Mbeki praises 'new' Sudan
2005-08-05 19:48
Cape Town - Sudan has a potential to serve as a model for all African countries, which, in the main, are as diverse as Sudan is, said President Thabo Mbeki on Friday.
The historic task now facing the Sudanese people was the full, speedy, and unequivocal implementation of the comprehensive peace agreement (CPA), signed on January 9, 2005, bearing in mind all the complex challenges Sudan inherited from its past.
The last census conducted before independence in 1956 said the Sudanese population was 61% African and 31% Arab, with eight percent being west African Moslems who had settled in Sudan while on their way to or from Mecca.
Mbeki said: "The north is predominantly Moslem and the south adheres to Christianity and traditional African religions."
Peace, friendship among people
Mbeki said: "Sudan is said to have more than 500 ethnic groups, who speak more than 100 distinct languages.
"After a deeply troubled history that covers many centuries, Sudan has now set itself on a path that should lead to peace and friendship among its diverse people.
"Given its enormous economic potential, the new Sudan also has the possibility to provide a better life for its entire people, eradicating poverty and underdevelopment.
"It has the possibility to serve as a shining example of the success of Africa's renaissance, a model for all our countries, which, in the main, are as diverse as Sudan is.
Mbeki pays tribute to Garang
Mbeki said: "It can lead our continent in cementing the unity between its northern and sub-Saharan parts.
Mbeki also paid tribute to Sudanese first vice-president John Garang, who died in a helicopter crash last weekend.
Mbeki said: "The new beacon of hope for Sudan and Africa represented by the Sudanese Comprehensive Peace Agreement will forever remain an indestructible monument to the memory of a great Sudanese and African patriot, the late Dr John Garang de Mabior.
"As we lay him to rest in Juba, Sudan, on August 6, we will also pledge to pursue the noble goals to which he dedicated his life. His spirit will not die."
- SAPA