SPLM-N Statement on the Captured Chinese Workers in South Kordofan State

Dear All,

Please find attached a statement concerning the Chinese workers in South Kordofan State.
Thanks
Anwar Elhaj
SPLMN Representative to the US

Press Statement- Chinese.doc 25K   View   Download

Statement

Sunday January 29^th, 2012

The SPLM-N is a national liberation movement that seeks democracy, just peace, equal citizenship and social justice. It has been attacked by the dictator General Omar al-Bashir who is indicted by the international criminal court and who displaced more than half a million citizens of Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile, banned the SPLM-N, committed war crimes, and denies access to humanitarian assistance.

SPLM-N has nothing against China and the Chinese, and it is part of the forces that are looking for peace, stability, and co-existence worldwide. The leadership of the SPLM-N and I, the Secretary General, together with the SPLM-N Chairman are exerting the maximum effort to obtain accurate information from our forces in the field regarding the Chinese who were detained in Southern Kordofan. If it is SPLA-N forces that the Chinese citizens are with, be assured that they will be in safe hands and they will be released.

What we stand for before and after this incident are democracy and a just peace. This should be better understood by China and that the National Congress government of General Bashir is a government that will never deliver good relations between Sudan and China. They are massacring and committing war crimes against the Sudanese people and therefore they cannot sustain relations with any country in the world.

The interests of China and the international community are better served by the democratic forces in Sudan. We are right now in contact with Beijing through one of the SPLM-N’s associates in Beijing to assist in resolving this situation.

 

 Yasir Arman,

 Secretary General,

 Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North

January 29, 2012

A New Bible Translation Drops the Words ‘Father’ and ‘Son of God’ From The Bible Because These Terms are “Offensive to Muslims.”

 By Hussein Hajji Wario | Yahoo! Contributor Network – Fri, Jan 27, 2012

‘Father’ and ‘Son’ Ousted from the Trinity in New Bible Translations

A controversy is brewing over three reputable Christian organizations, which are based in North America, whose efforts have ousted the words “Father” and “Son” from new Bibles. Wycliffe Bible Translators, Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) and Frontiers are under fire for “producing Bibles that remove “Father,” “Son” and “Son of God” because these terms are offensive to Muslims.”

Concerned Christian missionaries, Bible translators, pastors, and national church leaders have come together with a public petition to stop these organizations. They claim a public petition is their last recourse because meetings with these organizations’ leaders, staff resignations over this issue and criticism and appeals from native national Christians concerned about the translations “have failed to persuade these agencies to retain “Father” and “Son” in the text of all their translations.”

Biblical Missiology, a ministry of Boulder, Colorado-based Horizon International, is sponsoring the petition.

The main issues of this controversy surround new Arabic and Turkish translations. Here are three examples native speakers give:

First, Wycliffe and SIL have produced Stories of the Prophets, an Arabic Bible that uses an Arabic equivalent of “Lord” instead of “Father” and “Messiah” instead of “Son.”

Second, Frontiers and SIL have produced Meaning of the Gospel of Christ , an Arabic translation which removes “Father” in reference to God and replaces it with “Allah,” and removes or redefines “Son.” For example, the verse which Christians use to justify going all over the world to make disciples, thus fulfilling the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19) reads, “Cleanse them by water in thename of Allah, his Messiahand his Holy Spirit” instead of “baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Rev. Bassam Madany, an Arab American who runs Middle East Resources, terms these organization’s efforts as “a western imperialistic attempt that’s inspired by cultural anthropology, and not by biblical theology.”

Third, Frontiers and SIL have produced a new Turkish translation of the Gospel of Matthew that uses Turkish equivalents of “guardian” for “Father” and “representative” or “proxy” for “Son.” To Turkish church leader Rev. Fikret Böcek, “This translation is ‘an all-American idea‘ with absolutely no respect for the ‘sacredness’ of Scripture, or even of the growing Turkish church.”

SIL has issued a public response stating “all personnel subscribe to a statement of faith which affirms the Trinity, Christ’s deity, and the inspiration of Scripture.” However, in the same statement, which is similar to Wycliffe‘s, it claims “word-for-word translation of these titles would communicate an incorrect meaning (i.e. that God had physical, sexual relationships with Mary) [sic],” thus justifying substituting “Father” and “Son” in new translations. Calls and emails to Wycliffe and SIL to clarify their positions were not returned. Frontiers responded to calls with articles that critics have already dismissed as skirting omissions of “Father” and “Son” in new Bible translations.

http://news.yahoo.com/father-son-ousted-trinity-bible-translations-003300519.html

Job Vacancy at the Ministry of Interior:

All,

Please find attached a job vacancy at the Ministry of Interior, please forward the advert on to those whom might be interested in the position.

