Back to school
When Santino Mayen enrolled in a primary school in the Western Bahr El-Ghazal State capital of Wau in 2005, Southern Sudan was just beginning to recover from two decades of civil war that had crippled its educational system. Now enrolled at the city's John Paul II Secondary School, the 15-year-old…
A returnee’s referendum
21 January 2011 - As early victory celebrations kicked off in Kuajok's Freedom Square, Ayok Aguek Chol hung back a little, uncertain if he qualified to join in the merry-making. Results from different referendum centres in and around the Warrab State capital had shown that the vote for Southern…
SSLA speaker: Replace tribalism with justice and peace
24 January 2011 - Southern Sudan had demonstrated political maturity in successfully conducting the referendum, but people should not begin celebrating yet, a top southern official said today. Speaking during the opening of the second session of the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly (SSLA)…
Consultations reveal little change in Blue Nile
25 January 2011 – Thousands of Blue Nile State residents are continuing to voice a need for development and services in daily public forums called for by Sudan's 2005 peace agreement. The 21-day "popular consultations" process, which began on 14 January, was reaching mid-run today as some 500 plus…
Indians celebrate republic day in Malakal
26 January 2011 - Commemorating a 1950 constitution establishing India as a secular, democratic republic, UNMIS Indian Battalion celebrated the 62 nd anniversary of its republic day at the mission's compound today in Malakal. Hosted by the UNMIS Sector III Commander Col. Suresh Radhakrishnan, the…
Preliminary referendum results show secession
30 January 2011 – Releasing preliminary official results today in Juba, the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC) indicated that voters had overwhelmingly endorsed the secession of Sudan's 10 southern states from the rest of the country. Over 99 per cent of the 3.72 million ballots cast in…
Rooms for rent
The Equatoria Hotel was the only lodging of its kind operating in what would become the Southern Sudanese capital of Juba when the country's peace accord was signed in January 2005. Otherwise, the city had little to offer expatriate staff, returning Sudanese or hopeful investors by way of public…
The future of oil
As the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) enters the final six months of the interim period of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), the future of oil, its largest revenue earner, remains uncertain. Management of the sector has been the exclusive domain of the central government in Khartoum…
Aggregated preliminary referendum results show over 98 per cent for secession
2 February 2011 – Aggregated preliminary results for Southern Sudan's historic, self-determination referendum were announced today by the national commission in Khartoum organizing the poll, opening a three-day window for appeals. Three days after the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC)…
SPLM outlines constitutional review committee membership
2 February 2011 – Although they would not be invited to join a technical committee to review the southern constitution, civil society and the media were urged today by the ruling southern party to play a role in the process. Speaking at a Juba press briefing, the secretary of the Sudan Peoples…
Amum: Southern Sudan recognized as new state
2 February 2011 – The Inter-Governmental Agency for Development (IGAD) had invited the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) to participate in its recent meeting in Addis Ababa to recognize the latter as a new member, a top southern official said today in Juba. Speaking at a press conference after…
Indians treat victims of fighting in Malakal
5 February 2011 – In the aftermath of fighting over the past two days in Malakal, UNMIS Indian hospital medically evacuated 11 of the 50 wounded by helicopter today to Khartoum. One of the evacuees was Sgt. Maj. Paul Mirowe, who was shot in the right wrist. "I got shot by one of those soldiers who…