, in a press statement he issued on Wednesday evening, nearly 12 hours after the state capital was seized by the unknown gunmen.

Koang also assured the citizens of the SPLA's ability to defend them, despite the fall of the state capital under the control of the gunmen on Wednesday morning.

“SPLA would like to assure the people of South Sudan that it has ability and capability to defeat armed criminals/bandits against the implement of peace agreement and reconciliation,” he said.

It was unclear why it took the whole day delay for the army's official spokesperson to inform the nation about the incident. He did not also explain how the attackers entered the state capital and what were the casualties involved.

In the attack, which occurred while governor Rizik Zechariah Hassen and his cabinet were in a meeting in Raga, the unknown gunmen stormed the state capital, forcing the cabinet members to flee from the town and run in different directions for their safety.

While governor Hassan was reported to have successfully escaped up to Aweil West county, some of his officials' whereabouts, including the deputy governor, were not known during the day.

Koang, in his statement, also called on their partner's co-national army, the Sudan People's Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO), to help the SPLA fight the attackers.

SPLA-IO is under the command of the First Vice President, Riek Machar, while SPLA is under the command of President Salva Kiir. The two are co-national armies per the August 2015 peace agreement until they will be reunified in the years to come.

Although no group has declared responsibility for the assault on Raga, chiefs of the area had earlier voiced their rejection to the creation of the new Lol state which combines Raja county with parts of Northern Bahr el Ghazal state.

The area also witnessed presence of the SPLA-IO forces that have not yet been cantoned or assembled.

Residents of Raja said the gunmen were seen in the town, suggesting they had taken control of the state capital Wednesday morning.

Fighting continued in the afternoon when SPLA sent in reinforcements to recapture Raja.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (JUBA) – Juba University students of the ruling party of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) have won the students leadership election against the SPLM-IO and other political parties in a “fair” election, a senior staff of Juba University has revealed.

University of Juba (File photo )

Also no bullets were fired in the air by security personnel to disperse the students during the election as reported on Monday.

John Akec, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Juba, told Sudan Tribune on Wednesday that the alliance group of the SPLM and the African National Congress (ANC) party in South Sudan won the students election by 51% on Monday.

He said the students of the SPLM-IO with their alliance with the Democratic Party (DC) of Lam Akol and other political parties came second with 33% of votes. Independent students got 8% of the votes.

Akec further narrated that of 3,000 eligible votes, 2,000 were cast, but 8% of the votes were disqualified across all the three competing groups.

The polling stations, he added, were well organized and two observers from every party competing was present at each station.

“There were three polling stations and elections started around 9am closed around 6pm. At every polling station there [were] two student observers from every political party contesting the elections,” he said.

“An Election Committee was headed by the Dean of Students in which all political parties have a representative as well as representative of independent candidates. There was also an Oversight Committee comprising three senior professors/academics,” he added.

He further said that counting of the votes began immediately around 6pm and finished around 11pm, stressing that all political parties' observers approved the results of the election.

“All political parties observers at each of the three polling stations were asked to sign the counting results as fair.”

NO BULLETS FIRED

Akec dismissed the allegation reported on Monday that security personnel fired bullets into the air in the University premises to disperse the students and abort the election.

“I am writing to dispel what has featured in this ST [Sudan Tribune] news report as baseless. There has never been such incident at the University of Juba. The whole election process happened on Monday and was very peaceful,” Akec said in an email sent to the Sudan tribune.

He however confirmed that there was a minor incident when an “individual” tried to enter the Juba University compound armed with weapons during the elections, but added that security personnel arrested him immediately.

“There was a security report that security apprehended an individual from outside University trying to drive into the campus with numbers of machetes (and probably some riffle into the campus - I have not been informed how many),” Akec revealed.

“The details are sketchy. Otherwise, the election was very transparent and no guns were fired in air or at any student or staff and three groups contested the student union elections,” he said.

He maintained that the election was fair and the results were accepted by all the parties that contested the top leadership position of the university students, adding no complaints were raised by any party.

“All the information was supplied to the contesting parties the same night as preliminary results any complains were invited from 9 am to 4 pm today. No issues were raised and the results were announced by the joint committees (election committee and oversight committee) at 4:30 pm.”

He also said media houses were invited to witness the election and the Minister of Higher Education, Peter Adwok Nyaba, visited the campus on Monday and Tuesday to ensure things were going on smoothly.

Akec however acknowledged that rumours spread throughout Juba on Monday, alleging that there was violence between students during the elections which prompted the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to visit the university campus.

“Unknown elements in Juba wanted discredit the elections at any cost by circulating wild rumours of violence between students groups, but when authorities rushed to the campus (including the IGP) they found that things were calm and peaceful and no basis for those rumours,” he said.