Please email Adhel Awan at adhel4@hotmail.com for more information.

Thanks,
Reec Akuak
Vice President

The South Sudanese Community, USA
Growth — Development — Community

202.656.TSSC (8772)
Direct/Cell: 202.596.6009
Fax: 202.280.1007

R.Akuak@TSSC.us
http://www.TSSC.us

Job Vacancy at the Deputy Minister of Interior’s Office.pdf

South Sudan, Sudan Risk Economic Damage, World Bank Says

By Paul Richardson and William Davison

(Corrects quote in third paragraph to say dispute may have unsalutary impact on economies.)

Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) — The dispute between Sudan and South Sudan over oil fees, which led the south to suspend crude production, risks damaging both economies because of their dependence on the natural resource, the World Bank said.

South Sudan began halting production earlier this month after accusing Sudan of seizing oil that passes through its territory via a pipeline to an export terminal on the Red Sea and of seizing vessels carrying crude. Sudan says it is diverting the fuel to cover unpaid fees for allowing it to transit the country. South Sudanese President Salva Kiir said on Jan. 23 that Sudan has “looted” oil valued at $815 million.

“Considering the importance of oil to both sides, the lack of economic activities in the sector that’s predominant would have a huge, unsalutary impact on the economies,” Obiageli Ezekwesili, vice president for Africa at the World Bank, said in an interview yesterday in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital.

South Sudan took control of about three-quarters of Sudan’s output of 490,000 barrels a day when it gained independence from its northern neighbor in July. The crude is pumped mainly by China National Petroleum Corp., Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd. and India’s ONGC Videsh Ltd. Sudan is demanding compensation for the loss and also wants South Sudan to pay $6 a barrel to transit the oil via the country. The neighboring country has offered to pay $1 a barrel.

The dispute presents an opportunity to “look at options other than oil for growing their economies,” Ezekwesili said. South Sudan relies on oil to generate more than 90 percent of government revenue, and Sudan depends on it for 30 percent.

Agriculture

“Whether it’s South Sudan or Sudan, agriculture is a key potential source of transformational growth,” Ezekwesili said. “They need to focus on those, they need to focus on other aspects or opportunities in attracting foreign direct investment into manufacturing and that would mean they have to focus on macro-economic reforms.”

South Sudan is set to become a member of the World Bank next month, giving the country access to zero-interest loans of $75 million a year over the next three years, Ezekwesili said. Similar loans to countries like Sierra Leone and Liberia in the past have enabled the bank to “mobilize three times that amount from other partners,” she said.

–Editor: Shaji Mathew

To contact the reporters on this story: Paul Richardson in Addis Ababa at pmrichardson@bloomberg.net; William Davison in Addis Ababa via Nairobi at pmrichardson@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Antony Sguazzin in Johannesburg at asguazzin@bloomberg.net.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-29/south-sudan-sudan-risk-economic-damage-bank-says.html

South Sudan, Sudan Risk Economic Damage on Oil, World Bank Says
BusinessWeek
29 (Bloomberg) — The dispute between Sudan and South Sudan over oil fees, which led the south to suspend crude production, risks damaging both economies because of their dependence on the natural resource, the World Bank said.

SD spirit backs Sudan rebirth
Sioux Falls Argus Leader
Voting takes place on the South Sudan independence referendum. Ballots are cast in Sudan, Canada, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Australia, England and the United States. In South Sudan, 99 percent vote to secede. South Sudan declares independence, …

As Of April South Sudanese Citizens To Be Considered Foreigners In Khartoum
Eurasia Review
From April 9 onward about 700000 south Sudanese citizens living in Khartoum and other northern regions will become “foreigners”, at least at the administrative level. According to the latest provisions of the Government in order to stay they will have …

IGAD urges Sudan and S. Sudan to refrain from unilateral actions
Sudan Tribune
… President of the Republic of the Sudan; HE Salva Kiir Mayardit, President of the Republic of South Sudan, the Honourable Henry Okello Oryem Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (International Affairs) and Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs of the …

South Sudan completes 90% closure of oil production
Sudan Tribune
By Ngor Arol Garang January 28, 2012 (JUBA) – South Sudan on Saturday said it had shut down 90% of its oil production, a day after the latest talks to resolve a fee dispute with north Sudan failed in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa…

