The Observer - Uganda
January 17
By Dr. Lucy Hovil
Sound alarm bells over forced repatriation
The crises that create mass displacement often grab the headlines. War and genocide and the consequent exile of people have a hard sell. More hidden, however, is the way in which displacement ends, long after the drama of flight is over.
One such hidden ending is taking place in Tanzania and Burundi, as refugees who fled to Tanzania in the aftermath of violence in Burundi in 1972 are facing renewed trauma as moves are made to end their exile. On the plus side, they are being offered a choice between returning to Burundi or staying in Tanzania and applying for citizenship. On the downside, research has shown that in practice neither option is really the complete solution it claims to be.
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Ethiopian Reporter
January 23
By Dismas Nkunda
2010: a critical year for Sudan
January 9 had marked the fifth anniversary of the signing of Sudan's Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). The agreement was a milestone achievement lauded by the international community. The CPA laid out a roadmap not only for ending a devastating civil war pitting North against South that killed an estimated two million people and displaced millions more. The agreement did not stop there, however, It also called for democratic transformation in Sudan.
Unfortunately, over the past five years, the peace in Sudan has been anything but comprehensive. War has raged in Sudan's western Darfur region, claiming hundreds of thousands of lives and displacing another 2.5 million people. Although the scale of violence has declined in recent months, there is no comprehensive political solution and violence could reignite at any time. At the same time, critical elements of the CPA were stalled or frustrated, and the promise of democratic transformation has all but evaporated.
Read the article here.
The Observer - Uganda
January 13
By Dismas Nkunda
If Sudan coughs we will catch flu
It is not Uganda alone that is facing a crucial moment in its political landscape. There are other regional configurations we have to squarely look at; for if left alone, the ramifications could be bad for the region.
There is a day that passed without many of us paying attention. January 9, 2010 marked the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that saw the end of decades of war in Sudan. The agreement was a milestone.
The marginalisation that had created an impasse in Africa’s largest country was seen to be over. The CPA laid out a roadmap ending a devastating civil war pitting the North against the South, during which an estimated two million people were killed and millions more displaced. The agreement also called for democratic transformation in Sudan.
For some, the willingness of the late leader of SPLM, Dr. John Garang, to enter bed with the North, was humbling. Give and take was the norm.
Read the article here.