(ST)

June 15, 2016 (JUBA) - Armed men in South Sudan have overrun Raja town, the administrative headquarters of the newly created Lol state, forcing the area governor and his cabinet to flee in disarray amid heavy gunfire.

Rizik Zachariah Hassan, Governor of Lol state (UN photo)

Lol state Governor Rizik Zachariah Hassan and his deputy Sumeiya Adut have fled the town and have not been able to communicate with each other since heavy gunfire erupted at dawn.

The whereabouts of the deputy governor remains unclear, raising concern for her safety.

The exact identities of the armed gunmen remains unclear and no specific groups have come out to claim any responsibility for attacking the strategic border town.

The details of casualties remains unclear, though military sources and local government officials told Sudan Tribune in series of interviews that Rizik narrowly escaped an attempt on his life, but his driver and body guard were injured as they tried to flee the area.

Governor Rizik is presently in Majok Dengdit village in Aweil West area.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (BOR) - A World Food Program-chattered plane, registration EK32120, crashed landed in Jonglei state capital on Tuesday, but no casualties were involved.

The photo of WFP aircraft, that crashed in Bor on June 14, 2016 ST.

The aircraft that came from the South Sudan capital, Juba landed in Bor at 8:19 A.M, when one of its wheels failed, rolled on the runway before it crashed landed.

Bor airport director, Kuot John Akech, said the crash was due to a mechanical failure.

“The antonov 32, was coming from Juba, around 8:19 a.m,. When it landed in Bor , it touched down well, but unfortunately, the left gear, on one side, was not rolling , so the plane got out of the runway to the side, and it got crashed”, he told reporters Tuesday.

Three crew members, who included two pilots and an engineer, survived with minor injuries.

“We sent them for drug and alcohol tests to know what exactly happened”, said Akech.

The aircraft, belonging to COCO Aviation Limited, was taking food from Bor to Malakal.

"The plane is damaged totally. The pilot has more than 30 years experienced," further said Akech, added that the problem was caused by a technical error in the system.

The second crash occurred in Bor less than two months ago, official records indicate.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (NYALA) – On Monday night law enforcement forces in the capital of south Darfur state, Nyala, clashed with armed men who stole a vehicle belonging to a leading member of ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and attempted to flee the town in vain.

Fighters from the Rapid Support Forces sit in an armed vehicle in Nyala, south Darfur, displaying weapons they say they captured from the Justice and Equality Movement rebels on May 13, 2015 (AFP Photo/Ashraf Shazly)

A security source in Nyala told Sudan Tribune that a joint force from the police, the army and the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) managed to arrest the three gunmen who stole the vehicle of the NCP Deputy Youth Secretary in the state, which was parked in front of his home in Nyala.

The joint security team forced the carjackers to surrender after heavy clashes, according to the security source.

The heavy clashes that lasted from more than 30 minutes caused panic among the resident of the city. But, the security official asserted that the regular forces are capable to curb the criminal gang activities.

"There are many outlaws who are still undermining the security situation after the significant stability in the state," he said stressing that ''the law enforcement agencies are able to deal with any trouble despite the succession of security incidents since the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan''.

In a separate security incident, five masked gunmen stormed “Al Madina” Pharmacy, which is at 200 meters from the premises of South Darfur government.

A pharmacist working in the pharmacy told Sudan Tribune that five armed men of whom 4 were in military uniform stormed the pharmacy and stole cash money and mobile phones before fleeing.

A number of residents have expressed concern over the return of the lawlessness situation which had prevailed in Nyala before imposing the emergency situation, pointing that the looting of a pharmacy in downtown is a serious indicator that the state could return to the previous situation.

Since July 2014, the governor of South Darfur Adam Mahmoud Jar al-Nabi, declared an indefinite emergency situation in the state, including a curfew from 7pm to 7am (local time) in Nyala.

The decision also banned riding of motorcycles by more than one person, holding weapons while wearing civilian clothes, vehicles driving around without license plates, and wearing a kadamool (a turban which covers the face).

(ST)

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

June 14, 2016 (ADDIS ABABA) – Ethiopia and Eritrea on Tuesday traded blame over who triggered Sunday's fresh border fighting that took place in their disputed border area.

Eritrean president, Isias Afewerki (AFP Photo)

The two rival forces fought around Tserona central front, an area about 75 kilometres south of the Eritrean capital, Asmara raising fears of a renewed all-out war.

Following the incident, Eritrea ministry of information immediately accused arch-rival Ethiopia of launching the attack first.

