Africa

The MDC leader says China is "asset-stripping" resources and vows to cancel deals if he wins elections.

May 1, 2018 (LAMWO) – South Sudanese army (SPLA) soldiers have halted a road construction taking place in Uganda's northern district of Lamwo, officials said.

Sudan Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers singing pro-war song (AFP file photo)

Engineers from a company contracted to undertake the survey of the 21 kilometers road from Agoro sub-county to Apiriti market at South Sudan border were confronted by SPLA soldiers who accused them of trespassing into their territory.

Agoro sub-county chairperson, Denis Onyon, told Daily Monitor that over 60 armed SPLA soldiers forced surveyors to stop their activities.

South Sudanese officials, Onyon said, also claimed the surveyors from Uganda encroached their territory during the survey exercise.

“The soldiers were very many and armed, they violently confronted our Ugandan team with accusation that they have crossed to their territory. We want government intervention in this matter as soon as possible,” he remarked.

Lamwo Resident District Commissioner, Jonathan Rutabingwa said they have informed government officials in Kampala and also contacted the Governor of Torit State, Alberio Tobiolo to discuss ways of reaching consensus without stopping road works.

“We have accepted their demands to halt the road survey in good faith so that no clashes erupt. We want to have cordial talks with the South Sudanese counterparts to come to a common ground, the road once complete will benefit not only Ugandans but also South Sudanese,” he told Daily Monitor.

Rutabingwa was, however, quoted saying the disputed area belongs to Uganda.

The Lamwo District Chairperson, John Ogwok said the dispute over the territory would delay the road project, which would benefit both the South Sudanese and Ugandans in boosting cross border trade.

South Sudanese authorities were not immediately available to comment on the matter.

In August 2015, over 200 armed militias from South Sudan entered nine kilometers into Uganda's territory at Lokung sub-county in Lamwo claiming its ownership, before Ugandan soldiers push them back.

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May 30, 2018 (JUBA) - An oral Cholera vaccination campaign is underway in South Sudan and will run in 12 areas of Juba where people were identified to be most at risk in the previous outbreaks.

A child receives an oral cholera vaccine dose in the South Sudan capital, Juba (Medair Photo)

The campaign, which started on 24 April, will run until 19 May.

The target population for this campaign is everyone above the age of 12 months.

From June 2016 to February 2018, South Sudan experienced its longest recorded cholera epidemic, with 20,000 suspected cases and 436 deaths reported in the country, the health ministry disclosed.

However, while health authorities have declared the end of the most recent epidemic, cholera is endemic in the country and is likely to return.

"The risks of cholera are increased by the inadequacy of water sources and sanitation facilities, which may be exacerbated by the coming rainy season," said Jack Rack Gomer, MSF vaccination manager.

"Together with the health authorities and partners, MSF is conducting a preventive vaccination campaign in Juba,” he added.

Oral cholera vaccine is typically given in two doses, to increase immunity and the current campaign is to administer the second dose, after an earlier round conducted in September and October 2017, which reached nearly 200,000 people in the same areas.

"A single dose of cholera vaccine provides some immunity for up to one year," said Gomer.

"The second dose must be taken within eight months of the first dose to increase the level of protection, and extend immunity to three to five years,” he stressed.

Cholera is reportedly spread by contaminated food or water, and preventive measures include improving hygiene, water supplies, and sanitation facilities.

An estimated 140,000 people, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) die every year due to Cholera globally.

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May 1, 2018 (JUBA) - South African telecom operator, MTN has promised to expand its operations in South Sudan to cater for the rising demand for the mobile services.

Third Row (L-R) chief information officer George Nassif and head corporate affairs Dhlomo lead students to MTN base station at Nyakuron June 19, 2014 (Photo: J. Perpetual)

MTN head of corporate services in Juba, Khumbulani Dhlomo has, however, said was grappling with numerous challenges emanating from the prolonged civil war.

Dhlomo, The East African reported, said the challenges included the economic downturn and insecurity to connect the entire country. The shutdown of Vivacell mobile network has also presented a huge burden to MTN to enhance its capacity to cater for over a million subscribers.

“There is a bit of too much demand for everything that we have not planned for. The most affected people are our customers because they seem not to be able to get what they want at the time they want,” Dhlomo said .

