The Status of Abyei
ecoi.net's featured topics offer an overview on selected issues. The featured topic for Sudan & South Sudan covers the political and administrative status of the Abyei Area. The featured topics are presented in the form of excerpts from documents, all coming from sources available on ecoi.net.
Last update: 21 December 2012 - no further updates planned.
GENERAL INFORMATION
“In January 2011, South Sudan held a referendum to decide between unity or independence from the central government of Sudan as called for by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement [CPA] that ended the country’s decades-long civil war in 2005. According to the South Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC), 98.8% of the votes cast were in favor of separation. In February 2011, Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir officially accepted the referendum result, as did the United Nations, the African Union, the European Union, the United States, and other countries. On July 9, 2011, South Sudan officially declared its independence. […]
Abyei, a disputed area located between the North and the South, was also expected to hold a referendum on January 9, 2011, to decide whether to retain its current special administrative status or to be part of South Sudan. However, the referendum did not take place, […].” (CRS, 25 July 2011, Summary)
“Located between Northern Bahr al Ghazal, Warrap and Unity states to the south and Southern Kordofan to the north, Abyei is geographically, ethnically and politically caught between Northern and Southern Sudan. It is home to the Ngok Dinka and Misseriya Arabs who migrate seasonally through it. Abyei has long been a flash point; polarisation between the two began during the first civil war (1955-1972), but a new dynamic was added when oil was discovered in 1979.” (ICG, 2 September 2010, p. 10)
“The region is often described as ‘oil-rich’, but after the 2009 Permanent Court of Arbitration [PCA] ruling in The Hague, most of the oil fields now fall outside Abyei's borders. It does still produce oil, but the real issue here is more ethnic than economic.” (BBC, 23 May 2011)
Link to a map showing the geographical location of Abyei Area:
Small Arms Survey: Abyei and nearby oil fields, 2010
A report by Small Arms Survey providing an overview of the course of the conflict in Abyei until October 2011 is available at the following link:
Small Arms Survey: The Crisis in Abyei, June 2012 [ID 226660]
Small Arms Survey: The Crisis in Abyei, June 2012 [ID 226660]
STAKEHOLDERS
“The government ended the civil war with the South in January 2005 by signing the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) with the SPLA [Sudan People’s Liberation Army] and its political arm, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM). The pact established a power-sharing government, with the NCP [National Congress Party] retaining a slight majority in the parliament. The CPA also granted autonomy to a Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) led by the SPLM, [...].” (FH, May 2011)
“[...] the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), the southern political party that now rules South Sudan.” (HRW, 27 July 2011)
Abyei is “mainly inhabited by Ngok Dinka people who consider themselves southerners. But Misseriya nomads from the north herd their cattle through the territory in the dry season and are strongly supported by the Khartoum government”. (AFP, 20 June 2011)
POLITICAL AND LEGAL STATUS
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) (including the Abyei Protocol) (signed 9 January 2005)
“Through the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) have ended the longest civil war in Africa.“ (UN Security Council, 17 May 2011, p. 1)
Link to Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) (including the Abyei Protocol):
“The Abyei Protocol [to the CPA] promised a referendum for Abyei, to run concurrently with the referendum on Southern self-determination, and appointed the ABC [Abyei Boundaries Commission] to demarcate the borders of the territory. In the interim period the presidency would appoint an executive council, pending local elections The Abyei Protocol further prohibited all but three military forces from the territory: the Joint Integrated Units (JIUs) composed of both SAF [Sudanese Armed Forces] and SPLA forces, Abyei Police units, and international monitors.” (Small Arms Survey, June 2011, p. 13)