Chinese company attacked in South Kordofan: SAF
Sudan Tribune
January 28, 2012 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) on Saturday announced that fighters from the Sudan People Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N) launched an assault on the site of a Chinese construction company in South Kordofan…

South Sudan tribe kills 22 in new ethnic violence after their group targeted …
Washington Post
JUBA, South Sudan — Members of a South Sudanese tribe targeted in massive attacks late last month have killed 22 people and burned down three villages of the opposing tribe in new attacks, a state governor said Monday. Thousands of youth from the Lou …

UN chief Ban Lectures African Union Summit To Uphold Gay Rights

African Union leaders gathered at their new headquarters

Widespread legal bans on homosexuality in most African countries have been challenged by UN chief Ban ki-moon at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa. Ban said gay and gender rights must be respected.

UN Secretary General Ban accused many nations of the 54-member African Union of ignoring or “even sanctioning” discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity for “too long.”

Outgoing African Union chairman Tedoro Obiang Nguema, who is president of Equatorial Guinea, speaking just before Ban delivered his speech, had accused “external powers” of perpetuating their influence.

South Africa is the only country on the continent that legally recognizes gay rights and same-sex marriage. Late last year, Uganda’s parliament re-introduced a controversial bill that calls for the death penalty for certain homosexual acts.

Blunt talking by UN’s Ban in Addis Ababa

Ban told summit leaders, whose two-day agenda is supposed to be focused on intra-Africa trade, that confronting homophobic discrimination was a “challenge.”

“But, we must not give up on the ideas of the universal declaration of human rights,” Ban said.

Tunisia returns to AU fold

Making an active return to the African Union is post-revolution Tunisia whose new president Moncef Marzouki said Tunis was looking to attract investors one year after its mass protests that triggered the so-called Arab Spring, also in Egypt and Libya.

Marzouki said ousted former ruler Ben Ali had not considered Tunisia as part of the continent. “Tunisia had no diplomatic role, especially in Africa. It (had) completely disappeared from the scene.”

Tussle for AU leadership

AU leaders on Sunday elected Benin President Thomas Boni Yayi as their new president, to replace Equatorial Guinea’s President Obiang.

Obiang, in his departing remarks, appeared to accuse former colonial powers of interfering. “Africa should not be questioned with regards to democracy, human rights, governance and transparency in public administration,” he said.

Yayi, an economist who has led Benin for six years, acknowledged that he had a “high responsibility” in the one-year rotating job.

“We shall continue to work hand in glove to ensure that we consolidate all that we have achieved so far,” he said.

Jean Ping (left) is counting on Francophone support

The AU faces a string of issues, including war and hunger in Somalia,  violence in Nigeria, riots in Senegal and oil disputes between Sudan and the newly formed South Sudan.

Ban highlights Sudanese oil dispute

UN chief Ban, in his speech, urged African leaders to play “a more important role [in] solving regional issues.” He highlighted the Sudanese oil dispute and urged South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to negotiate.

South Sudan, which was born last July out of a peace deal, recently shut down oil production after it accused al-Bashir’s Sudan of stealing oil along pipelines used for export.

Ban said he was also “deeply concerned” about a humanitarian crisis along Sudan’s volatile border with the south. He also accused Khartoum of blocking access to aid workers.

Tussle for AU’s top executive post

Monday’s AU deliberations in the AU’s new headquarter complex provided by China will center on a secret ballot for the top executive job. The current AU commission head Jean Ping of Gabon is being challenged by South Africa’s Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. Ping was first elected in 2008.

South Africa’s foreign ministry said it was “optimistic” that Dlamini-Zuma, 62, and former wife of President Jacob Zuma, would receive the “necessary” two-third of the votes.

Dlamini-Zuma has the backing of the 15-member Southern African Development Community. Sources say Ping is counting on support of French-speaking AU member nations.

Ping told the opening ceremony that prospects for peace were “real” in war-torn Somalia. The AU has a 10,000-strong force protecting Somalia’s fragile Western-backed government from the al Qaeda-linked Shebab militia.

