AFRICA/SUDAN - Christian Churches working for peaceful January referendum

Khartoum (Agenzia Fides) – Christian communities that form a part of the Sudan Council of Churches (SCC, which is also part of the Catholic Church of Sudan) have reached an agreement with the government of Southern Sudan to observe and monitor all stages of the referendum of January 9, 2011, which will decide if the region will continue being part of Sudan or become independent.
The agreement was reached at the end of the forum "Kejiko 2" between the SCC and the Government of Southern Sudan in Juba, which took place earlier in the week. The churches are also committed to providing assistance to civic education and to facilitate public space for the promoters of both options (yes or no to the secession of Southern Sudan).
The representatives of the churches have also decided to participate actively in the official and non-official processes for resolving tensions over Abyei, an oil-rich territory disputed by north and south Sudan, whose future will be decided by a separate referendum, which will also be voted on January 9th.
The possible secession of southern Sudan could be problematic for immigrants from these regions, who have lived for years in northern Sudan, most of whom are Christians.
The Vice-President of the semi-autonomous region of Southern Sudan, Riek Machar, during the closing session of the forum between the SCC and the Government stated that there were concerns about the future of the Church in northern Sudan in the event of the south's secession.
Machar reiterated this concern in his speech at the conference on human rights and religious freedom, which was attended by local Muslim and Christian leaders, held at the U.S. Consulate in Juba, organized by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.
Machar stressed the importance of reaching an agreement with the north on the future of the Christian Churches, including the safeguarding of the physical infrastructure.
Church and State, said Machar, are not separated in Sudan, where sharia (Islamic law) is the source of their national laws.
Sharia law was adopted under President Gaafar Nimeiry in 1983 and was one of the factors triggering the north-south civil war that ended with the peace agreement of 2005. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 10/11/2010)