In an updated statement issued today, Asmara denied launching the attack first instead said it has repulsed the attack with Ethiopian troops sustaining heavy causalities.

Ethiopia on its part on Tuesday confirmed its military had taken "proportional measures" against Eritrea in response to an attempted attack in the Tsorona area on Sunday.

“The retaliatory measure against Eritrean forces seriously weakened the attacking capacity of the Eritrean army” said Ethiopia's communications affairs office.

The Ethiopian government further warned Eritrea that it will take further retaliatory actions if Asmara fails to stop its “mundane acts”.

At a press conference held Tuesday, communication minister, Getachew Reda said the decision on whether Ethiopia should take further military action or not depends on the future acts of the regime in Asmara.

The minister said the latest attack was an offensive plan by Eritrea and Ethiopian forces defended themselves and further took counter offensive measures to neutralize the threat.

Recently, the United Nations human rights investigators accused Eritrean leaders of crimes against humanity including torture, rape and murder and called on the Security Council to impose sanctions and refer the case to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

According to the Ethiopian government, the latest UN accusation has put Eritrea under pressure.

“Eritrea's attempted attack was targeted at diverting the attention of Eritrean people and the international community” the statement added.

The Government of Eritrea today further said it will issue detailed statement on the purpose, scope and implications of the latest violence.

“It is nonetheless clear that mounting opposition from popular movements of the Ethiopian people, endemic corruption and associated economic crisis, as well as the desire to stem promising progress in Eritrea are indeed some of the factors prompting Ethiopian regime to indulge in reckless military adventures” it said.

LEVEL OF CASUALITIES

With regard to level of causalities on the Ethiopian side the Ethiopian minister said it was too early to reveal the number at this point.

He said officials are receiving from the ground on level of the general damage.

The official however hinted it could be a serious number.

“The actual offensive was a serious one not just a simple skirmish so I would expect a significant damage mainly on the Eritrean side” Getachew said.

CIVILIAN EVACUATION

Sudan Tribune has learnt that Ethiopian authorities around the battle area have ordered civilians to evacuate ahead of the “counter attack”
Ethiopian officials said they had to evacuate civilians as Eritrean forces were bombarding the area using artilleries.

“We had to take precautionary measures to avoid civilian causalities” Getachew added.

He admitted Ethiopian forces has used a full on mechanized defensive including using Tanks, and RPGs.

In 1993, Eritrea, gained independence from Ethiopia but five years later it engaged in a two-year long war with its larger neighbour over their disputed border.

The war has claimed the lives of at least 70,000.

Although a peace deal signed in 2000 ended the bloody war, terms of the agreement haven't yet been implemented as Addis Ababa demanded further talks on implementation process.

As a result, the two neighbours remain in a no-war no-peace situation and forces of both sides regularly engage in lower-scale skirmishes however the extent of the latest clashes are said to be larger.

Sources told Sudan Tribune that people residing along the common border have been fleeing the area following the fighting which has involved heavy artillery.

Ethiopia and Eritrea routinely exchange accusations of backing rebels trying to destabilize and overthrow the other's government

Eritrea is also under UN sanctions over accusations of arming training and financing al-Qaida allied terrorist group in Somalia, Al-Shabab.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (JUBA) – The United Nations Human Right Council (UNHRC) has selected a three-member committee to monitor human rights violations in South Sudan and aid the process of transitional justice, healing and reconciliation.

A general view of participants during the 29th Regular Session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva on 3 July 2015 - (UN Photo)

The President of the Human Rights Council, ambassador Choi Kyonglim (Republic of Korea), announced Tuesday the appointment of Yasmin Sooka (South Africa), Kenneth R. Scott (USA) and Godfrey M. Musila (Kenya), to serve as the three members of the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan.

Sooka will serve as Chair of the three-person commission. She is a human right lawyer who served on South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission from 1994 to 2001.

The Council decided to establish, for a period of a year, the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan at its 31st session on 23 March 2016, to monitor and report on the situation of human rights in South Sudan and make recommendations for improvement.

Through Human Rights Council resolution 31/20 on the situation of human rights in South Sudan, which was adopted by consensus, the 47-member body mandated the three-person Commission to assess the human rights situation in the country since December 2013, in order to establish facts in support of transitional justice, accountability, reconciliation and healing.

The Commissioners, who will serve in their personal capacities, will provide guidance to the Government of South Sudan on transitional justice, accountability and reconciliation issues and will engage with international and regional mechanisms to promote accountability for human rights violations and abuses.

The commission is scheduled to present a comprehensive written report to the Human Rights Council at its 34th regular session, in March 2017.