Abyei’s “special status was defined by the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) that ended the last phase of civil war. Scheduled to last until July 2011, it grants Abyei residents joint citizenship of two of Sudan’s regional states, one in the north [Western Kordofan, which was later abolished and its territory divided between North and South Kordofan], the other in the south [Bahr al Ghazal]. It also calls for the area to be governed by an Executive Council, with members appointed by the joint national presidency until an election is held.“ (IRIN, 14 July 2010)
“Negotiations over Abyei’s referendum had stalled by mid-October 2010.” (Small Arms Survey, June 2011, p. 23)
“The referendum on whether Abyei will retain its special status in the North or become part of the South has not yet been scheduled due to disagreements between the NCP and the SPLM over voter eligibility.The NCP argues that the Misseriya, a nomadic group who migrate through Abyei, should be permitted to vote; the SPLM argues that only permanent residents of Abyei, the Ngok Dinka, should be registered.” (USCIRF, May 2011, p. 161)
Abyei Boundaries Commission (ABC) Report (issued 14 July 2005)
“The Abyei Boundaries Commission(ABC) was mandated to define and demarcate the area of the nine Ngok Dinka Chiefdoms transferred to Kordofan in 1905, referred to as ‘the Abyei area’. The ABC submitted its final report to the Presidency on 14 July 2005. However the Presidency failed to agree on adoption of the report.” (UNMIS, May 2011, p. 25)
Links to Abyei Boundaries Commission (ABC) Report:
Abyei’s “territory was to be defined by an Abyei Boundary Commission (ABC). That body’s 2005 ruling meant that a significant percentage of Sudan’s known oil reserves fell within the territory of Abyei (though output from the producing fields has since been in steady decline). Due to the financial implications of having to share Abyei’s oil revenues, the NCP rejected the ruling.” (ICG, 2 September 2010, p. 10)
Abyei Roadmap Agreement (signed 8 June 2008)
“On 8 June 2008, President Al-Bashir issued Republican Decree 146 adopting a landmark agreement between the NCP and the SPLM entitled ‘Roadmap for Return of IDPs and
Implementation of Abyei Protocol’.“ (UNMIS, April 2011, p. 3)
Link to the full text of the Abyei Roadmap:
“In May 2008 clashes between SAF and SPLA soldiers caused near-total destruction of the town [of Abyei] and displaced some 60,000 civilians.” (HRW, 20 January 2010)
“Subsequent to the violence, in June 2008 the NCP and SPLM drew up the Abyei Roadmap, […]. [...] the Abyei Roadmap directs the presidency to appoint the Abyei Administration, while the Abyei Protocol calls for a temporary executive council to be put in place, followed by elections. [...]
The Abyei Roadmap called for the JIU that had been involved in the May 2008 clashes to be disbanded and a new JIU battalion to be deployed to Abyei [...]. The Abyei Roadmap also requires police units to be deployed to Abyei, although it does not say they have to be joint units composed of Northern and Southern forces, [...]. [...]
In the case that parties dispute the ABC’s findings, the Abyei Roadmap instructs them to refer the case to the PCA in The Hague. (Small Arms Survey, June 2011, p. 15)
Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) Final Award (issued 22 July 2009)
“On 22 July 2009, the Abyei Arbitral Tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration rendered its decision in the Abyei dispute, [...]” (UNMIS, May 2011, p. 25)
Link to Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) Final Award:
“After three years of deadlock and a series of violent clashes in 2008, the parties submitted the [Abyei territorial] dispute for arbitration. The Abyei Tribunal, constituted at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), announced its final award in 2009, which reduced the size of the area set forth by the ABC.
Because of the declining reserves and the fact that the PCA decision placed some fields outside Abyei, some had hoped the area would be less contentious by 2011. However, the PCA decision has not been implemented, […].” (ICG, 2 September 2010, p. 10)
Kadugli Agreements (signed 13 and 17 January 2011)
“On 13 January 2011, traditional leaders of the Dinka Ngok and the Misseriya, [...] reached agreement on a number of arrangements that aim at ensuring their peaceful co-existence, [...]. [...]
On 17 January 2011 [...] the parties discussed issues relating to security arrangements in Abyei and the protection of returnees who transit through Southern Kordofan State to the South and Abyei.” (UNMIS, April 2011, p. 29)
“Following the attacks of 7–9 January [2011], two separate meetings were organized in an attempt to improve a rapidly deteriorating security situation. The first, held on 13 January in Kadugli, was designed to address the concerns of both the Ngok Dinka and Missiriya communities, and dealt with the safe passage of returnees, grazing rights, and compensation for deaths caused in 2010. [...]
