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 Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان (Re: ابو مهند)
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The Role of NGOs and Churches in Securing Peace
By Muna Khugali
Introduction:
Civil society organisations and churches are fundamental pillars in bringing and restoring lasting peace in Sudan.
Civil society organisations and churches have major roles to play during the transition. Transition is anytime that witnesses and brings changes to the society; for that reason transition has started long time before Machakos.
Background to NGOs in Northern Sudan:
History of civil society organisations in northern Sudan is old (over 60 years- local community organisations, trade unions, political parties) but unfortunately this history did not have the full opportunity to flourish because of dictator regimes policy towards them. Nevertheless, they have contributed to the social, cultural and political history of the country and their roles in October and April Intifada (uprising) are well known.
Amongst the first targets to any Sudanese military regime are civil society organisations. Immediately they are dissolved and replaced by governmental organisations and their created trade unions are disguised behind human rights and developmental slogans. This has eventually led to serious destruction of NGOs and consequently affected the infrastructure of Sudanese societies. It has also left donors in most of their time unable to deliver their services or to draw a clear policy about who should be supported from NGOs and who should not. Besides, some have boycotted supporting Sudan because of its terror policy, like USA.
Machakos and Peace
The efforts in Machakos for peace are recognised by Sudanese, Machakos has gone through long and patient process of negotiations to put an end to the long war in the south and to bring peace between the two conflicting parties (recognized as the Sudanese government and the SPLA). Machakos has its many positive sides; the most important one is saving the lives of innocent Sudanese besides, bringing the two parties to talk face to face.
However, Machakos needs more efforts to make it a successful agreement, signing papers only is not enough to make peace. The international community must continue to support Machakos through a monitoring process in order to make the previous efforts more concrete towards a just and lasting peace. This necessitates that other partners be brought to work collectively with the two partners in Machakos, the government and the SPLA. It is important to concentrate now on the interim period in order to bring what Machakos could not bring during the peace negotiations and agreement.
When discussing civil society bodies’ role including churches, we discuss it within a wider frame to include the role of the authority and the role of international community/donors’ agencies. The role of civil society cannot be delivered successfully if there is no cooperation from the other partners. They all have tremendous roles to play during the interim period and beyond. For example, the constitution, the security arrangement, the national capital and the Sharia, the wealth and power’ sharing of the rest of Sudanese regions, etc and the main issue here is the exclusions of the majority of Sudanese in Machakos among them NGOs
Can we in the civil society organisations/churches consider peace an easy target?
Peace is not an easy to obtain goal because of the absence of, or incomplete identification to causes behind the long armed conflicts in the whole of Sudan. We need to identify and address these main causes (identity, marginalisation, exclusion and all of the socio-economic political causes) not only as south north, but also as north, east west. However, we believe, yes, we can reach to peace but only by seriously addressing the issues and delivering more efforts, for instance, moving immediately to work on the obstacles/challenges facing NGOs during the interim period and beyond. What are these challenges?
I would divide these challenges into main three ones and call them the “triangle of challenges”:
These 3 challenges facing NGOs, Churches and others working for peace:
1. Internal and local challenges facing civil society
2. Challenges facing the government and its relationship with civil society organisations
3. Challenges facing the intertwined relationship between NGOs including
Churches, authority and international community/donors’ agencies
1INTERNAL AND LOCAL CHALLENGES FACING CIVIL SOCIETY
1. Having a strong structure and mandate. How NGO’s can be involved in the interim period and how to mobilize themselves for the coming interim period.
2. How Churches continue to deliver and support peace among the masses of different background. Churches have the experience of dialogue and of working with groups especially in the south and can continue building the trust with them. Churches have the experience of working with the international community; the challenge now is how to use that to continue bringing stability in the whole of Sudan. Churches are expected to bring huge humanitarian aid, they have good relations with donors, through these relationships they can also support developmental programmes delivered by the different NGO’s in order to help them empowered. The next interim period will most probably witness also the rise of many religious groups acting as NGOs (similar to al Adawa al Islamia) to face what they call the hostility against Islam, how can churches work with and among Muslims, Christians and others without being labelled as Christians missionaries, I believe this a huge challenge and needs careful and courageous policy.
3. Another challenge is about how to support the oldest and strongest civil society’ organisations in the Sudan such as the trade unions and other NGOs who are expected to play main role in strengthening the movement during the interim period.