According to chapter five of the August 2015 peace agreement, a Hybrid Court will be formed to try suspects for the crimes committed during the 21 months of conflict between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar.

There will be a separate body for truth, healing and reconciliation to mend ties for the ethnically divided country.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (JUBA) - A unit of the faction of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), a co-national army of South Sudan under the command of President Salva Kiir, has ransacked a market in Kajokeji county of the proposed Yei River (Central Equatoria) state, sparking armed confrontation in which more than 20 lives were lost.

Women sell food at Konyo Konyo market in South Sudan (Reuters)

The actual motive behind the looting of the civilians market remains unclear. Neither the office of the spokesperson of the SPLA nor the governor of the proposed Yei River state has issued a statement providing explanations or circumstances under which armed confrontation ensued in one of the supposedly relatively peaceful and calm places in the country since the conflict broke out in mid- December 2013.

Local accounts from eyewitnesses attributed the cause to the deployment of a unit of the SPLA force to Nyepo payam, located north of Kajokeji, without the knowledge and approval of the local authorities.

“The report I received from the area is that the humanitarian situation is dire after this incident. The civilians have fled their homes. They are sleeping out in the open and in churches with limited capacity to accommodate them,” a legislator representing Kajokeji at the national legislative assembly in Juba said Monday in an exclusive interview.

“Also these are places which were not meant to residences. They were meant for something else,” he added.

The lawmaker who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals claimed the armed confrontation was sparked by the behaviours of some elements of government's forces who entered the market to loot.

“My daughter and my brother were in the market when this incident occurred. What they told me and has been confirmed by several people is that some elements of the SPLA forces that were deployed to Kajokeji recently on dubious grounds decided to go to the market and started taking food items by force from owners,” he said.

The national army forces, he said, argued that the government had not paid them salary for long and that they had no money to pay for the food.

“When they were asked to pay, they refused and said that they have not been paid by the government. Now who did not pay them, government or the civilians, asked the legislator? “This was caused the fight because youth felt agitated and so decided to stop intimidation,” he explained

Other sources claimed that the clashes erupted when armed men loyal to the first vice president, Riek Machar, decided to intervene upon seeing the intimidation of the natives by the SPLA forces.

Upon the clash in the market, according to another source, the local command of the army unit in the area decided to send reinforcements from the main barrack in Mundari area in central Kajokeji but their movement was intercepted and fell into ambush laid on the way and lives were lost.

Another reinforcement sent from Juba fell in an ambush and additional lives were lost.

It is unclear how many lives have been lost from both sides. Many sources put figures of the government killed in two ambushes at more than 20 soldiers but local residents put the figures higher.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's Defence Minister Awad Ibn Ouf said Tuesday that the Border Guard Forces (BGF) would participate among the rest of the regular forces in the collection of illegal arms in Darfur.

Sudan's defence minister Awad Ibn Ouf (SUNA Photo)

In April, President Omer al-Bashir announced the formation of a national body under the title of Darfur Disarmament Higher Committee to collect illegal weapons from the hand of civilians.

He said there will be a first phase were people will be asked to voluntarily handover their arms, adding that the second step will be heavy disarmament operations and legal action will be taken against those who didn't deliver their weapons.

The BGF is comprised mostly of the Arab militia mobilized by Khartoum to help quell the revolt of Darfur rebels who took up arms against the government in February 2003.

On Monday, Ibn Ouf inspected the BGF troops at the Wadi Sayidna military area north of Khartoum upon their return from the combat operations in the Blue Nile state.

He said the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), the BGF and the other regular forces would participate in the collection of the illegal arms in Darfur in order to enhance peace and stability, pointed that the BGF has responded to the call of duty in all battlefields.

The Defence Minister further hailed efforts of the BGF in maintaining security and stability and supporting programs of voluntary return of the IDP's to their original villages, pointing to the significant victories in the Blue Nile and the entire military operations zones.

The Sudanese government has been fighting the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) in South Kordofan and Blue Nile areas since 2011.

Earlier this month, the Blue Nile Governor Hussein Yassin Abu Sorwal said that SAF managed to retake control of the strategic area of Jebel Kilgu, 30 km south of the Blue Nile state capital Ed-Damazin.

The Sudanese government had dispatched hundreds of the Rapid Support Force (RSF) militiamen to participate in the recent battles in the Blue Nile.

The SRF militiamen are accused to taking part in the counterinsurgency campaign led by the Sudanese army against Darfur rebel groups. UN agencies estimate that some 300 thousands civilians were killed.

For his part, SAF Chief of Staff Emad al-Din Mustafa Adawy stressed that SAF would meet the needs of the BGF and provide training for its soldiers to carry out their duties fully.