[...] a number of stakeholders convened a second meeting in Kadugli on 17 January to address the security situation in the territory. It was agreed that SAF would open the road leading south to Abyei; [...]. In order to prevent further outbreaks of violence, the NCP agreed to withdraw the Juba Police to Abyei town and to replace them with two new JIU battalions. The parties further agreed to open a grazing corridor for the Missiriya, and to disarm Missiriya and Ngok Dinka civilians.” (Small Arms Survey, June 2011, p. 30, 32)
“On 13 July, the Sudanese Media Centre (SMC) news website reported that the Misseriya and Dinka Ngok agreed to reactivate the agreement on peaceful coexistence in the Abyei area between the two tribes signed in January 2011. The agreement stipulates that the two communities should not harm each other.” (UN OCHA, July 2012, p. 2)
Abyei Agreement (signed 4 March 2011)
“On 4 March 2011, the parties agreed on the modalities relating to the implementation of the Kadugli agreements of 13 and 17 January. The signed agreement includes, inter alia: [...]; the establishment of a mechanism (Standing Committee) to implement the Kadugli agreements; the full and effective deployment of the JIUs to the designated locations in Abyei; the immediate withdrawal of all other forces out of the Abyei Area; the UN to facilitate the implementation of the Kadugli agreements; and the UN to have unhindered access to all areas of the Abyei Area.” (UNMIS, April 2011, p. 29)
Link to the Abyei Agreement:
Temporary Arrangements for the Administration and Security of the Abyei Area (signed 20 June 2011)
“On 20 June, the Government of the Sudan and SPLM signed the […] Agreement on Temporary Arrangements for the Administration and Security of the Abyei Area.“ (UN Security Council, 26 July 2011, p. 2)
Link to Temporary Arrangements for the Administration and Security of the Abyei Area:
“In May 2011, Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) invaded Abyei, dissolved the Abyei Administration, and displaced more than 100,000 people. In June, the government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) reached a temporary agreement on security and governance, […].
The parties agreed the Abyei Area Administration shall consist of a Chief Administrator from the SPLM, a Deputy from the government of Sudan, and five heads of department; an Abyei Joint Oversight Committee, composed of four members, two from each party, shall be established; both parties will withdraw their forces from Abyei, and Ethiopia will deploy a peacekeeping force under a United Nations mandate; and the temporary agreement shall remain in force until a final agreement is reached by the parties.” (CRS, 25 July 2011, pp. 2, 4-5)
A report of the UN Secretary-General published in July 2012 providing information on the state of implementation of the 20 June 2011 Agreement is available at the following link:
UN Security Council: Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Abyei [S/2012/583], 25 July 2012 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 223846]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1226_1344419478_n1243530abyei.pdf
UN Security Council: Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Abyei [S/2012/583], 25 July 2012 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 223846]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1226_1344419478_n1243530abyei.pdf
UN Security Council Resolutions 1990 (2011) (adopted 27 June 2011) and 2047 (2012) (adopted 17 May 2012)
“The United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) was established by the Security Council in its resolution 1990 (2011), [...].” (UN Security Council, 26 July 2011, p. 3)
“On 17 May 2012, the UN Security Council adopted resolution 2047 (2012), extending the mandate of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) for a further six months. The resolution calls on the Government of Sudan to immediately redeploy all military and police personnel from the Abyei area; the Government of Sudan and the Government of South Sudan to finalise the establishment of the Abyei Area Administration; and the activation of the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism and the Safe Demilitarised Border Zone between the two countries.” (UN OCHA, 20 May 2012, p. 2-3)
Link to UN Security Council Resolution 1990 (2011):
Link to UN Security Council Resolution 2047 (2012):
Link to UNISFA:
“[…] in June, both the north and south agreed to withdraw their troops from Abyei, leaving a 20km (12-mile) buffer zone along the border.
