After the Sudan Elections: What Next for the Region?

By Scott A Morgan

The Elections in Sudan have been concluded. In the views of several people the outcome was already decided before the first ballot was cast. Omar al-Bashir has been reelected President of Sudan. This fact means that the future regional stability of Central Africa may now be in jeopardy.

It has also been widely held by several Governments including the United States that this was a preliminary run. The real Elections will occur in January 2011. This will be when the Southern Part of Sudan will get a choice either to remain part of Sudan or to vote for Independence and become the Newest Country in Africa. Already this fact has some people worried.

The Background heading into this increasingly crucial election could not be more riddled with tension. Although the African Union and the Arab League confirmed that the elections were Free and Fair, The three states which guarantee that the Comprehensive Peace Accord is followed (US, UK and Norway) found that the Cycle was riff with Irregularities. South Africa stated that the Election Process seemed to be rushed in their Opinion.

One Area of Concern was Darfur. It was one area where a couple of interesting events occurred. 4 South African Peacekeepers were kidnapped hours after the polls opened. At anytime their release is expected by the United Nations. Some of the most glaring problems with the vote did occur in Darfur. On April 19^th the UN announced that renewed clashes between the Sudanese Military and the Abdel Wahid Faction of the Sudanese Liberation Army were disrupting Aid Supplies to an estimated 100,000 refugees.

This is not the only action that is being conducted by the Sudanese Military at this time. There are reports that the Sudanese Army have moved into the Blue Nile State as well. Blue Nile which is close to Ethiopia was the scene of some of the most violent fighting during the 1983-2005 war. Both Factions have been consulting with Prime Minister Zenawi in Ethiopia since the Election started.

Already the interesting Diplomacy has begun in the region. President Deby of Chad has announced that his Government would NOT support the Referendum on Southern Independence under any Circumstance. He would prefer to have Sudan remain as one entity. His stated logic is that He fears that an insurgency that operated in the 1980s would resume again. This statement is causing some consternation among the People of Southern Sudan at this time.

Another Country that is watching this situation Develop is the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This Country which has been plagued by War conducted by Regional Militias and its neighbors since the 1990s is very rich in natural resources. There have been some calls for this Country which is the largest Country in Africa to be partitioned as well. How the referendum in Southern Sudan goes could be a factor in the future of the DRC.

If one takes this information and reviews it there is one sad conclusion that can be reached. The situation in Central Africa is very similar to that in the Balkans in 1914. Countries having designs on their neighbors and supporting Opposition Movements both legitimate political actors and irregular forces bent on exploiting people. There are Elections occurring in Rwanda this summer. The Actions of that Government towards the Opposition and the Independent Media outlets are an additional Source of Tension.

Before the Referendum will take place there will be an effort at posturing by various actors in the region and at the United Nations. There will be calls to delay the Referendum. Rebel Groups in Darfur and other Countries in Africa will find their actions under scrutiny as well in various capitals including Washington, Beijing and Canberra.

As soon as the Results are released we can start the clock for the Real Elections in Sudan. It will be as the Chinese say “Interesting Times.”

The Author Publishes Confused Eagle on the Internet and comments on US Policy towards Africa. Confused Eagle can be found at confusedeagle.livejournal.com

Congo's Katanga Province Bans Export of Mineral Concentrates

By Nicholas Bariyo, contributing to Dow Jones Newswires; 256-75-2624615 bariyonic@yahoo.co.uk

Dow Jones Newswires

DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

Congo's copper-rich Katanga province has banned the export of unprocessed mineral concentrates in a bid to compel companies to add value to mineral exports, a government official said Tuesday.

A provincial official in Katanga province told Dow Jones Newswires that Martin Kabwelulu, Congo's mines minister, directed provincial authorities to start effecting the ban this week to compel mining companies to put in place mineral processing facilities, including metallurgic plants, to add value to copper and cobalt concentrates.

"The main idea behind the ban is to create more jobs and collect more revenue," he said by telephone from Lubumbashi, the provincial capital.

The ban was first announced in 2007 but was temporally lifted to allow companies time to put in place facilities.

In 2007, the ban affected mainly companies with operations in both Zambia and Congo, including Toronto-listed First Quantum Minerals Ltd (FM.T) and South Africa-based Metorex Ltd.(MTX.JO).

Years of civil war and inadequate investment have left most mineral treatment facilities in Katanga dilapidated, forcing most companies to ship concentrates for treatment outside the country, mainly in neighboring Zambia as well as South Africa and China.

Congo's state mining company, Gecamines, has been rehabilitating its mineral treatment facilities in Katanga since 2008, but the global economic downturn slowed down rehabilitation work last year.

The company has also been seeking early payment of signature bonuses from international companies that took over some of its assets since 2006 to speed up rehabilitation.

The dipping of global copper prices in 2008 forced a number of small-scale mining companies out of Congo, hampering the sector's recovery.

According to analysts, the African Copperbelt, which stretches from Katanga to Northern Zambia, contains at least 10% of the world's copper reserves and a third of its cobalt reserves.

Copyright © 2009 Dow Jones Newswires

MONUC strengthens the capacity of its staff for the protection of civilian populations

Kinshasa, 12 April, 2010 - The protection of civilians remains at the heart of the priorities under the mandate of the United Nations Organisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC). In order to reinforce its operational capacities in the protection field, the Mission has undertaken to train staff to enable them to efficiently accomplish that work.