He also pointed to the recent victories in Jebel Kilgu, Torda and Angassana Hills in the Blue Nile, pledging to provide resources for the BGF in order to protect the borders efficiently.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (JUBA) - South Sudanese president, Salva Kiir, has issued a provisional order appointing all the state governors as interim leaders of the ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) in their respective states.

South Sudanese president Salva Kiir (Photo: Reuters)

The order appointed 28 governors of the newly created controversial 28 states, ending tensions and uncertainty over who controls party branch offices after the division of the states since 2 October last year.

According to Bol Makueng, secretary of information at the secretariat of the faction of the SPLM loyal to President Kiir, said the appointments came in accordance with the mandate given to the President by the party's political bureau.

Makueng further explained that the 28 governors will lead the party in the new states until state congresses are conducted.

“These are interim arrangements until congresses are conducted. And it is within the powers of the chairman after the meeting of the political bureau had resolved and authorized him to issue a provisional order in his capacity as the chairman of the SPLM,” Makueng said.

“So the state governors are the interim leaders now,” he said.

The main duties of the interim leaders, according to Makueng, are to help in planning, coordination and organization and receive directives and guidance from head office on how they could be running the affairs of the party in the state through the existing secretariat.

He also added that they may upgrade the county offices in places where a county has been upgraded to become a state of its own as a result of the creation of more administrative units.

(ST)

June 15, 2015 (KJARTOUM) - The Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudan Liberation Movement - Minni Minnawi on Wednesday called on the Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni to take part in the ongoing efforts to bring peace in Sudan.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni gestures during his inauguration in Kampala on 12 May 2016 (Photo AFP)

The two groups, which hold arms against the government of President Omer al-Bashir in Darfur region since 2003, call to open the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) for talks and refuse to sign the Roadmap Agreement brokered by the African Union asking to create a conducive environment for the constitutional conference .

''The Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and the Justice and Equality Movement Sudan (JEM) strongly believe that the Republic of Uganda with its visionary leadership is best placed to play a constructive role in the search for peace in the Republic of Sudan," said a joint statement extended to Sudan Tribune in the first hours of Wednesday.

The two rebel movements pointed to the " instrumental role" played by President Museveni in the resolution of the South Sudanese crisis, the recent rapprochement between Khartoum and Kampala and the Ugandan role in the conclusion of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005 ending the civil war between Sudanese government and the SPLM.

'' Therefore, SLM and JEM wholeheartedly request and welcome H. E. President Yoweri Museveni to exploit his exceptionally rich experience in the affairs of the region and his outstanding statesmanship in working for peace in the Republic of Sudan which will consequently contribute positively to the sustenance of peace in the Republic of South Sudan,'' the two group said.

Kampala and Khartoum traded accusations for longtime of supporting rebel groups, but their relations have improved over the past months and the ICC-wanted President Omer al-Bashir attended the inauguration of President Museveni last May.

Also, Museveni made negative remarks in his inaugural address about the International Criminal Court when he described it as 'a bunch of useless people'.

last month the two rebel groups asked Qatar to join the African Union-led mediation in order to discuss some outstanding issues already outlined in the DDPD.

But seemingly, Khartoum refused the request as it keeps saying the holdout groups have to ink the DDPD and then the government can discuss to their requests.

(ST)

June 14, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) Tuesday said it has foiled people-smuggling operation via the Red Sea coast in Port Sudan pointing that two suspects were arrested.

Saudi men rest along the beach overlooking the Red Sea - (Photo Reuters/Susan Baaghil)

Sudan is considered as an origin as well as transit region for the illegal migrants and human trafficking. Thousands of people from Eritrea and Ethiopia are monthly crossing the border into the Sudanese territories on their way to Europe through Libya or Egypt.

The Sudan Media Center, a website closely linked to the country's intelligence circles, quoted a well-informed security source as saying that the NISS had foiled the smuggling of 22 people to a neighbouring country through the Sudanese coast on the Red Sea.

He said that a maritime security force had busted the boat which was waiting to load the illegal migrants at Danganab area after it received information about a people-smuggling operation to a neighbouring country.

The same source stressed that two suspects were arrested, pointing that the boat belongs to fish trader in Port Sudan.

He said that the illegal migrants confessed that the smuggling operation is carried out by several people belonging to one of Eastern Sudan's tribes at Al-Shagar area in the sea port of Sawakin, saying they charge each passenger between 2000 to 9000 Sudanese pounds (SDG) (about $150-$640).

He added that the suspects have been handed over to the police to take the legal action against them.