Author: Ian P. Johnson (AFP, AP, dpa)
Editor: Nicole Goebel

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,15701608,00.html

UN chief: Africa leaders should respect gay rights

Boston.com –

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia—UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon says African nations should stop treating gays as “second-class citizens, or even criminals”. Ban told African leaders that gathered in Ethiopia’s capital on Sunday for an African Union summit that …

Respect gay rights, UN’s Ban tells African leaders

AFP –

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon — in an unusually outspoken declaration Sunday — told leaders at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa that they must respect gay rights, an issue that is controversial in many African states

Africa leaders must respect gay rights: UN’s Ban

Africasia –

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, in an unusually outspoken declaration on Sunday, told African leaders they must respect gay rights, an issue that is controversial in many African states. “One form of discrimination ignored or even sanctioned by many …

Ban Ki-Moon, UN Secretary General: Gay Rights Must Be Respected In Africa

Huffington Post –

“One form of discrimination ignored or even sanctioned by many states for too long has been discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity,” Ban is quoted as saying Sunday in the Ethiopian capital. “It prompted governments to treat .

Ban Ki-Moon: Africa Leaders Should Respect Gay Rights

Huffington Post –

01/29/12 11:52 AM ET AP ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon says African nations should stop treating gays as “second-class citizens, or even criminals”. Ban told African leaders that gathered in Ethiopia’s capital on Sunday for …

Ban: Africa leaders must respect gay rights

News24 –

Addis Ababa – UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, speaking at the opening of a summit meeting on Sunday, told African leaders they must respect gay rights. “One form of discrimination ignored or even sanctioned by many states for too long has been …

African Union: Ban Ki-moon urges respect for gay rights

BBC News –

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged African leaders to respect gay rights. Discrimination based on sexual orientation had been ignored or even sanctioned by many states for too long, Mr Ban told an African Union summit.

South Sudan ethnic clashes claim 74 lives

A May 2011 handout photo showing displaced South Sudanese waiting for relief supplies in Warrap State. Fresh fighting has claimed more than 74 lives as ethnic clashes continue to convulse the new country. PHOTO | AFP |

By MACHEL AMOS in Juba Posted Sunday, January 29  2012

At least 74 people were reported dead on Sunday in fresh ethnic clashes between rival communities in two neighbouring states in South Sudan.

The fighting took place on Saturday when armed youths from Mayendit County in Unity state attacked Tonj East County in the neighboring Warrap state, deputy Interior minister Gen Salva Mathok Gengdit said.

“They attacked and killed 74, four of which are soldiers and the rest civilians, many of them women and children,” Gen Mathok said.

The soldier said the attackers penetrated the area at ease, shooting on the civilians as they plunder property.

“There was no fighting because those people in Tonj are disarmed,” he said, adding that the police were dispatched to the area but found many had already been killed.

“They attacked the area and all fled randomly in disarray. Even children were abandoned,” Gen Mathok said.

However, a local official in the state said the casualty figures were higher.

“They killed more than 90 people. They killed children, women and youth, and took cattle,” Deng Madut Deng, the ruling party youth leader in Warrap state told a USAID-sponsored radio station.

The communities in Warrap and Unity states have longstanding hostilities arising from multiple cattle raiding and counter-raiding.

After South Sudan’s independence in July last year, both states were tasked to conduct a uniform disarmament exercise to pave way for a peaceful settlement.

But the governors of the two states later traded accusations, with the Warrap state governor Mrs Nyandeng Malek blaming her counterpart Mr Taban Deng of failing to implement the order.

Ethnic hostilities have ravaged South Sudan since independence. Having claimed thousands of lives so far, the hostilities pose a potential threat to stability of the Africa’s infant nation.

http://www.africareview.com/News/South+Sudan+ethnic+fighting+claims+74/-/979180/1315982/-/xbenf6z/-/

UN chief: Oil dispute between South Sudan and Sudan a ‘serious threat to peace and security’

By LUC VAN KEMENADE 

The Associated Press

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — South Sudan and Sudan could face a “major humanitarian crisis” if they fail to solve a running oil dispute, a top U.S. envoy said Sunday as African heads of state converged on Ethiopia’s capital for an African Union summit.

At the opening of an African Union (AU) summit , in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Sunday, Jan.29, 2012, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon told assembled leaders to respect people’s human rights. (AP Photo/Elias Asmare)

South Sudan recently shut down oil production after it accused Sudan of stealing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of oil. Related negotiations have reached an impasse.

Both sides are acting out of desperation, taking “dramatic actions” because they fail to see prospects to reach an agreement, the U.S. special envoy to Sudan, Princeton Lyman, told The Associated Press.

Unless the two sides reach an agreement, he said, both will “suffer and suffer in not too long a period.”

Lyman said the oil crisis had pushed humanitarian issues off to the side.