4. How to support peace by supporting NGOs especially Sudanese women’s organisations to be empowered. Empowerment can only be obtained through activism. Organisations should be supported through prioritization in consultation with women and through the delivery of:
• Literacy programmes
• Health programmes
• Access to water
• Displacement
• Capacity building and training to create more leaders
II. CHALLENGES FACING THE GOVERNMENT AND THE NATURE OF ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH CIVIL SOCIETY:
Laws and Space
1. The current law of registration to NGOs (HAC) this law must be repealed to allow NGOs to work in a healthy environment.
2. During the last decade (s) the government managed to create a large sector of G’NGO’s, we need to take notice of that because they support government and not civil society. Gngo’s is a term explaining how governments create Non-Governmental Organisations to control the field/work of true civil society organisations.
3. To guarantee complete control, the government introduced the Humanitarian law of 2000 (HAC), according to it, the government has a full control to register or refuse to register civil society organisations and to have a complete power over those who are registered. This must be resolved immediately and replaced by a new valid law that considers the rights of groups.
4. Other abusive laws must be lifted. For instance, the Public Order Code must be abolished. Women’s freedom of movement must be guaranteed same as men and as a human rights principle.
5. Civil societies must be allowed to have a role in writing laws and charters related to laws of registrations and activities, etc.
6. The emergency laws must be repealed and the security organs must be subjected to the rule of law.
III: CHALLENGE BETWEEN ORGANISATIONS, AUTHORITY AND DONORS’ AGENCIES:
The third party in the triangle of challenges is donors’ agencies. The challenge here is how to help civil society to bridge the existing gaps between their organisations and authorities on one hand and between the organisations, the authority and their bodies as international supporters on the other hand.
· It may be better if donors’ agencies considered moving to inside Sudan where the political decisions are made and where the bulk of the civil society organisations is/will exist. The challenge facing donors is how to help in creating a greater sense of cooperation among Sudanese organisations, because their money could also be a cause for conflicts among these organisations, unfortunately, this has already become an area of conflict in Sudan.
· Donors must also listen to civil society organisations those who led initiatives and those who are active in the different community levels. Good intentions of donors to help are not enough, civil society organisations must be consulted about their priorities in achieving programmes, and funding must be allocated according to the needs of these organisations and not only to donors plans.
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· Recognition, credibility and transparency are areas of challenges facing NGOs, Churches and donors during the interim period. Donors must encourage civil society organisations to evaluate their activities with their grassroots membership.
· There are many marginalized areas in Sudan. It is better if donors are aware of these areas and may consider working in them. For instance I know that some of donors from you are involved in Beja land, it is important that you support these programmes more than before. This will reduce causes for existing conflicts, and will help these marginalized areas to develop and work for peace.
· The Government and SPLA are promised huge funding, now both have/will have new G’NGOs to take more money, can the international community take notice of that and consider the efforts of the real civil society organisations? especially that we have seen during the last decade a huge growth in civil society wings/organisations created by political bodies. Organisations that are related and directed by political bodies whether they are in government or not, are seeking more to control over civil society.
· NGOs need serious efforts and support. Issues of transparency and accountability must be taken into consideration when dealing with them, this is the only way that we empower and help a sincere civil society movement.
Muna Khukhali
Justice Africa, May, 2, 2004, Hermannsburg
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| العنوان |
الكاتب |
Date |
| شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | aosman | 01-11-05, 03:50 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | لؤى | 01-11-05, 04:25 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | aosman | 01-11-05, 05:07 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | نصار | 01-11-05, 07:51 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | Elawad Eltayeb | 01-11-05, 07:58 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | aosman | 01-12-05, 00:06 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | بشري الطيب | 01-12-05, 00:41 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | omer alrubatabi | 01-12-05, 07:05 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | adil amin | 01-12-05, 01:27 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | Dr Mahdi Mohammed Kheir | 01-12-05, 04:35 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | aosman | 01-12-05, 02:41 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | Muna Khugali | 01-12-05, 09:28 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | aosman | 01-13-05, 02:29 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | ابو مهند | 01-13-05, 02:43 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | Muna Khugali | 01-13-05, 06:36 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | luai | 01-13-05, 11:24 AM |
| Re: شاركونا جميعا : ما هي مهددات الوحدة والسلام في السودان | محمد الامين احمد | 01-13-05, 11:34 AM |
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Muna Khugali
فيس بوك
تويتر
انستقرام
يوتيوب
بنتيريست