Why South Sudan’s permanent constitution is important for South Sudan statehood viability (Part 1)
6 min readBy Ring Mayar, PhD., Canberra – Australia
February 6, 2017 (SSB) —- Today I would like to outline the importance of People’s Constitution, by anchoring the foundation of the Constitution on the vital interests of the people. I define those vital interests as People’s Republic rights and values that could significantly impact on security, economic empowerment and the viability of South Sudan Statehood.
Before going on tangent about South Sudanese vital constitutional interests, allow me first to elaborate upon the lagging drift in formulating a permanent constitution for South Sudanese people, since its independence from Sudan on July 9th 2011. In similar token, let’s examine the current Sudan’s Interim Constitution.
South Sudan endeavoured to remain above Sudan’s Interim Constitution muck, it was created by a hard-liner Islamist leader, Hassan al-Turabi, a long-time power brain behind the throne of Sudan despotic leader Omar al-Bashir. Al-Turabi personally wrote the Sudan’s Interim Constitution, the imposition of strict Islamic law, over drove Khartoum’s war against
South Sudanese aspiration for liberation and almost Sudan’s Constitution was associated to an Islamic conquest ideology “jihad”. The Islamic driven constitution resulted in a long war which claimed almost 3 million lives and displaced another nearly 5 million people, inflicting atrocious toll on Sudan’s Christian, traditional believers and ethnically African people.
Al-Turabi’s racist and xenophobic constitution felled at hands of jihadi group merely known as Popular Defence Force (PDF), who were uncomfortable with racial diversity, unconvinced by shared political and economic equity for all Sudanese people, and therefore were successful in waging a ruthless religious war against the marginalised and impoverished ethnically African people in Sudan.
Sudan’s Interim Constitution did opened the hell gateway for world terrorists, along with Darfurians jihadi fighters who joined the holy war marriage in the fight against the infidel South Sudanese, the Nubians and the Blue Nile peoples.
Throughout prolong civil war in Sudan, Khartoum regime often used the constitution to successfully reorient a diabolical policies with grave consequences to non-Muslim and ethnically African people in order to harness the Arab world military, economic, and diplomatic support in international arena for what the regime in Khartoum deemed to be a virtuous crusades in far flung hidden away region of black Africa.
But what Khartoum regime do not tell their supporters is that Sudan’s Interim Constitution was written to exterminate black race, to reinforce non-Islamic religion prohibition, the deprivation of indigenous people from wealth sharing, restricting children right for education and healthcare etc.
This barbaric Constitution and other inhumane policies prompted marginalised people from South Sudan, Nuba Mountain and Blue Nile to pick up arms against religion motivated genocidal government in Khartoum.
I can blatantly and emphatically argue that South Sudanese people fought directly against the Sudan’s genocidal Constitution first only on behalf of the important of a united Sudan, equity resourced society, religiously diverse country, justice and fairness for all Sudanese people according to late Garang’s Vision (One Sudan and one justice for all Sudanese people).
Then three questions are ought to be asked:
- Why Sudan’s Interim Constitution still in use in South Sudan (sovereign state) after 6 years of it independence?
- Why hasn’t President Kiir directed the parliament to formulate and draft Permanent People’s Constitution that guarantees justice and fairness for all South Sudan people?
- Why should South Sudanese continue to suffer the spread of an expansionist, ideological, totalitarian jihadi system that was publicly preached in Sudan’s Television to exterminate South Sudanese and other ethnically African people?
South Sudan government under President Kiir Mayardit leadership has drifted dangerously astray due to lack of People’s Constitution in ethnically diverse country.
To a large part of the problem is that President Kiir administration appears to be incapable in tasking capable Constitution experts’, together censuses and the support for People’s Constitution, where 64 South Sudanese tribes’ voices are heard and incorporated into new constitution.
Such Permanent People’s Constitution would prohibit future government, or warlords, and/or criminal groups from resorting to questionable armed conflict to promote its peculiar tribal fight for power or resources, where there would be no benefits, except death and destruction at the expanse of South Sudanese lives and resources.
South Sudan government or President Kiir administration should always remember that, we the people of South Sudan did not choose separation from Sudan, only to be ruled later by Sudan’s Interim Constitution ironclad.
In fact, South Sudanese people learned that the old Sudan’s Interim Constitution was long introduced on new and short on order to rule South Sudanese for ever. Be warned, South Sudanese people want their own Permanent People’s Constitution.
President Kiir, it has been 6 years since our new born country gained it hard earned independence, we still do not have a Permanent People’s Constitution? Isn’t Permanent People’s Constitution a priority? Now our nation is experiencing relative peace.
Some of us (your supporters) may call your administration tenure as the age of constitutional chaos. I can almost attest to you President Kiir that the moment you lose your focus on establishing South Sudan Permanent People’s Constitution.
It will be defining day in Juba – when you start to see people praying on late Dr. Garang Mausoleum asking for unification of two Sudans. The day would become twice longer than the sun orbiting planet earth.
That what would really happen as the war between governments versus rebels ceased over time. The tenure of discussion in Juba would once again shift from “we against them” to “us would be better off under united Sudan since the new country still under the rule of Sudan’s Interim Constitution?”
Amid such pessimism, too, President Kiir still have a window of opportunity to forge a solid consensus among all South Sudanese people, to formulate and develop a Permanent People’s Constitution.
Our popular and purposeful demand, for our present existence as people of South Sudan, is to seek and acquire absolute freedom from Khartoum shackles and eventually, for us South Sudanese people, to liberate our souls-minds from Sudan captive under their wishful Interim Constitution.
So, to conclude, I believe President Kiir Mayardit eventually would do the right thing and recognise our urgent need for inclusive Permanent People’s Constitution. President Kiir should not deny South Sudanese people the right to have their own Constitution. No one should fear new constitution.
In fact, our new constitution would be a stabilising force for peace and prosperity. A Constitution that would enshrine democracy, freedom, free speech, and power of open markets and the rights to do business for all South Sudanese national anywhere and everywhere in the country.
For the first-time, South Sudanese people would be proud, not ashamed by realm of other’s constitution.
Part Two: would be devoted to 10 reasons (obligations) of the federal government under new Permanent People’s Constitution. To be continued……..!?
Ring Mayar is a National Security Policy student at the Australian National University. He can be reached via the following email: naydiet@yahoo.com.au
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