Thursday, February 15, 2007

SPLM: between a party and rebel movement

Can the Sudan People's Liberation Movement be successfully transformed into a party? The efforts of the movement are hard to dismiss but that is turning to be a big mountain to cross.

There recent summit in Yei disccuses just that. The current administration in South Sudan is being ran, to a large extent by former generals who run them like the military. Most of them have never been in political positions before and were thus oblivious to the nuances. The movement have resolve the following in their meeting:
* SPLM Transformation;
* CPA Implementation and partnership with the National Congress Party (NCP)
* SPLM relationship with other political forces and their engagement in the democratic and peace process in Sudan;
* Review of the SPLM performance at all levels of government;
* The Sudan foreign policy.

It will be interesting to see how they follow up on these resolution. The foreign policy is the tough one. The National Congress Party runs the country like its own, ignoring the contribution of ts partner in the Government of National Unity. The SPLM must assert itself in the government.

However, two years down the road, we are waiting for the fruits of the CPA . . .