Preliminary results from the referendum indicate a landslide victory for independence in South Sudan, as support for secession in the poll may reach as high as 99 percent.  In the Juba, results point to a 97.5% vote in favor of independence. So far 2,198,422 votes have been cast in the referendum in favor of secession, which exceeds the required 1.89 million votes needed for the turnout to be declared valid. George Benjamin of Sudan's referendum ...

Hassan al-Turabi, leader of the Popular Congress Party (PCP), was arrested this week, accused of calling for a Tunisian-style popular revolution in Sudan.  Abdullah Hassan Ahmed, undersecretary of the PCP has confirmed that the party is, "making preparations for taking to the street to topple the regime."  Eight other members of the party were also arrested.  Al-Turabi has been a vocal opponent of the current referendum in South Sudan, blaming Omar al-Bashir's government for "dismembering" the country.  Dr. ...

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit stated that the government would respect the results of the referendum despite fears that a vote for independence could spark the disintegration of Sudan and threaten Egypt's economic and security interests. Nasr Farid, Egypt's former grand mufti, joined other prominent Islamic scholars to state that independence for southern Sudan "contravenes Islamic law." Emile Hokayem, writing for The National, elaborates on Arab fears over the possibility of a North-South ...

President Barack Obama, in an editorial, stated that if Khartoum fulfilled its obligations to ensure peace the U.S. could remove Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism but warned, "In contrast, those who flout their international obligations will face more pressure and isolation."  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stressed the importance of development aid to both southern and northern Sudan: "We also have to work with, and invest in, ...

The Brookings Institution hosted a panel discussion on Thursday on the upcoming referendum on independence in southern Sudan entitled, "Waging Peace in Sudan: The Inside Story of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the Prospect for Sudan's Future."  Michael O'Hanlon, senior fellow in Foreign Policy at Brookings moderated and introduced the panelists: Hilde Johnson, former Norwegian Development Minister and current Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF, Gayle Smith, special assistant to President ...

Andrew Natsios, former Special Envoy to Sudan for the Bush administration, argues internal divisions and pressures in Northern Sudan are being overlooked.  He points to growing criticism of President Omar al-Bashir's government from "Islamist and Arab nationalists" who lament the potential loss of oil resources to an independent South and fear that other rebellious regions will seek to break with the North as well. Sudanese opposition leaders have threatened to topple Bashir's government if ...

On Tuesday, Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir visited Juba, the capital of southern Sudan, ahead of the region's referendum on independence to be held on January 9th.  He stated that while he remained "committed to unity," he would be "the first to recognise opt for it."  Senator John Kerry welcomed the remarks as "extremely encouraging"  and stated that Washington may remove Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism ...

The United Nations released its 2010 Human Development Report yesterday, titled "The Real Wealth of Nations: Pathways to Human Development." This year's report, which includes new indices to adjust for inequality, women’s disadvantage, and multidimensional poverty, found that of the countries measured, Oman's Human Development Index (HDI) score improved the most over the last 40 years. Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco also improved considerably. Overall, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and ...

Transparency International (TI) released its annual Corruption Perceptions Index today. In the Middle East, little changed over the past year. Iraq, Sudan, Yemen, Iran and Libya continued to experience dangerous levels of corruption all scoring 2.2 or under on TI’s 10 point scale (10 being “very clean” and 3, “very corrupt”). Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Israel once again led the region in transparency, all scoring above 6.

The Brookings Institution held an event today entitled “The Sudan Referendum: Dangers and Possibilities.” The featured speaker for the event was Representative Donald Payne (D-NJ), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health, Committee on Foreign Relations, United States House of Representatives. The discussants for the event were Richard Williamson, non-resident fellow on foreign policy at Brookings, and Mike Abramowitz, director of the Committee on Conscience at the ...

Amidst growing uncertainty, the Sudanese government in Khartoum called on the international community to monitor the country’s January 9 referendum. The referendum, which if successful would grant independence to the Christian south of Sudan, faces significant opposition from the parties in the north, including President Omar Hassan al-Bashir’s National Congress Party. Each side has accused the other suppressing dissent and threatening activists in advance of the vote.

Amnesty International writes in a briefing released today that Sudanese authorities – in both the north and the south – have been repressing journalists during the run-up to the country’s January referendum on the secession of southern Sudan. In the briefing, entitled “The Chains Remain: Restrictions on Freedom of Expression,” Amnesty International’s Rania Rajji says: "The whole future of the nation will be at stake so there is the need ...

The vote on a referendum to determine whether southern Sudan becomes an independent nation is set to be held in just over four months. However, some question if the referendum will even be held. Rebecca Hamilton writes in the Washington Post "... with negotiations between north and south stalled over border demarcation, and preparations for the vote lagging perilously behind, the likelihood of the referendum proceeding as planned ...

The United States Institute of Peace held a panel discussion today that included four of its successful grantees. The event was moderated by Andrew Blum, a program officer at the Grant Program and opening remarks were given by Ambassador Richard H. Solomon, president of the USIP. The panelists for the event were Dr. Abdel-Mitaal Girshab, of the Institute for the Development of Civil Society in Sudan, Masood Karokhail of the ...

Desmond Butler, at The Associated Press, criticizes U.S. policy on human rights in Sudan in a recent piece, arguing that as problems with Sudan have worsened over the past nine months, the administration has backtracked on the promises it made last year to hold the government to account if it did not move forward on fighting terror and improving human rights. Butler says that though the administration indicated last Friday ...

In a piece in Foreign Policy, Freedom House highlights the twenty nations it has identified as the "least free" in its 2010 Freedom in the World report. Six nations and territories in the Greater Middle East and North Africa (GMENA) are featured in the piece: Libya, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara.Freedom House offers harsh criticism of the human rights and democracy records of the regimes in ...

Freedom House has published an interesting new report, "Worst of the Worst", listing the world's most repressive states and human rights abusers. Among the seventeen countries listed are Saudi Arabia, Syria and Sudan. According to the report, these countries represent states that will "use every means necessary to prevent progress in democratic governance."

Democracy Arsenal has a very interesting back and forth about the Obama administration's just-released National Security Strategy. Building upon Heather Hurlburt's rejection of the political right's claim that Obama's foreign policy effectively mimicks the principles first introduced by George W. Bush, David Shorr reminds that this view is only true insofar as the right acknowledges that Bush's approach underwent a severe reformation in 2006 -- well after many of his first-term decisions laid the foundation ...

After an election that not only saw incumbent President Omar al-Bashir garner 68 percent of the vote but also a janjaweed leader win a seat in parliament, Sean Brooks of Save Darfur paints a rather bleak picture of the prospects for "peace, protection, and justice" in Darfur moving forward. Although South Sudan experienced their own electoral problems, "no such silver lining as the referendum exists for those mired in the ...

Last week, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its annual report that threaten these ancient communities' very existence." In addition to documenting violations and urging a stronger U.S. response, the report also highlights the failure of the Department of Homeland Security to "adequately address" serious flaws in U.S. immigration policy -- identified in a 2005 USCIRF study -- that place asylum seekers at risk of being ...