Last week, Sudan, Italy and the United Kingdom said they arrested in Khartoum an Eritrean man suspected of controlling one of the world's four largest criminal migrant trafficking organizations.

In January 2014, the Sudanese parliament approved an anti-human trafficking law which punishes those involved with human trafficking with up to 20 years imprisonment.

Also, in 2014, Khartoum hosted a conference on human trafficking in the Horn of Africa, organised by the African Union (AU), the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Sudanese government.

15 countries and European Union representatives attended the meeting, during which a joint strategy and action plan to combat human trafficking was adopted.

(ST)

June 13, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The UAE Etisalat Group has announced selling its 92.3 percent shareholding in Sudanese fixed line operator Canar to Bank of Khartoum for 349.6 million dirham ($95.2 million).

In a statement issued on Monday, the Etisalat Group said that Bank of Khartoum, which already owns 3.7 of Canar company, has exercised its right as shareholder to reject selling the stakes of the Etisalat to Zain, a mobile telecommunications company known as (Zain-Sudan).

The Etisalat Group and the Bank of Khartoum have signed the final documents of the deal at a cost of 349.6 million dirham, with a rate of 17.504 dirham per share, the statement said.

The Etisalat stated that the completion of the agreement is still subject to the approval of the Sudanese concerned authorities. In line with the deal, the number of the Bank of Khartoum shares in Canar Company increased from 3.7% to 96%.

Previously The Etisalat had agreed to sell its stake in Canar for Zain-Sudan with the same price the stake was sold to the Bank of Khartoum, but the deal was aborted by the Bank of Khartoum when it used its right of rejection.

The deal sparked a row between the Bank of Khartoum and Zain-Sudan as the two firms traded accusations in a rare public dispute over the conditions of the sale.

It was also reported that Zain-Sudan decided to close its accounts and withdraw its funds from the Bank of Khartoum and sell its assets.

(ST)

June 13, 2016 (JUBA) - South Sudan's national security forces have been accused of firing live bullets at University of Juba students during an election organized by students to nominate the guild president of the University.

University of Juba (File photo )

The shooting took place at 8:00 pm on Monday, forcing many of the students who have attended the occasion to flee from the scene.

A Juba University student identified himself as Deng has told Sudan Tribune over phone interview that a group of national security personnel broke into the University premise and intimidated students before they could fire bullets.

He claimed as the election was ongoing, groups of students allied to the President Salva Kiir's faction of the transitional government went out and brought some militants from the national security to force students out of the hall and called for electoral committee to remain behind with all casted votes.

Deng further explained that the arrival of the national security at the venue threatened students and those responsible for students' body leadership election.

He said students were intimidated, calling for their arrest, as they waited for electoral results declaration. Although students insisted to continue with the push of results declaration, he added, the group of the national security personnel started to scare the students through use of live bullets, fired randomly into the air.

Several other sources told Sudan Tribune that there was a disagreement between university students who are supporters of the armed opposition leader, the First Vice President, Riek Machar and those supporting President Salva Kiir.

Puot Kang, a member of Sudan People Liberation Movement armed opposition, and chairman of the armed Youths league, has also confirmed that students were forced out of University of Juba on Monday evening.

He said as students conducted a peaceful election on the top seat of students leader at the University, the group of the national security drove into the venue and surrounded the premises.

Kang said the involvement of the national security in the students' activities meant violation of South Sudanese transitional constitution for freedom of assembly and expression.

“We need to respect all citizens' rights in freedom of assembly. It is not acceptable for the national security to interfere with other people's right of expression,” he said over phone interview with Sudan Tribune.

Kang further explained that the SPLM-IO led by Machar is now the main peace partner in South Sudan's peace agreement, adding that they have condemned the students' provocation by the national security forces.

Last week a group of students were arrested at Juba University because of having allegedly supported of the armed opposition groups.

(ST)

June 13, 2016 (JUBA) – The head of the United Nations peacekeeping operations, Herve Ladsous said South Sudan has opened a new page in its national life with the coming into force of the newly-established Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU).

The head of the UN peacekeeping mission, Herve Ladsous speaking in Juba (UNMISS photo)

He said peace and security should be prioritised as he held a meeting in the capital, Juba with President Salva Kiir and his two vice presidents during a visit to the young nation.

The UN involvement in the country, Ladsous said, should not be seen as the work of a substitute government, but that key decision-making be in hands of South Sudanese.

‘‘It was very important to listen to our South Sudanese interlocutors with one very important message; it is that the responsibilities are theirs, but that the UN are here to help,” said the UN head of peacekeeping mission.

He added, “We are not there to substitute, the decisions have to be made by the South Sudanese themselves, but we are in support”.