A week later [on 27 June 2011], the UN Security Council voted unanimously to send a 4,200-strong Ethiopian peacekeeping force to Abyei to monitor the withdrawal, as well as the human rights situation.
The resolution established a new UN peacekeeping force, the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (Unisfa). It also ordered Unisfa to protect civilians and to ‘protect the Abyei area from incursions by unauthorised elements’” (BBC, 5 August 2011)
UN Security Council Resolution 2046 (2012) (adopted 2 May 2012)
“The Security Council [...] 1. Decides that Sudan and South Sudan shall take the following actions [...]: [...] (vii) Implement pending aspects of the 20 June 2011 Agreement on Temporary Security and Administrative Arrangements for the Abyei Area, in particular the redeployment, within no more than two weeks of the adoption of this resolution, of all Sudanese and South Sudanese forces out of the Abyei Area;
2. Decides that Sudan and South Sudan shall unconditionally resume negotiations, [...] to reach agreement on the following critical issues: [...] (iv) The final status of the Abyei Area; [...].”(UN Security Council, 2 May 2012, p. 3-4)
2. Decides that Sudan and South Sudan shall unconditionally resume negotiations, [...] to reach agreement on the following critical issues: [...] (iv) The final status of the Abyei Area; [...].”(UN Security Council, 2 May 2012, p. 3-4)
Link to UN Security Council Resolution 2046 (2012):
“South Sudan said on Monday it is completing withdrawal processes of police forces from the contested area of Abyei, apparently in conformity with the United Nations Security Council resolution endorsing roadmap of the Africa Union Peace and Security Commission.” (Sudan Tribune, 7 May 2012)
“A Sudanese police contingent has pulled out of the disputed Abyei area, Sudan's army said on Friday, after the foreign ministry denied their presence and the UN called for their withdrawal. […] "Now Abyei is free from any Sudanese military or police." The UN Security Council on Thursday demanded that Sudan withdraw its armed police from Abyei amid warnings there is still "hair-trigger" tension between the Khartoum government and South Sudan. [...] After fighting along the disputed border in March and April, the Security Council called on the two sides to cease hostilities and resume talks on a number of issues, including the status of Abyei, the most sensitive matter left unresolved before South Sudan's independence last July. The council's May 2 resolution said both sides had to pull their forces out of Abyei by May 16. South Sudan complied, withdrawing police who were based there, while Sudan pulled its army out after the deadline.” (Agence France-Presse, 1 June 2012)
“4. On 29 May, in accordance with the provisions of the African Union Peace and Security Council Roadmap of 24 April 2012 and Security Council resolution 2046 (2012) of 2 May 2012, the Government of the Sudan withdrew all Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) personnel from the Abyei Area. [...] A few days later, on 1 June, the remaining 169 members of the Sudan Police Service also withdrew and relocated from Abyei town to el-Muglad in Southern Kordofan State [...]. A company size force of approximately 120 to 150 Sudanese oil police remains inside the oil complex in Diffra. These forces are armed with small weapons and have never conducted, and do not possess the capability to conduct, operations outside of the oil complex. Their only task has been to secure the oil installations within the complex. Their presence, nonetheless, constitutes a violation of the 20 June 2011 Agreement.” (UN Security Council, 25 July 2012: p. 1-2)
“10. In an effort to implement the provisions of the African Union road map of 24 April 2012 and Security Council resolution 2046 (2012), representatives of the Governments of the Sudan and South Sudan, under the auspices of the African Union High-level Implementation Panel, held the last round of negotiations in Addis Ababa from 6 to 27 September. On 21 September, the Panel submitted to the parties its proposal aimed at resolving the final status of the Abyei Area. The proposal provides for the conduct in October 2013 of a referendum prepared by a commission under the leadership of a Chair nominated by the African Union. Eligible voters would be residents of the Abyei Area, while the referendum commission would ascertain voter eligibility and compile the voter roll.
