GOSS Minister Says Interfering With Referendum Means Undermining Peace Process

17 November 2010 – (Bentiu) – The GOSS minister for internal affairs says that any element that tries to interfere with the coming southern self-determination referendum will be regarded as undermining the peace process.

Gier Chuang’s statement follows a bombing incident by SAF in Northern Bahr al Ghazal state last Friday. SAF however claimed that they were pursuing Darfur anti-government movements in the area.

Speaking to SRS on Wednesday from Unity State, Chuang said that SAF have no mandate to cross over to southern territory.

[Gier Chuang]: “The Sudan Armed Forces they should not encroach into the borders and cross over the borders into the areas of south Sudan which will in turn affect the population along the borders in the north and the south. So this is not a business for the Sudanese themselves alone. It also involves the international community; there are observers so that this process is not interfered with. Should anybody continue to interfere with this process it means that they just want to undermine the process of the referendum. This is not acceptable. These things are post referendum issues which will be sorted out by the committees for the post referendum issues immediately after the referendum if the option is separation.”

Gier added that with or without the north-south border demarcation the referendum exercise will take place as scheduled for the 9th of January 2011.

[Gier Chuang]: “Our leadership agreed that let the referendum go ahead, southern Sudanese know themselves in the south it has nothing to do with the line, the border demarcation. So as long as you know yourself as a southern Sudanese you vote. And that’s why our people in the north who will be registered will vote as well and people in Diaspora will vote too. So the border has nothing to do with the referendum. The demarcation of the borders should not be used by any element to interfere with the process.”

The GOSS Vice President, Riek Machar this week reiterated the government’s commitment to maintain soft borders with the north if the south opts for separation.