According to Ladsous, South Sudanese leaders should focus on, stability and security, the situation of internally displaced persons, building an institutional framework, the economy and humanitarian situation with focus on food insecurity.

Tens of thousands of people were killed and nearly two million were displaced in South Sudan's worst ever violence since its secession from neighbouring Sudan in 2011.

Ladsous also visited displaced camps in Bentiu and Malakal, raising issues of human rights and tasking the government not to compromise on the rights of ordinary people.

“I would also mention, of course that we remain very attentive to human rights and similar issues, but we are taking a positive view. Again, a new page has opened and the relationship of the United Nations with South Sudan similarly is now on a new footing,” he further stressed.

South Sudan had been in political crisis since the current first vice-president was sacked by president Kiir in 2013, following a war which broke out in the young African nation.

President Kiir and his deputy Machar, under the terms of a peace agreement signed in August 2015, formed a 30-month Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU).

(ST)

Sudan is in urgent need of a fresh democratic transition, and for an inclusive peace to avert negative scenarios.

By Ahmed H Adam and Ashley D Robinson

The Arab Spring that swept across the Middle East and succeeded in overthrowing three dictatorships in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya in 2011 was a pivotal point in the history of nations.

Despite the subsequent descent into the "Arab Winter", the peaceful protests of young people were heroic. The movement demonstrated the power of the people against the status quo and the grip of repressive regimes.

After the initial but short-lived success of the Arab Spring, many observers asked: "Why hasn't there been a Sudanese Spring?" Sudan's crisis had been no less severe, nor protracted than those of the Arab Spring countries.

In addition, two of the Arab Spring countries - Egypt and Libya - border Sudan. Omar al-Bashir, the Sudanese president, was quick to answer the question claiming that his coup 27 years ago was Sudan's version of the Arab Spring. "Those who are waiting for the Arab Spring to come will be waiting for a while," he said.

He explained that the Arab Spring in Sudan had already occurred through a bloodless revolution that he led against the democratically elected government of Prime Minister al-Sadiq al-Mahdi on June 30, 1989. Bashir's claim had astonished many in Sudan and across the globe.

Pioneers of uprisings

While the Sudanese people admire the Arab Spring, they do not appreciate the question of why the Sudanese have not followed suit.

They proudly believe that they are the pioneers of the art of popular uprisings in the region.

The Sudanese succeeded in overthrowing two military dictatorships through popular uprisings: They threw out the regime of General Ibrahim Abboud in October 1964 and the regime of General Jaafar Nimeiri in April 1985.

As in the April 1985 uprising, students today are leading the way in building momentum. Last April's surge in student protests should be seen as a continuation of a successful revolt, not as random pockets of unrest, says Mastour Mohamed, the secretary-general of the Sudanese Congress Party (SCP).

Indeed, the people of Sudan have made many efforts to break through the ceiling of a repressive regime.

In January 2011, anti-government protesters, inspired by the "Arab Spring" movements in Tunisia and Egypt demanded the departure of the regime.

Peaceful protesters were met with the regime's usual excessive use of force. Perhaps South Sudan's secession overshadowed the protesters' demands.

Demonstrations surged again in December of 2011, when students at the University of Khartoum staged a successful sit-in. Increasing economic and political fragility of what's left of Sudan, led the government to impose austerity measures.

Public announcements of these austerity measures brought protesters back on to the streets in the summer of 2012.

Rising fuel prices throughout 2013 also increased public outrage. The September popular uprising of 2013 was one of the milestones in the Sudanese quest for freedom and dignity. The uprising started in Nyla City in Darfur, and then swept across the country.

Again, protesters were met with a heavy and bloody crackdown. The notorious National Intelligence Security Services (NISS) killed more than 200 peaceful demonstrators.

Puncturing the wall of fear

Sudan cannot heal the wounds of its evil past as long as those who have inflicted such injustice are permitted to do so with impunity - and with the broken or hollow promises of peace from the international community.

As the regime's same old tactics rot it from the inside, those outside the regime feel the deterioration.

Those who previously benefited from the inequitable policies of Bashir's regime are feeling the consequences of their dwindling prospects. They are gaining greater perspective and empathy for their former ethnic rivals.

A student from Khartoum University, and a leading activist against the so-calledcorruption dams, stated that "the student activists are now fully aware of the regime's tactics and cannot be divided on racial or any other grounds."

Mohamed of the SCP argued that students have scaled the "wall of fear". "Risking their lives, students picked up tear gas canisters before they exploded and threw them back at the armed forces. Thus they fight back and do not quit," he said.

