FT: Oil fuels the conflict in southern Sudan
Copyright 1999 The Financial Times Limited
Financial Times (London)
October 15, 1999, Friday LONDON EDITION 1
SECTION: WORLD NEWS: AFRICA; Pg. 12
HEADLINE: Oil fuels the conflict in southern Sudan:
Mark Turner reports on how the exploitation of oilfields has
complicated fighting between Khartoum and rebel movements:
DATELINE: New York
The light rain shower was heralded as an omen for peace, and widely
commented upon as the church leaders debated reconciliation with Commander
Peter Gadeat. But as Antonov bombers buzzed over the desolate Sudanese
village of Wicok, it was clear that the oil fields of Unity province are
destined for a serious resurgence in fighting.
Mr Gadeat had come to make peace with the people he had long fought in the
faction-torn south. But even as he did so, he held out the prospect of a
new offensive against the government in the north, and the international
oil
companies he claims are supporting a campaign of repression against the
rightful owners of the south's resources.
Conflict is nothing new in this country - more than 1m people have died
from fighting and famine since southern rebels began a campaign for
self-determination against Khartoum in 1983. But now the stakes have been
raised.
In August, Sudan exported its first consignment of oil to Singapore,
pumped from the Unity fields in the south to Port Sudan through a 1,500km
pipeline. A consortium of Canada's Talisman Energy, Malaysia's Petronas,
the China National Petroleum Corporation and
Sudan's state company Sudapet is already producing 130,000 barrels a day,
and more developments are on the horizon.
Most of Unity has been parcelled out for further exploration and witnesses
report seeing Chinese, Canadians and Swedes in the area.
With 800m barrels of high quality proven reserves, and possibly many more,
Khartoum has gained new importance on the global scene, and wasted no time
in courting a hitherto hostile west.
But while it appears to be making headway in Europe, Susan Rice, US
assistant secretary of state for African affairs, remains sharply critical
of its actions, and the American religious right is touting Sudan as the
front line between Islam and Christianity. Church groups are leading a
divestment campaign against Talisman, and Alan Hevesy, the New York
comptroller with mayoral ambitions, is considering their calls.
Talisman argues its presence is a force for good, and denies accusations
of systematic oppression. "Our involvement increases the prospects of
improved economic and social practices in Sudan," says JW Buckee, chief
executive officer.
Mr Gadeat differs. As the former commander of troops under Paulino Matiep,
a faction leader from the local Nuer tribe supported by Khartoum, he says
he was supplied with government weapons to clear the fields of local
people, razing villages and engaging opposing Nuer forces.
"The government of Sudan is occupying our land and destroying our people
because of this oil," he said. "Wherever oil is found, they refer to it as
an asset for the whole country; then they remove it from the people. There
is complete displacement."
Sickened by his complicity, he recently overthrew Mr Matiep, and is now
calling for southerners to claim back what is theirs. "I made this move so
I can attract the attention of other South Sudanese, so we can all come
together and face a common enemy," says Mr Gadeat. "We have given enough
warnings. If the oil companies don't leave, we will attack the fields and
make them go."
His turn-around has attracted serious attention: other Nuer commanders
appear willing to talk, and the Sudanese People's Liberation Army - a
southern movement, led by people from the Dinka tribe - is eyeing the
prospect of a new alliance.
To a government which has relied on divide-and-rule tactics, it is a
worrying prospect. A 1997 peace agreement is looking increasingly shaky.
Mr Gadeat's testimony is borne out by human rights activists, who say the
government has used a mixture of regular troops, Arab raiders and Mr
Matiep's faction to assert violent control over Unity.
High-flying Antonovs bomb indiscriminately, and fighting has led to an
exodus from towns. The World Food Programme warns of catastrophe in the
region.
"For over a hundred thousand people the consequences are deadly," says Aya
Shneerson, a WFP spokesperson. "The latest fighting during the harvest
period seriously threatens the region's food security situation."
Back in Wicok, Bipal Thiyen told how he had been displaced from his
village by Arab nomads.
"Later my area was occupied by the oil companies," he said via a
translator with the peace mission. "The village was burned, the cattle
were taken, and children were abducted. It was indiscriminate killing;
everything was lost."
Thus oil, which has caused so much division over recent years, may again
become the driving reason for a southern alliance - much as did the giant
Jonglei canal project in the 1980s, halted in its tracks by the SPLA.
From the air one can see the canal stretching for miles to its unfinished
terminus. It is a stark reminder of the costs of excluding local people.
[Additional reporting by John Labate in New York] |