He disclosed that MTN's major projects such as the building of about 40 towers countrywide were halted by the conflict.

“Our ability to quickly expand the network is going to be a challenge to us, but we will remain put and improve our services,” he said.

MTN spent $170 million on the South Sudan network infrastructure from 2014-2015 but has made no profit since 2012, the official said.

MTN is the second largest mobile operator in South Sudan after Vivacell with over 800,000 subscribers. The subscribers could increase as Vivacell mobile network was closed down in March over tax dispute with the government.

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May 1, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The chairman of Darfur peace follow-up office Magdi Khalaf Allah said the mechanisms approved by the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) would remain the only means to implement any future agreement with the rebel movements.

Delegations from the Sudanese government, Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and Sudan Liberation Movement - Minni Minnawi on the other side held a two-day meeting in Berlin on 16-17 April to discuss a declaration of principle ahead of the resumption of peace talks to end the western Sudan region conflict.

But the meeting wrapped up without a deal despite the high expectations as the mediation and facilitators worked hard to prepare a compromise breaking the stalemate over the DDPD framework agreement signed on 14 July 2011 between the government and several armed groups.

JEM leader Gibril Ibrahim on Saturday told Sudan Tribune the parties failed to strike a pre-negotiation agreement after Khartoum refusal to designate implementation mechanisms different from what is provided in the DDPD.

In an interview with the official news agency SUNA, Khalaf Allah said the Berlin talks didn't fail but stalled over the rebels' demand to develop new implementation mechanisms prior to agreeing on the negotiations agenda.

He pointed out that the government wouldn't accept to introduce new mechanisms as long as the parties have agreed to the DDPD as a basis for negotiations and Doha as the venue for the talks.

Khalaf Allah added any future agreement with the rebel movements would be attached to the DDPD as a protocol agreement.

It is noteworthy that Germany, United States, United Kingdom and Norway issued a joint statement on 24 April urging the Sudanese parties to remain engaged in the process and praised the concessions made by the two parties.

The four western countries further said they will “consider options for further progress together with the parties, partners and interested international actors”.

The holdout groups including the JEM and SLM-MM refused to sign the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) in July 2011 and called to open the framework agreement for talks.

Other groups like the Sudan Liberation Movement - Abdel Wahid (SLM-AW) have declined to join the process and rejected its outcome.

The African Union High Implementation Panel (AUHIP) led by former South African President Thabo Mbeki proposed a holistic process to end the armed conflicts and produce political reforms in Sudan.

During the year 2015-2016, talks between the government and the SLM-MM and JEM failed to reach a tangible result despite international efforts to bring together the opposition groups and to narrow the gaps between them and the government.

The Sudanese army has been fighting a group of armed movements in Darfur since 2003. UN agencies estimate that over 300,000 people were killed in the conflict and over 2.5 million were displaced.

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May 1, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's First Vice-President and Prime Minister Bakri Hassan Salih on Tuesday met with a visiting delegation from the United States Congress.

Member of the delegation, Dan Kildee, told reporters following the meeting that they discussed bilateral relations between Sudan and the U.S. as well as issues of human rights and religious freedom.

He expressed his happiness to visit Sudan, pointing out that the delegation has learned about Sudan's great potential in the various fields.

“The visit offered a good opportunity to take a closer look at the overall situation in Sudan,” he said

Kildee also pointed to ongoing efforts to improve relations between Washington and Khartoum.

Meanwhile, the visiting delegation on Tuesday also met with Sudan's Presidential Assistant Faisal Hassan Ibrahim in the presence of the Minister of Animal Resources Bishara Aror.

In press statements following the meeting, Aror told reporters the two sides discussed a number of issues including peace, national dialogue and religious freedoms.

He pointed out that the presidential aide briefed the delegation on the situation in Sudan after the national dialogue as well as the Roadmap agreement signed with the African Union High Implementation Panel (AUHIP) to achieve peace in the country.

It is noteworthy that the Congressional delegation has arrived in Khartoum on Sunday on a three-day official visit at the invitation of Sudan's National Legislature.

Last October, the U.S. Administration permanently lifted 20-year-old economic sanctions against Sudan citing positive actions on humanitarian access and counter-terrorism.

However, Washington left other sanctions in place for the time being, including those against individuals with arrest warrants related to atrocities committed during the conflict in Darfur.

