Sudan: 'No plot against Garang'
2005-08-02 10:45
Khartoum - Grief-stricken supporters of a former Sudanese rebel leader tore through the capital in riots that left 36 people dead, smashing cars and shops and angrily blaming the government for their hero's death.
Despite doubts among the rioters, the southern rebel movement dismissed talk of a plot against vice-president John Garang and sought to keep alive the fragile peace deal he championed for Sudan.
The 60-year-old Garang, who had been Sudan's first vice- president for just three weeks, died on Saturday along with 13 other people when their helicopter crashed into a mountain in southern Sudan in bad weather.
Garang's successor
His Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) stressed the crash was an accident, and quickly named Garang's longtime deputy, Salva Kiir Mayardit, as his successor.
Kiir will also likely be first vice-president, according to the January peace agreement that says whoever is Sudan People's Liberation Movement leader will hold that position.
"Losing the brother, the doctor, is a huge loss. He is a true peace partner and he has played a big role," President Omar al-Bashir said.
National mourning period amid unrest
Three days of national mourning have been declared.
Despite the assurances of the rebel movement and the government, people were vandalising property, setting fires, looting shops and chasing pedestrians away with stones.
"Murderers! Murderers!" some yelled, alleging the Sudanese government may have been behind the crash.
The government reported that 36 people were killed and approximately 300 were injured in the riots.
Police and soldiers used tear gas to disperse the larger crowds. The streets leading to the Republican Palace were sealed and many residents and shopkeepers stayed indoors. A 18:00 to 06:00 curfew was imposed.
Peace process still on track
Government and rebel leaders appealed for calm, saying the nation's peace process would remain on track.
Jan Pronk, the United Nations secretary-general's special representative in Sudan, mourned Garang but said the peace process would continue.
"The peace agreement is an agreement between two institutions - the government and the SPLM. It is not dependent on individual persons, even if individual persons have had a very important contribution to it," Pronk said.
Deng Alor, a senior rebel official speaking from the southern Sudanese town of New Site where Garang's remains were taken, promised an investigation into the crash. He would not rule out foul play but said his group did not blame the government for the crash.
Although Garang and al-Bashir were once bitter enemies, they hailed each other as brothers since the peace agreement.
The crash recalled the 1994 death of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana, whose plane was downed amidst a power-sharng deal. The Rwandan genocide followed and more than 500 000 people were killed.
- AP