“It’s clear that the situation is declining very rapidly,” he said. “Without access for the international community we see what could emerge as a major humanitarian crisis for the continent, and a preventable crisis that the African Union has to address.”

The Sudan crisis and war and hunger in Somalia are expected to dominate this year’s A.U. summit, though the gathering’s official theme is trade.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the oil dispute threatens peace and security in the region. He called on African leaders to “play a more important role solving regional issues.”

South Sudan fought a decades-long civil war with northern neighbor Sudan, a war that culminated in a 2005 peace deal that saw the partitioning of Sudan and the birth of South Sudan last July. The new border between the two countries remains tense, with sporadic cross-border attacks taking place.

In a separate incident, China said Sunday that militants loyal to South Sudan captured 29 Chinese workers in a volatile border region of Sudan.

Oil negotiations between the two neighbors have been in a deadlock for two years. They have never agreed on the transit fees South Sudan should pay to Sudan for using its infrastructure of port and pipelines.

Ban said he discussed the issue with South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki. He urged Kiir to meet with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to resolve their problems.

“I am urging two leaders to demonstrate political will,” he said.

Lyman said fighting in South Kordofan and Blue Nile has ended most communications between the two and increased distrust.

Lyman and Ban expressed concerns about a humanitarian crisis along Sudan’s volatile border with the south, and said the Khartoum government was not cooperating with U.N. missions.

“I am deeply concerned about South Kordofan and Blue Nile State,” Ban said. “Very worrisome because of the accessibility. There is no access for humanitarian workers.”

The U.N. has also expressed humanitarian concerns in South Sudan, where more than 120,000 people need aid because of a wave of ethnic clashes in a remote and volatile region.

The two nations have been meeting in Ethiopia for oil talks. Haile Menkerios, a special U.N. representative to Sudan, said Sunday there has been no recent progress.

Also on Sunday, South Sudan’s minister of petroleum and mining said the nation will not restart oil production unless Sudan accepts a list of demands.

Stephen Dhieu Dau said South Sudan was “committed to negotiations” but that Khartoum would have to accept their offer of paying $1 per barrel for using Sudan’s pipelines for export and $2.4 billion dollar financial assistance package before South Sudan turns on production again.

He also said Sudan must withdraw troops from the disputed border region of Abyei and stop funding rebel groups in South Sudan. He said South Sudan wants an international treaty guaranteed by “international superpowers.”

___

Michael Onyiego contributed to this report from Juba, South Sudan.

___

http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/officials-say-sudan-oil-1322306.html

Ratcheting Up Pressure on Khartoum, South Sudan Demands Border Deal Before Restarts Oil

By Hereward Holland

JUBA | Sun Jan 29, 2012 12:53pm EST

(Reuters) – South Sudan has totally shut down oil output in a row with Sudan over export transit fees and will only restart after the two reach a deal covering border security and the disputed Abyei region, its oil minister said on Sunday.

South Sudan became independent in July after a 2005 peace deal with Khartoum that ended decades of civil war. Some two million people died in the conflict.

But both sides have failed to resolve a long list of disputes including how to disentangle their oil industries, divide debt, mark the poorly drawn border and decide who should control Abyei, a region the size of Connecticut dotted with mud huts that was pummeled during the civil war.

South Sudan took about three-quarters of Sudan’s oil output when it seceded, but still needs pipelines running through its northern neighbor to export crude. The two have not agreed on a transit fee.

South Sudan depends on oil for about 98 percent of its revenues but Khartoum also relies on fees from piping the oil since last year when the loss of revenues from the oil itself plunged the country into severe economic crisis.

The shutdown of South Sudan’s oil output – which officials last put at about 350,000 barrels per day in November – was “100 percent complete” on Sunday, Minister of Petroleum and Mining Stephen Dhieu Dau told Reuters in Juba.

“Oil production will restart when we have a comprehensive agreement and all the deals are signed. Sudan must recognize the 1956 border, which means they must give back all the areas under occupation,” Dau said, referring to an internal boundary used around the time of Sudan’s independence.

The new U.N. member state said on January 20 it would shut down production after Khartoum started confiscating some oil in lieu of what it called unpaid fees.

Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali Ahmed Karti also said this month that an oil deal would likely depend on an agreement on border and security issues.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said he was worried the dispute could reignite armed conflict between the former civil war foes.

The two countries’ presidents met on the sidelines of a meeting of East African officials in Ethiopia on Friday, but failed to resolve the row.

