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Sudan: Census Row Resolved
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The Nation (Nairobi)
16 April 2008
Posted to the web 15 April 2008
Khartoum
Sudanese president Omar Hassan el-Bashir and his First Vice-President, Salva Kiir, have agreed to go ahead with the country's forthcoming census, which begins next Tuesday, Al Jazeera television reported Monday.
The Arabic news channel said President El-Bashir and Mr Kiir had decided that the census be conducted throughout the country from April 22.
While it was not clear when or where Mr El Bashir and Mr Kiir met, it was widely believed that they would meet on Monday to settle the dispute triggered by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement's decision on Saturday to postpone the census in the South until the end of the year.
"It was postponed," South Sudanese Information Minister Gabriel Changson Chang told Reuters from Juba.
"There is a sizeable number of southern Sudanese in northern Sudan and if they are not transported to the south before the census, it will affect the wealth-sharing," he offered.
He said questions on ethnicity and religion were not included in the census questionnaire, contrary to the wishes of the government' of the South.
The SPLM also said that border demarcation was not complete, which prevents the south from receiving people, and will affect power-sharing. Further, it said the war in Darfur will affect the elections, which will, therefore, be incomplete.
However, in a notable departure from the SPLM position, former foreign affairs minister Dr Lam Akol called on Southerners to take part in the census.
Earlier, Second Vice-President Ali Osman Taha had accused some SPLM elements of creating a new political crisis.
Addressing a press conference in Khartoum, Mr Taha said these elements were out to mess up the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed between the government and the SPLM in 2005.
He expressed optimism that the problem would be resolved through consultations between himself, President El Bashir, and Mr Kiir.
A definitive decision
He said they would come up with a definitive decision since they had a common will.
Meanwhile, the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) condemned the SPLM's decision saying "It is not justified by any facts, be they security or political".
The NCP said in the statement that it regretted the decision, "especially when money from the Sudanese people has been spent on a constitutional issue agreed upon by all sides".
"All reports from the South confirmed that preparations for the census were complete. This is not a surprising decision if you look at the SPLM's earlier positions towards the CPA," Kamal Obeid of the party's secretariat said.
He called on the SPLM to reverse its decision saying the NCP sees no reason for delaying the census and hopes it will be held on time.
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Suna
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