SPLM Accuses SSRC Of Working In Isolation, Ignoring The SSRB

16 November 2010 – (Juba) – The SPLM has criticized the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission in Khartoum for not delegating its powers to the Bureau and the committees formed under it.

On Saturday, the Referendum commission formed a committee to scrutinize the application submitted by several domestic and international observers who have so far not received accreditation so as to start monitoring the implementation of the referendum exercise.

SPLM national secretary for information, culture and communication, Yien Mathew told SRS on Sunday that the delay in accrediting the observers could likely impact the credibility of the referendum results.

[Yien Mathew]: “The (referendum) act talks very clearly about domestic and international observers. Monitoring and observation does not start only when registration comes, it starts even with the general check list of all the benchmarks of the implementations of such a process until when the polling time begins. Very unfortunately the registration starts when the accreditation of the observers is not yet done, because there seems to be a conflict where the commission forgetting behind one of the important bodies that is the Bureau in the south not to be a part of giving accreditation, and not delegating powers as far as the act is concerned. And this raises the SPLM’s concern. We all understand what the role of domestic and international monitors is; to at least guarantee that this upcoming referendum is going to be free and fair.”

On the second day of voter registration, several centers have less or no observers at all.