We have had a few concerns communicated to us regarding the political situation in Sudan since the United Nations’ Criminal Court issued a warrant for the arrest of Sudan’s President Bashir the other day. I would like to briefly comment on this issue.
Sudan is currently a single country running two functioning governments. This is a result of decades of civil war and a peace agreement signed in 2006 separating the warring parties. The Government of Sudan (GOS) is ruled by an Islamic regime, including its president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir.
The Government of South Sudan (GOSS) is run primarily by African Christians who took up arms against the government of Bashir when Islamic law was being imposed upon them. Under Sharia law, the southerners would have been required to convert to Islam. The Christians vigorously declined this “invitation”. The GOSS is the authority under which we are working in Jalle. They have a military and these troops patrol its border with the GOS. Could war start again? Sure, but this would not seem to be the event that would start it. Here’s why:
Bashir is responsible for encouraging and, possibly, supporting the current genocide going on in Darfur where over 200,000 have been killed so far. This is why there is a warrant out for his arrest.
Bashir is also responsible for the conflict in Southern Sudan where we are now working. Since 1987 or so, over 2,000,000 were killed due to Bashir but he was never tried for his crimes due to an international law requiring that crimes against humanity be brought forth within a certain timeframe after which the crime was committed. This time limit has passed.
To make a long, complicated story short, the ICC’s arrest warrant isn’t due to the crimes Bashir committed against the South. They are for crimes he committed in Darfur, which is located far to the west of Jalle. There is no rational reason for Bashir to restart a war with the South due to an arrest warrant initiated from an unrelated area of Sudan.
One thing I can tell you is that the Southerners who suffered under Bashir unanimously support this arrest warrant.
I hope this helps unravel some mystery behind Sudanese politics.
Rick
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