When asked why students have punctured the "wall of fear", Adam Musa, one of the leaders of the Darfuri Student Leagues Coalition, said: "We do not have another option. People are so bitter. The continuous excessive violence by the regime and our long accumulated trauma, has emboldened us to fight back."

Sudan shall not be failed

Sudan is geopolitically important for the region in the fight against terrorism, and in its efforts of humanitarian intervention for those migrating through Sudan's porous borders.

A united Sudan is vital for the stability and security of the region. However, current policies and leadership in the country continue to dissatisfy the people of Sudan.

The Arab mainstream media have not given the same coverage to the aspirations and efforts of the Sudanese people as they have to the neighbouring Arab Spring countries.

Sudan is in urgent need of a fresh democratic transition, and for an inclusive peace to avert the negative scenarios of Libya and Syria.

Perhaps such media attention would provide powerful insights into how to avoid another Bashir-like dictatorship for the countries which have fallen into the chaos of "Arab Winter".

The League of Arab States has failed to offer the Sudanese opposition forces and independent civil society any fair hearing, as they have been doing in Syria.

The league and its members should listen to Sudanese forces of change. The people of Sudan will eventually succeed in bringing about change in their country, as they did in 1964 and 1985.

The question is, what role will the Arab states play in the rebirth of this vital nation?

Ahmed H Adam is a visiting fellow at Cornell University's Institute for African Development, and a research fellow at the Department of Public Policy and Administration at the American University in Cairo.

Ashley D Robinson is a public policy and human rights expert. She obtained her master's degree from Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs.

June 13, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese government Monday, announced the official dissolution of Darfur Regional Authority (DRA) and Darfur Peace Office, indicating that the implementation of peace agreement in Darfur region.

Former DRA chairman Tijani al-Sissi speaks to the press after the dissolution of the regional body on June 13, 2016 (ST Photo)

The DRA was established in line with the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), which was signed in July 2011, by the Government of Sudan and former rebel Liberation and Justice Movement, and the Justice and Equality Movement-Dabajo in April 2013.

The regional body had a four-year mandate to implement the framework peace document. However, the DRA term was extended up to July 2016, by a presidential decree in 2015.

The dissolution was announced following a meeting of the High Committee for Peace in Darfur attended by First Vice President, Bakri Hassan Saleh, DRA Chairman, Tijani al-Sissi, DRA member, Bahr Abu Gaurda , the head of Darfur Peace Office, Amin Hassan Omer, and some DRA ministers.

However, the meeting agreed to maintain the High Committee for Peace in Darfur headed by President Omer al Bashir and the International Committee for DDPD Implementation Follow-Up headed by Qatar.

JEM Dabajo political advisor, Nahar Osman Nahar told Sudan Tribune that the meeting decided to dissolve the DRA officially. Nevertheless he added that DRA commissions and funds that didn't yet finish the implementation of their projects will be continue their activities under a new body to attached to the presidency.

“So, the DRA commissions will be directly supervised by the Presidency of the Republic. As for, the (former) DRA Chairman Tijani al-Sissi, the government will find a solution for his situation later,” said Nahar.

One the fate of DRA staff members, Nahar said they will be financially compensated based on years of service. Also some of them will be incorporated in the civil service in Darfur states and the central government while others will be absorbed in the newly established regional institutions.

“This marks the official end of the DRA, and some of its commissions will continue working most probably for one year,” added Nahar.

For his part, the Chairman of Darfur Peace Office, Amin Hassan Omer, told the media that the meeting concluded to establish a body at the presidency to oversee the DRA five commissions, stressing that the composition of the council of Development and Reconstruction Fund will be reviewed.

The head of DRA was accused in the past of controlling this vital fund and appointing the majority his supporters to its board.

Amin said the meeting discussed the procedures for dissolving DRA in July and attaching DRA Commission to the Presidency of the Republic. He added that the Darfur Peace Office is fully dissolved because it was a coordination body between the DRA and the federal government.

He pointed that the nomad and pastoralists commission will be dissolved and integrated into the Development and Reconstruction Fund.

The state minister at the presidency further said the meeting decided to maintain Darfur Special Criminal Court and resolved to ask the African Union and United Nations to send observers to the court.

The Chairman of DRA, Tijani al-Sissi, on his part reiterated that DRA commissions will continue implementing their projects, pointing that DRA has implemented 85% of DDPD items.

Last April, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared the end of DRA after the conduct of Darfur Administrative Referendum.

Darfur Administrative Referendum results indicated that 97.73 % of the voters have called for keeping the current five states, while 2.28% of the voters called for one region in Darfur.

Al-Sissi who is also a Fur tribal dignitary was the only political leader to call for the establishment of a single administration in the western Sudan region.

(ST)