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Sudan

Field Reports  In-Depth Reports  Letters & Testimonies


Overview
The signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005 brought an end to the 21-year civil war between north and south Sudan. Over two million refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) have returned to the south, but basic infrastructure and services remain poor. Conflict began escalating again in the south in 2009, causing a rising death toll. In Darfur, the peace process remains stalled, humanitarian access remains restricted, and the peacekeeping presence remains limited.


Current Humanitarian Situation in South Sudan
About 2 million of more than 4 million people displaced by the north-south conflict have returned home. However, the scale of need in south Sudan is immense, and communities will remain vulnerable to a new humanitarian crisis and outbreaks of conflict if gaps in basic services and professional policing go unaddressed. Returning Sudanese, as well as recipient communities, must gain greater access to water, medical assistance, education, and sustainable livelihoods. Local women’s groups must be assisted to enable their participation in the reintegration of returnees.

Current Humanitarian Situation in Darfur
Civilian protection in Darfur remains a serious concern. More than 2.6 million internally displaced people are in Darfur and over 250,000 are living in refugee camps in Chad. Insecurity continues and many displaced people are still not able to return home. The UN peacekeeping mission, UNAMID, lacks adequate resources and troops, and humanitarian workers are unable to access the most vulnerable due to insecurity and to government impediments. Refugees International is particularly concerned about sexual violence against women in Darfur and about the difficulties faced by civil society organizations who try to assist survivors.

Action Needed

  • The US must support the full implementation of the CPA and the resumption of a Darfur peace process.
  • The Government of Southern Sudan must make community recovery and return assistance a much higher priority while donor governments should provide funding to improve basic services, access to livelihoods, and provide professional policing.
  • The international community must ensure that peacekeeping forces are fully deployed and equipped, and focused on civilian protection, particularly for women.
  • The international community must insist on humanitarian access to people in need of assistance, and on protection for local human rights defenders.
Field Reports
  • Sudan: Preventing Violence and Statelessness as Referendum Approaches
    06/28/2010
    Sudan is preparing to hold a referendum on southern independence in January 2011 as mandated by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). Indications suggest that the vote will be overwhelmingly in favor of separation. Although an explosion of full scale north-south war is not inevitable, the risk of new outbreaks of conflict in hotspot areas is all too real. If the south separates, southerners in the north and northerners in the south will be especially vulnerable to violence and loss of citizenship resulting in statelessness. The parties to the CPA, international donor governments and the United Nations must place urgent priority on preventing and responding to possible abuses.
  • Sudan: No complacency on protecting civilians
    04/08/2010
    Five years after the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) southern Sudan remains highly volatile, with longstanding tribal tensions, competition for land, and new economic competition fueling south-south violence that has resulted in 450 deaths and the displacement of 40,000 people this year alone. Just nine months from the planned referendum for southern independence, the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) remains weak, and its army and police remain incapable of maintaining stability and protecting civilians. In this context, the UN peacekeeping mission, UNMIS, must develop and implement a clear mission-wide protection plan that incorporates all the relevant civilian, military, and policing units within the mission.
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In Depth Reports
  • Renewing the Pledge: Re-Engaging the Guarantors to the Sudanese Comprehensive Peace Agreement
    07/14/2010
    The clock is ticking fast towards what might be the most important date in modern Sudanese history – two referenda in Sudan that are likely to result in the breakup of Africa’s largest state. With six months remaining until 9 January 2011, the scheduled date of the referenda, the run-up to, and outcome of, the vote must be managed with extreme care. The Guarantors to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), who invested considerable effort in obtaining the CPA on 9 January 2005, have both a responsibility and an ability to help Sudan implement the CPA and prevent further conflict. It is imperative that the Guarantors urgently redouble their efforts to ensure adequate preparations for the referenda, and help secure agreements on sensitive issues such as border demarcation and oil sharing.
  • Last Line of Defense: How Peacekeepers Can Better Protect Civilians
    02/24/2010

    When violent conflict breaks out, the United States and other United Nations member states often call for the deployment of UN peacekeeping forces to create stability and protect people from harm. The UN Security Council has explicitly instructed peacekeepers to protect civilians under “imminent threat of violence” in most UN peacekeeping mandates since 1999. But there is no clarity as to what “protection” means in practice. Which circumstances require action and what level of force should be used? This has resulted in a lack of proper training, guidance and resources for peacekeepers to accomplish protection activities.
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Advocacy Letters
Congressional Testimony
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Successes

In 2009, Congress appropriated $296 million to Sudan and directed the State Department to prioritize funding for projects in south Sudan in support of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.