25 MONUC staff members from various sections of MONUC, who had voluntarily agreed to work for three months as part of the Joint Protection Teams (JPTs) and who had completed a 4-month training course on the protection of civilians, received their certificate of completion on Saturday 10 April 2010. These training activities under the coordination of the Civil Affairs and Human Rights sections took place in Goma, Bukavu, and Kisangani.

Training objectives included the following: understanding the notion of protection and its general principles in the context of United Nations peacekeeping; being able to distinguish between acts of common law, violations of human rights and, among these, identifying those requiring protection; building awareness regarding existing international legal instruments and national laws relevant to human rights, international humanitarian law and refugee law.

"MONUC is entering a withdrawal phase, at the request of the Congolese Government. The protection of civilians nevertheless remains the top priority for the Mission, and we still have plenty of time ahead of us in which to continue saving lives and finding sustainable solutions for the country’s eastern provinces which are not yet concerned by this withdrawal,” the Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, Leila Zerrougui, said in Kinshasa on Saturday 10 April 2010, on the occasion of the completion of the civilian training programme and the awarding of certificates of completion to participants.

"The training you have received this week is crucial, not just because it has provided the opportunity for some of you to acquire new skills and for others to strengthen those skills in handling the problems and practical tools pertaining to the protection of civilians. But also and most important, because we want to systematize and implement the best practices that we have identified so far, “Ms Leila Zerrougui said, addressing the laureates.

A critical mission

Since last February, MONUC has deployed 86 Joint Protection Teams in the eastern provinces and Equateur province. According to Ms Zerrougui, the additional staff that have come forward voluntarily have helped ''to reach a monthly deployment rate without precedent since 2009, when 15 missions were first deployed on an experimental basis.”

On 12 December 2009, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Alan Doss, launched a call for MONUC staff, national as well as international, interested in bringing their expertise to Joint Protection Mechanisms. 54 additional staff were temporarily deployed for three months in North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele, Bas-Uele, Equateur, northern Katanga and Maniema.

More than 49 community liaison interpreters will soon be deployed in six strategic military sectors in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to help improve relations between military personnel and local communities. These interpreters will facilitate the implementation of recommendations produced by the Joint Protection Teams, help in restoring confidence between peacekeepers and local communities, and contribute to preventing, reducing or, better, anticipating risks to civilian protection.

"Thanks to these Joint Protection Teams and community liaison interpreters we are generating a considerable amount of additional of information and field experiences. It is a whole new approach that is being put in place, an approach based on mutual understanding and confidence with the grassroots communities. An approach based on concrete and measurable actions, with a direct impact on the conditions in which protection is provided for populations; [an approach] that enables us to gradually get out of a sometimes crippling a culture of inaccurate reports and vague recommendations,” the Deputy Special Representative said.

8 Red Cross Workers Kidnapped in Congo

(April 13) -- Eight Red Cross workers have been kidnapped by an armed militia in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the international agency said today.

The eight, one Swiss and seven Congolese, have been held since April 9 in an area of South Kivu Province that has been the scene of violent clashes in recent months, according to a statement on the group's Web site.

Thousands of people have been forced to flee the area near the town of Fizi, which has been wracked by chaos since the effects of the 1994 genocide spread across the border from Rwanda.

"We demand that the group holding our personnel release them as quickly as possible," said Franz Rauchenstein, head of the Geneva-based agency's mission in Congo.

The militia, identified as Mai Mai Yakutumba, is one of many armed groups operating in the area.

Rauchenstein, who said the Red Cross had been "in touch with our colleagues," added, "We continue to insist that the strictly neutral, impartial and humanitarian nature of our work be recognized, and that our colleagues be able to return to their loved ones soon."

The International Committee of the Red Cross said it maintained a permanent presence in several areas of South Kivu, a remote region that presents logistical and security challenges.

"It is in order to protect and assist armed-conflict victims that we have been carrying out our activities in the area," Rauchenstein said.

Letter to the editor of L.A. Times (Unpublished)

by Janice Kamenir-Reznik

The importance of shedding a light on the violence being wrought on the civilian population of the Democratic Republic of Congo by the Lord’s Resistance Army cannot be understated (“Shutting Down the Lord’s Resistence Army” April 5, 2010). The LRA is only one of many militias wreaking havoc on the population of Congo. Unless and until the people of conscience in the world affirm their unwillingness to ignore these wanton violations of innocent people’s basic human rights to be free of slavery, of rape and of murderous militias and governments, tens of thousands will remained enslaved and hundreds of thousands of innocents will continue to die. The human toll in Congo over the last decade is approaching 6 million and only now is the Western press beginning to report the story…and only in very small doses. The LA Times correctly states that only “a modicum of sustained political will could rout the rebels…” But, tragically, the number of people that care has not yet reached even a pitiful “modicum”. The suggestion is made that the US Senate unanimously pass the LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act. There is also the Conflict Minerals Trade Act pending in the US Congress. These Acts would be a good start on the long journey to saving lives in Congo and restoring Congo’s rich resources back to its rightful owners—the people of the Congo. After the holocaust the world agreed “Never Again”; but it happens again and again. Now is the time to build that modicum of sustained political will. If not now, when? And if not us, then whom?

Janice Kamenir-Reznik,

Co-Founder and President
Jewish World Watch