Sudan Comprehensive Peace Agreement

The 2005 CPA established a new Government of National Unity (GNU) and the interim Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) and called for wealth-sharing, power-sharing, and security arrangements between the two parties. The historic agreement provides for a ceasefire, withdrawal of troops from southern Sudan, and the repatriation and resettlement of refugees. It also stipulates that by the end of the six-year interim period, during which the various provisions of the CPA are implemented, there will be elections at all levels, including for president, state governors, and national and state legislatures. On July 9, 2005, the Presidency was inaugurated with General Omar al-Bashir sworn in as President and Dr. John Garang, Chairman of the SPLM/A, installed as First Vice President. Ratification of the Interim National Constitution followed. The Constitution declares Sudan to be a "democratic, decentralized, multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and multi-lingual State." On July 30, 2005, the charismatic and revered SPLM leader John Garang died in a helicopter crash. The SPLM immediately named General Salva Kiir Mayardit, Garang's deputy, as First Vice President. As stipulated in the CPA, Kiir now holds the posts of President of the Government of Southern Sudan and Commander-in-Chief of the SPLA. Implemented provisions of the CPA include the formation of the National Legislature, appointment of Cabinet members, establishment of the Government of Southern Sudan and the signing of the Southern Sudan Constitution, and the appointment of state governors and adoption of state constitutions. A number of CPA-mandated commissions have also been created. Thus far, those formed include the Assessment and Evaluation Commission, National Petroleum Commission, Fiscal and Financial Allocation and Monitoring Commission, and the North-South Border Commission. The Ceasefire Political Commission, Joint Defense Board, and Ceasefire Joint Military Committee were also established as part of the security arrangements of the CPA. Some commissions remain outstanding. With the establishment of the National Population Census Council, a population census began in April 2008 in preparation for national elections in 2009. The CPA mandates that the Government of Southern Sudan hold a referendum at the end of a six-year interim period in 2011, allowing southerners to secede if they so wish. On January 9, 2007, commemoration of the second anniversary of the CPA was held in Juba. During the ceremony, President Bashir and First Vice President Kiir exchanged forceful accusations concerning the delays in the implementation of the agreement. In his remarks, Salva Kiir described the achievement of the CPA as the most important achievement in modern Sudanese history and confirmed that there would be no retreat from the path of peace. While some progress has been achieved during the last two years, meaningful implementation of key CPA requirements has faltered, and relations between the National Congress Party (NCP) and SPLM were at an all-time low at the end of 2007. In October 2007, a lack of progress on issues such as north-south border demarcation, certain security provisions, and north-south sharing of oil revenues threatened to erode the CPA as the SPLM threatened a permanent withdrawal from the Government of National Unity. International attention maintains focus on the CPA as the mainstay of peace in Sudan in response to calls for reinvigorated CPA implementation. Implementation of the CPA is moving forward slowly, but the return to peace in Southern Sudan has brought political, civil, and economic dividends.