Day 312 - Going North

Today I watched 7 lorries carrying soldiers convoy out of the barracks today. They were headed North. Only time will tell how far this fighting will escalate.



Yesterday a huge rally was held downtown Juba where the President Salva KIrr addressed all that attended about the fight against Sudan. It was basically a recruitment rally. Only one of our courses ran due to all of the students attending this rally. We have only had one student join the cause, which is good. Our existence here would be irrelevant without students.

If you are a person who watches the news, reads the newspapers, should know at least a small amount about what is going on between Sudan and South Sudan.

South Sudan captured the oil-rich area of Heglig on Tuesday April 10th, which was declared a part of Sudan before the CPA, however according to the 1956 border agreements this area belonged to Unity State. It was not until the 1980’s that the President changed the borders to put Heglig within Northern Borders. Heglig, which is locally known as Panthou by the indigenous people in Dinka language, had been a low-key disagreement between Sudan and South Sudan and specifically between the Abyei region of Southern Kordofan state in Sudan and Pariang County of Unity state in South Sudan. All of South Sudan believes the Heglig is a part of Unity State. They say Heglig is not a border area, but deep inside South Sudan’s territory and warned that the SPLA will not allow SAF to continue encroaching into the territory of the Republic of South Sudan by force. South Sudan said their forces had to respond to the "aggressive provocation" by Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) after which they repulsed and pursued the retreating forces into Heglig town which subsequently resulted in the fall of the area to the SPLA on Tuesday. South Sudan is vowing to defend the 1956 borders, which states that Heglig and area is a part of South Sudan not the North.

Sudan is now declaring that their mission is to “liberate” the people of South Sudan from the SPLA, whose agenda is not that of the people. Sudan states that because they are the reason South Sudan gained their own power, they now have to solve the problem of the SPLA, which they created. South Sudan considers these statements as confirmation that Sudan never wanted the South to become independent.

This is an on going fight and I am not sure if either President of either country will be able to come to an agreement without the loss of numerous lives...

Bashir says it all...“Either we end up occupying Juba or you end up occupying Khartoum but the boundaries of the old Sudan can no longer fit us together, only one of us has to remain standing”.