Many South Sudanese see the row as continuation of their struggle to win freedom. Analysts say Khartoum’s demands to be paid $36 a barrel are in well in excess of international norms. Landlocked South Sudan has proposed less than $1 a barrel.

Sudan meanwhile accuses Juba of backing rebels of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North in the border states of Blue Nile and South Kordofan which seek to overthrow President Omar Hassan al-Bashir.

SPLM-N rebels in South Kordofan, where fighting broke out last June, said on Sunday they were holding Chinese workers for their own safety after a battle with the Sudanese army. Sudan responded that there had been no battle and rebels had attacked the compound of a Chinese construction company and captured 70 civilians, who the army were trying to rescue [ID:nL5E8CT030]

COMPREHENSIVE DEAL NEEDED

Sudan has already sold at least one tankerload of seized South Sudanese crude since the row broke out, industry sources have said, but on Saturday Khartoum said it would free other tankers being held at port to help defuse the dispute.

Dau said that four cargoes in question had not left the port yet, but that its agent in Sudan had been told to prepare documentation meaning it was possible they would leave later on Sunday or on Monday. China relies on the two countries for 5 percent of its crude oil imports.

South Sudan was “committed to negotiations” but first Khartoum “must take some steps,” he said.

“First they must release the cargoes, and the stolen crude that was lifted by force must be returned to us, and any deal must be tied to the issues of the border and Abyei, and they must stop sponsoring militias in South Sudan,” Dau said.

“This deal must be overseen by the international community. We will restart operations when we agree all these issues.”

Sudanese negotiators and oil officials were not immediately available to comment.

Asked if the dispute might escalate into renewed war, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon told reporters in Addis Ababa: “That is of great concern for me as secretary general. That’s why I’m meeting as many African leaders as possible.”

South Sudan’s population voted overwhelmingly to secede in a referendum a year ago, held under the terms of a 2005 peace deal that ended decades of devastating civil war between Sudan’s north and south.

(Reporting by Hereward Holland and Yara Bayoumy; Writing by Ulf Laessing and Alexander Dziadosz; Editing by Ben Harding)

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/29/us-southsudan-idUSTRE80S0J120120129

South Sudan demands border deal before restarts oil
Reuters
By Hereward Holland | JUBA (Reuters) – South Sudan has totally shut down oil output in a row with Sudan over export transit fees and will only restart after the two reach a deal covering border security and the disputed Abyei region, its oil minister …

More than 2 dozen Chinese workers captured in Sudan attack
Washington Post
The attack took place Saturday in Sudan’s South Kordofan— a region rich in oil that abuts the newly established state of South Sudan— and escalated tensions between the two countries, one largely Muslim, the other dominated by Christians.

New AU chairman faces tough challenges
Independent Online
Addis Ababa – The African Union’s new chairman faced tough challenges Sunday as UN chief Ban Ki-moon warned that a furious row between Sudan and South Sudanthreatened regional security. Thomas Boni Yayi, the president of Benin, vowed to work for peace …

African Union: Ban Ki-moon urges respect for gay rights
BBC News
He also called on the leaders of Sudan and South Sudan to reach agreement on how to divide up their oil wealth. Some analysts warn the feud risks seeing a return to all-out conflict. Delegates are meeting in the new $200m (£127m) AU headquarters, …

UN chief: Sudan oil crisis a ‘threat to peace’
Atlanta Journal Constitution
By LUC VAN KEMENADE AP ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — An oil dispute between Sudan and South Sudan has become “a serious threat to peace and security in the region,” UN chief Ban Ki-moon said Sunday as African heads of state converged on Ethiopia’s capital …

Chinese Workers Are Reported Captured by Sudan Rebels
New York Times
The rebels struck a remote camp used by Chinese road builders in South Kordofan province, an oil-rich area that has become a battlefield between the Sudanese government and rebel forces allied to the newly independent state of South Sudan.

South Sudan ethnic clashes claim 74 lives
Africa Review
By MACHEL AMOS in JubaPosted Sunday, January 29 2012 at 16:42 At least 74 people were reported dead on Sunday in fresh ethnic clashes between rival communities in two neighbouring states in South Sudan. The fighting took place on Saturday when armed …

In Addis, Ban Spins “Negligence” in S. Sudan As UN Stonewalls, Migiro Out
Inner City Press
By Matthew Russell Lee “South Sudan is twice the size of Germany, with less than 100 kilometers of paved roads. Our peacekeepers are doing all they can — with what they have. Despite severe logistical constraints, particularly air transport, …

