In the week-long ballot between January 9-15, the people of Sudan turned up in staggering numbers to be heard. An incredible 3,851,994 votes were casted to decide on Southern Sudan’s independence referendum. The 98% voter turnout reflected the significance of this vote for the people of Southern Sudan. 

'The Sudanese people witnessed their land appropriated by the government and handed over to others closer to the political elite, or as concessions to businesses after oil was discovered in 1978'

The result? Nearly 99% of those who took part in the recent referendum in Sudan voted for Southern Sudan to separate from the North. Mass celebration and jubilation were witnessed across the Southern regions of Sudan as officials announced the preliminary voting results. 
 
But why did Sudan decide to split into North and South in the first place…?

It’s pretty impossible to sum up the last few decades of complex history in the African nation into a couple of paragraphs, and you can find more detailed info here. What we will tell you is that Northern and Southern Sudan have fought two civil wars, the second of which lasted more than 20 years, consumed the country, and ultimately resulted in two million deaths.
 
A big factor in the country’s conflicts over the last decades has been the issue of land ownership. The majority of the Sudanese population is dependent on rain-fed agriculture, but new laws introduced by the British and retained after the country gained independence in 1956, gave ownership of all unregistered land to the government. 
 
The Sudanese people witnessed their land appropriated by the government and handed over to others closer to the political elite, or as concessions to businesses after oil was discovered in 1978. Pastoralists also found their migration routes disrupted leading to local level conflict.
 
Aiming to put the conflict and their troubled past behind them, the government of Sudan and the Southern People’s Liberation Movement signed a peace agreement in 2005, and out of this ‘deal’, came this agreed poll.
 
Chairman of the referendum commission, Professor Mohamed I. Khalil, described the results as "decisive", but also mentioned that the country's people would remain close even after the split. "North and South are drawn together in indissoluble geographic and historic bonds." Sudan is a nation comprised of a multitude of different tribal groups, with hundreds of languages and dialects spoken, and simplistic divisions in terms of religious beliefs, or tribal ethnicity can't be made in simplistic terms of North and South.
 
There are, however, still some important decisions to be made following the vote. Questions about the border between Northern and Southern Sudan must be addressed and those who are still displaced in Northern Sudan will want clear assurances regarding citizenship and their security if they stay. The name of the new republic will also need to be decided; suggestions so far have included the ‘Nile Republic’ or ‘Kush’.
 
Which one do you prefer?
 
At this point in Sudan’s tumultuous history, everyone’s hoping this is a positive move for Sudan’s future, and the continued peace of its land and people; whose dedication to take action in the ballot boxes and vote for their future should be rewarded with their voices being heard, and their needs being met.
 

Words: Fadah Jassem

Photos: United Nations Photo

To learn more about Christian Aid's work in Sudan, click here