Intergovernmental Relations in Southern Sudan. By Traci D. Cook. National Democratic Institute for International Affairs. 2008.
Three years after a government was established where none previously existed, NDI conducted a series of interviews with officials from the government of South Sudan at national and local levels. The interviews attempted to assess the state of the region’s economic viability, economic diversification, corruption, civil service competency and security. Several institutional obstacles and threats to future stability became apparent, including weak inter-governmental communication, including confusion about powers and competencies, and tribalism.
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Sudan: A State on the Brink? By John Prendergast and Colin Thomas-Jensen. Current History, 2009.
Two renowned authors tackle a broad scope of issues with this sharp analysis of Sudan. The article considers several factors that have fundamentally altered the political dynamic in Sudan and the emerging set of responses available to the international community. The powerful sway of the current Sudanese leadership is in jeopardy, the authors contend, citing the International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Sudan’s President Omar Al Bashir, his decision to expel 16 humanitarian agencies from his country, the global economic crisis and its impact on investment and the global oil market, and the arrival of a new U.S. administration. Additionally, the article provides a brief history of violence in Sudan; China’s presence, interests, and potential role; the effect of the global economic crisis; the Obama Administration’s policies; and recommendations for the future.
The Comprehensive Peace Agreement Between the Government of the Republic of the Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Sudan People’s Liberation Army. 2005
The 260-page agreement signed in January 2005 that brought to an end Sudan’s civil war that simmered and flared for over 50 years, claimed nearly 2 million lives, and displaced many more.
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Beyond Darfur; Sudan’s Slide Toward Civil War. By Andrew Natsios. Foreign Affairs, 2008.
A former administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development and U.S. President’s special representative for Sudan advocates for a revised U.S. approach to Sudan that rebalances U.S. efforts to mitigate the conflict in Darfur and re-emergent North-South tensions. According to Natsios, the multiple simmering conflicts in Sudan are due largely to the machination and opportunism of the tenacious ruling National Congress Party (NCP), and a better U.S. strategy would seek to address this underlying cause of tension. The U.S. need not confront the NCP, but better apply appropriate carrots to elicit necessary concessions from the NCP toward peace. Natsios also provides insight into the political dynamic between the NCP and the dominant South Sudan SPLM party, as well as an update on the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, deadlines that have been missed, and key hurdles that remain. Peace in Sudan is delicate, difficult and complex, but the consequences of a resumption of conflict in Sudan to U.S. strategic and humanitarian interests are grave and demand concerted U.S. effort, Natsios concludes.
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