Sudan: Chinese held by rebels in South Kordofan
BBC News
Rebels in Sudan’s volatile South Kordofan region say they are holding 29 Chinese workers who became caught up in a battle with the Sudanese army. The rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) said the workers are safe and “in good health” …

Sudans, Somalia top issues at African Union summit
The Associated Press
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Oil negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan and war and hunger in Somalia are expected to dominate discussion at a summit of African leaders in Ethiopia’s capital. The African Union said Sunday the summit’s official …

Sudan rebels say they captured 29 Chinese workers

KHARTOUM — Rebels in Sudan’s South Kordofan state have captured 29 Chinese workers after a battle with government forces, a spokesman for the insurgents said on Sunday.
Nine members of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) were also being held, Arnu Ngutulu Lodi of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), told AFP.
“Yes, we have captured them,” he said. “I want to assure you right now they are in safe hands.”
He said the Chinese have not been kidnapped and none was wounded.
They, along with the Sudanese, were captured on Saturday when the rebels destroyed a Sudanese military convoy between Rashad town and Al-Abbasiya in the northeast of the province, which has been at war since June.
Lodi said the Chinese were working mainly on road construction in the area.
They are being held in the Nuba mountains “until further notice” because of the security situation.
“Today is a little bit calm but we are expecting at any time SAF may launch an attack on us,” he said.
Spokesmen for the Sudanese army and the Chinese embassy could not be immediately reached for comment.
China is a major military supplier to the regime in Khartoum, and the largest buyer of Sudanese oil.
There is growing international concern over the situation in South Kordofan and nearby Blue Nile state, where a similar conflict broke out in September. The government is fighting ethnic minority insurgents once allied to the former rebels who now rule South Sudan.
The South gained independence from Khartoum last July after decades of civil war.
Food shortages would become critical without substantial aid deliveries into South Kordofan and Blue Nile by March, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, has said.
Khartoum has severely restricted the work of foreign relief agencies in the war zones.
It cited security concerns and also accused aid workers of using United Nations flights to deliver arms and ammunition to the rebels — a claim for which the UN’s top humanitarian official said there was “no evidence.”
Princeton Lyman, the US administration’s special envoy for Sudan, told reporters last week the situation is so dire Washington has warned Khartoum it would consider ways for aid to be sent in without Sudanese government approval.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i40o4tl943D3xEr5goHkBfJA77Ug?docId=CNG.44fa3f729b8ab99aa301920b33059327.51

Chinese Workers Are Reported Captured by Sudan Rebels

By KEITH BRADSHER and JEFFREY GETTLEMAN

Published: January 29, 2012

HONG KONG — More than two dozen Chinese road workers have been captured by a Sudanese rebel group, Chinese and Sudanese officials said on Sunday, underlining the risks for China in sending ever-greater numbers of its workers into some of the world’s most turbulent countries.

The rebels struck a remote camp used by Chinese road builders in South Kordofan province, an oil-rich area that has become a battlefield between the Sudanese government and rebel forces allied to the newly independent state of South Sudan. Sudanese officials said that the rebels had kidnapped more than 70 Chinese and Sudanese workers. It was not clear if anyone was killed in the attack, a Sudan army spokesman said.

Liu Weimin, a spokesman with China’s foreign ministry, said that diplomats from China and Sudan were holding emergency discussions, and according to the state-run new agency,  Xinhua, the missing Chinese workers  were helping to build a road as part of an ambitious and long-delayed plan to link  two remote areas.

However, just last week Western human rights groups accused the Sudanese government of embarking on a road building campaign in Kordofan as a way to bring more troops into the region and crush the rebels there. Intense fighting broke out in Kordofan in June, right before South Sudan split off from Sudan.

The Kordofan rebels fought alongside southern rebels for years against the Arab-dominated government of Sudan and for many of the same reasons, complaining of marginalization and discrimination. Many analysts believe the new Southern Sudanese government is helping arm the Kordofan rebels as a way to destabilize Sudan, while at the same time, the Sudanese government is believed to be arming rebel groups in South Sudan. Since June, Sudanese warplanes have been relentlessly bombing Kordofan, killing many civilians there.

China has moved aggressively in the last decade to establish itself as a leading provider of infrastructure projects in sub-saharan Africa and elsewhere in the developing world, building highways, airports, bridges, dams and  other big projects in areas that Western  companies are leery of entering.  Chinese state-owned companies have  sent thousands of employees  to do much of the work instead of training local residents, an approach that has  sometimes produced faster results but can alienate local populations — and put Chinese workers at risk.

