Sudan People's Liberation Movement

By Hoda Abdel-Hamid in Africa on January 25th, 2010
Reuters photo

I have been in Southern Sudan for over a week now. I came here with the idea of a war-torn place where people live in extreme poverty. And, sure, an impoverished place it is.

What I came to realise is that it's a place where absolutely everything is non-existent.

Usually after war, one talks about reconstruction. But here it's simply starting from scratch.

Simply not there

Roads, schools, sewage, houses, buildings, electricity, clean water and lot's more are simply not there.

Just to give you idea: Southern Sudan is said to be the size of France and Belgium together yet there are only 2500km of roads, and not all is paved yet.

To go from one state to another is a gruelling trip on dirt roads full of pot-holes that, in some cases, can last for days.

Over the past five years, the government of south sudan has received about $8bn. Half of it has gone into defence, the Sudan's People Liberation Army.

By Mohamed Vall in Africa on January 15th, 2010
AFP photo

It is now official: Salva Kiir, Sudan's first vice-president, will run for president of south Sudan in April's elections, leaving the post of national presidency to be contested by Yassir Arman, a lower-ranking northern member of his party.

The decision means the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) is both adamant about and sure of secession to result from next year's referendum on the future of Southern Sudan.

So the southern leaders don't want to remain entanged with the North one second after the referendum results are out. They will retreat to their new capital Juba in the south, create their state and leave their northern comrades (including Arman) to rule the north where he belongs.

This also means they will try to keep the north under their wing if their candidate wins the race! But he won't!

He is popular neither in the south nor in the north!

By Mohamed Vall in Africa on November 16th, 2009

As if the ever increasing tribal clashes in the south were not enough, political divisions among southern Sudanese are getting deeper by the day.

These divisions seem to pitch several small political formations, mainly reflecting tribal and ethnic entities in the south against the main political and military force, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, SPLM.

Eight South Sudanese parties opposed to the SPLM, which rules the south and co-rules the whole of Sudan along with the National Congress Party (NCP), have met in Khartoum to discuss problems in southern Sudan as well as issues related to the implementation of the 2005 North-South Peace agreement.

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