In response to an opinion article entitled "A united Sudan is better for Africa (DN, July 23), the writer is referred to as a diplomat at the Sudanese Embassy in Nairobi. Given his occupation, one would not expect much objectivity from him in the treatment of the subject.

Mr Magdi A. Mofadal writes as if the issue of the forthcoming referendum in the Sudan is new. What he is advancing should have been done during the negotiations in Kenya leading to the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement on January 9, 2005.

If Mr Magdi is a serious Unionist, he should have encouraged his brethren in Khartoum to implement the CPA fully and made "unity attractive" as the CPA provided. Unfortunately, his brethren concentrated on putting obstacles on the path of CPA implementation with the intention of frustrating the South even further.

The Khartoum rulers want to renegotiate the CPA, having failed to make unity attractive to the South in the last six-year interim period. With less than five months left, their usual forked tongues are now wagging all over the world for 'unity of the sick man of Africa' to be preserved!

Mr Magdi's 'Pandora's Box' contains a destructive worm that plagued Sudan, Africa and the whole world. This worm is the Khartoum ruling elite of which Mr Magdi is one. These elite are Arab and Muslim. They believe they are superior to the rest of the Sudanese. To them, the rest are slaves, or Abid. To them, the Sudan is an Arab and Islamic country to be ruled under Sharia Law.

Since they gained independence from the British, their project has been to Arabise and Islamise the rest of the country. Let Mr Magdi tell the world what they have done since independence for the South apart from visiting on it death, poverty, ignorance and misery.

The history of Southern Sudan has been written in blood and tears since foreign invaders entered the South starting with the Turko-Egptians to the Mahdiya, the British and finally the Khartoum rulers from 1956 to date.

Despite all efforts since 1955, the Khartoum rulers never listened to any advice, and always used Islam to marshal Arab support, claiming it is their duty to take Islam into the heart of Africa.

They argue that the South is the obstacle and must be conquered. But if the South did not have a justifiable case that merited a referendum, then the whole world would not have supported the CPA. It was supported by Igad, Egypt, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, United Kingdom, Northern Ireland, the USA, the African Union, the League of Arab States and the United Nations.

The CPA was so considerate as to allow Khartoum six years to give up some of their privileges. But Khartoum chose to block the agreement by sponsoring militias in the South to cause chaos so that the CPA would fail. The people of the South turned the other cheek.

To show their might, the Khartoum rulers used Darfur to put the fear of Satan in the South. The Southerners watched calmly as Khartoum intensified the implementation of Sharia Law in the north and even in Khartoum to punish the Southerners there, yet according to the CPA, sharia is not applicable in the capital city.

We in the South concluded long ago that the ruling elite want the secession of the North so that they can fully dominate it through an Islamic State.

Mr Magdi knows there is a movement in the North led by the Intiba newspaper which has been campaigning for the secession of the North. The world must prepare to end the existence of the "Sick Man of Africa" to give birth to two new states that will coexist in peace.

Mr Lole is chief coordinator for internal campaign, Southern Sudan Civic Education Organisation