China is a longtime ally of Sudan, having supported the government in Khartoum against years of Western  criticism over human rights  violations. Chinese state-owned oil  companies have invested heavily in Sudanese oil fields despite the political  risks; Chinese energy executives have  complained that Western  multinationals locked up most of the  best oil fields in stable countries long  ago, forcing them to seek reserves in  more volatile locations.

Neil Ashdown, an Asia and Pacific analyst based in London for IHS Global Insight, a consulting firm, said that Chinese firms differed from Western companies both in their willingness to venture into risky places and in terms of the number of people sent. Chinese workers are often more likely than Westerners to bring their families to join them, which means that even more Chinese may wind up living in dangerous locations.

At the same time, Chinese Internet users have become much more vociferous in the last three years in demanding that the Chinese government take every possible measure to protect Chinese citizens when they get in trouble, wherever that may be. Chinese Web users frequently compare Chinese government efforts unfavorably with those undertaken by Western governments, seldom noting that the sheer number of Chinese now living and working in unstable countries makes it hard to protect all of them.

China is the largest buyer of oil from Sudan. According to Global Trade Information Services, a data firm based in Columbia, South Carolina, China bought $9.38 billion worth of oil from Sudan last year, up from $6.55 billion in 2010.

Keith Bradsher reported from Hong Kong and Jeffrey Gettleman from Khartoum, Sudan

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/30/world/asia/chinese-workers-are-reported-captured-by-sudan-rebels.html?_r=1

Sudan: Chinese held by rebels in South Kordofan

Rebels in Sudan’s volatile South Kordofan region say they are holding 29 Chinese workers who became caught up in a battle with the Sudanese army.

The rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) said the workers are safe and “in good health”.

China’s foreign ministry confirmed that some of their nationals were missing, but did not specify how many.

South Kordofan is one of three areas hit by conflict since South Sudan became independent from Sudan in July.

Abyei and Blue Nile along with South Kordofan lie along the loosely demarcated border between Sudan and South Sudan.

The Chinese nationals are reported to have been working on road construction projects in the area.

“Yes, we have captured them,” Arnu Ngutulu Lodi of the SPLM-N told the AFP news agency. “I want to assure you right now they are in safe hands.”

He said they were captured – along with nine Sudanese soldiers – after the SPLM-N attacked and destroyed a Sudanese military convoy in the area.

Sudan’s army said the rebels had attacked the compound of a Chinese construction company and captured 70 civilians.

“Most of them are Chinese. They are targeting civilians,” army spokesman Sawarmi Khalid Saad told Reuters news agency.

He said the army had launched an operation to rescue them.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16779426

More than 20 Chinese missing after attack in Sudan
The Seattle Times
Other details weren’t given, although the official Xinhua News Agency cited the state governor as saying the attack was launched by the Sudan People’s Liberation Army against a road-building site in South Kordofan. The Sudan People’s Liberation Army …

Sudan: Chinese held by rebels in South Kordofan
BBC News
Rebels in Sudan’s volatile South Kordofan region say they are holding 29 Chinese workers who became caught up in a battle with the Sudanese army. The rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) said the workers are safe and “in good health” …

Chinese Workers Are Reported Captured by Sudan Rebels
New York Times
The rebels struck a remote camp used by Chinese road builders in South Kordofan province, an oil-rich area that has become a battlefield between the Sudanese government and rebel forces allied to the newly independent state of South Sudan…

More than 2 dozen Chinese workers captured in Sudan attack
Washington Post
The attack took place Saturday in Sudan’s South Kordofan— a region rich in oil that abuts the newly established state of South Sudan— and escalated tensions between the two countries, one largely Muslim, the other dominated by Christians…

Sudan rebels say they captured 29 Chinese workers AFP KHARTOUM — Rebels in Sudan’s South Kordofan state have captured 29 Chinese workers after a battle with government forces, a spokesman for the insurgents said on Sunday. Nine members of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) were also being held, Arnu Ngutulu …

Job Vacancy in South Sudan:

Kindly circulate to those interested for possible jobs in South Sudan, various job descriptions to coordinators, to public health are attached.

Please directly contact the employer if you have any further questions.

To anyone of interest, please circulate the following job vacancies:

Good luck!

Best Regards,
Reec Akuak
Vice President

The South Sudanese Community, USA
Growth — Development — Community

202.656.TSSC (8772)
Direct/Cell: 202.596.6009
Fax: 202.280.1007

R.Akuak@TSSC.us
http://www.TSSC.us

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