Also, it didn't remove Sudan's name from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Sudanese officials insist on the need to remove Sudan from the list of terror states, pointing that the country cannot benefit from the debt relief and international development aid without this measure.

But Washington insists on the need to improve Human rights, religious freedom and other freedoms in a way to create a conducive environment for the opposition group to take part in the ongoing constitutional process after the signing of a peace agreement with the armed groups.

The two countries are engaged in a five-track process towards the full normalization of relations.

(ST)

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April 30, 2018 (CAIRO/JUBA) – The Egyptian President, Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has assured his South Sudanese counterpart, Salva Kiir of his country's support in efforts to ensure peace in the young nation.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi (R) shaking hands with South Sudan's President Salva Kiir at the presidential palace in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, January 10, 2017. (Photo: AFP)

Kiir, the spokesperson for Egypt's presidency said, called El-Sisi to express his country's keenness on continued cooperation in various fields, in light of the special relationship between the two nations.

The South Sudan leader, according to Bassam Rady, also updated his Eqyptian counterpart on the political and security developments in his country, lauding Egypt's role in boosting South Sudan's stability.

El-Sisi, AhramOnline reported, said the North African country would support all efforts to overcome the conflict in South Sudan so as to consolidate security and stability.

He further said that Egypt will also continue to assist development efforts in South Sudan, pointing to Cairo's strong relations with Juba.

In November last year, rival factions of South Sudan's ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement signed a unification agreement to rebuild trust and confidence among them.

The deal, dubbed the “Declaration of Unification”, was signed in Cairo under the auspices of President Al-Sisi and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni.

In January 2015, delegates from three factions of the SPLM party signed a 12-page agreement in Arusha, Tanzania, laying out key steps toward reunifying the party.

Those who signed include the party loyal to President Salva Kiir, the SPLM-in-Opposition and which is led by former vice president Riek Machar, and a third made up of party officials who were detained when the conflict began in December 2013.

The SPLM, South Sudan's ruling party, was initially founded as the political wing of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA). The party, in the aftermath of the civil war that broke out in the country in mid-December 2013, split into the SPLM-Juba faction headed by Kiir, SPLM-IO led by Machar and that of the ex-political detainees.

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April 30, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The commander of Darfur hybrid peacekeeping force Lieutenant-General, Leonard Ngondi Monday inspected the ongoing works to establish a new base in Jebel Marra.

In a brief note released on Twitter, the UNMAID said Ngondi visited Golo where he "inspected progress made in the construction of the Mission's Temporary Operating Base in the area".

The visit comes after reports of attacks by the Sudanese government forces on the positions of the Sudan Liberation Movement - Abdel Wahid (SLM-AW) and the Transitional Council (SLM-TC).

While U.S. State Department confirmed the reports and called for unfettered humanitarian access to the affected area, the UNAMID kept silent and didn't report about the attacks.

However, the UN Secretary-General is supposed to brief the Security Council on 25 May about the security and humanitarian situation there.

The joint operation released a picture of the new base in Golo saying it is "a key part of the Jebel Marra Task Force" to improve security conditions and enhance the protection of civilians in Jebel Marra.

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April 30, 2018 (MUNDRI) - Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said it has stopped operating clinic in remote areas of South Sudan's Mundri town after its team was attacked by armed robbers on 24 April.

A MSF nurse with a child Aburoc (Photo: Philippe Carr)

A group of 10 unidentified armed men reportedly stopped MSF's convoy, physically assaulted the team, threatened them with violence and took their personal belongings, along with medical supplies and other MSF property as the organisation's team was delivering much-needed healthcare to remote areas of Mundri.

The medical charity, in a statement, condemned the “brutal” act.

This attack forces MSF to stop operating mobile clinics in the area until safe access to the isolated communities we support can be assured by all armed actors, the medical entity further stated.

According to MSF, the people of South Sudan suffer most when its mobile clinics and other facilities are not allowed to operate safely.

In this case, the armed robbery directly affects much-needed healthcare services for around 75,000 people, said the medical charity.

MSF has been operating in Mundri since October 2016. From January to March this year, MSF said it provided 1,760 medical consultations to communities in Mundri, including 509 patients treated for malaria.

(ST)