11. While the Government of South Sudan accepted the Panel’s proposal in its entirety, the Government of the Sudan rejected certain of its provisions, particularly the proposed terms regarding voter eligibility for the referendum and the language indicating that the Chair of the Abyei referendum commission would be an international figure appointed by the African Union, rather than a national of one of the two States.” (UN Security Council, 23 November 2012)
“10. In an effort to implement the provisions of the African Union road map of 24 April 2012 and Security Council resolution 2046 (2012), representatives of the Governments of the Sudan and South Sudan, under the auspices of the African Union High-level Implementation Panel, held the last round of negotiations in Addis Ababa from 6 to 27 September. On 21 September, the Panel submitted to the parties its proposal aimed at resolving the final status of the Abyei Area. The proposal provides for the conduct in October 2013 of a referendum prepared by a commission under the leadership of a Chair nominated by the African Union. Eligible voters would be residents of the Abyei Area, while the referendum commission would ascertain voter eligibility and compile the voter roll.
11. While the Government of South Sudan accepted the Panel’s proposal in its entirety, the Government of the Sudan rejected certain of its provisions, particularly the proposed terms regarding voter eligibility for the referendum and the language indicating that the Chair of the Abyei referendum commission would be an international figure appointed by the African Union, rather than a national of one of the two States.” (UN Security Council, 23 November 2012)
SOURCES: (all links accessed 20 December 2012)
-
· AFP - Agence France-Presse: Sudanese rivals sign Abyei accord as new battle flares, 20 June 2011 (published on ReliefWeb) [ID 162339]
http://reliefweb.int/node/421249 -
· AFP - Agence France-Presse: Sudan police leave contested Abyei: Army, 1 June 2012 (published by ReliefWeb) [ID 218625]
http://reliefweb.int/node/500898 -
· BBC - British Broadcasting Corporation: Why Abyei is crucial to north and south, 23 May 2011 [ID 202559]
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13502845 -
· BBC - British Broadcasting Corporation: Sudan 'threatened to shoot UN helicopter', 5 August 2011 [ID 199667]
http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-africa-14418567 -
· CRS - Congressional Research Service: The Republic of South Sudan: Opportunities and Challenges for Africa’s Newest Country, 25 July 2011 [ID 199079]
http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/170506.pdf -
· FH - Freedom House: Freedom in the World 2011, May 2011 [ID 160289]
http://freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2011&country=8138 -
· HRW - Human Rights Watch: UN/Sudan: Southern Kordofan Needs International Monitors, 27 July 2011 [ID 199121]
http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/07/27/unsudan-southern-kordofan-needs-international-monitors -
· ICG - International Crisis Group: Defining the North-South Border, 2 September 2010 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 145619]
https://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1226_1283767822_b75-sudan-defining-the-north-south-border.pdf -
· IRIN - Integrated Regional Information Network: Analysis: A guide to Abyei’s referendum, 14 July 2010 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 142540]
http://www.ecoi.net/local_link/142540/243159_en.html -
· Small Arms Survey: Sudan Working Paper 26; Creating Facts on the Ground: Conflict Dynamics in Abyei, June 2011 [ID 163390]
http://www.smallarmssurveysudan.org/pdfs/HSBA-SWP-26-Conflict-Dynamics-in-Abyei.pdf -
· Small Arms Survey: The Crisis in Abyei, 2 June 2012 [ID 226660]
http://smallarmssurveysudan.org/facts-figures-abyei.php -
· Sudan Tribune: South Sudan completing withdrawal of police service in Abyei, 7 May 2012 (published by ReliefWeb) [ID 217288]
http://reliefweb.int/node/494821 -
· UNMIS - UN Mission in Sudan: The CPA Monitor; April 2011, April 2011 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 160897]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1788_1306486243_cpa-monitor-april-2011.pdf -
· UNMIS - UN Mission in Sudan: The CPA Monitor; May 2011, May 2011 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 161784]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1788_1308322704_cpa-monitor-may-2011.pdf -
· UN OCHA - UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: Weekly Humanitarian Bulletin; Sudan; 14 - 20 May 2012, 20 May 2012 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 221349]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1788_1341682521_ocha-sudan-weekly-humanitarian-bulletin-14-20-may-2012.pdf -
· UN OCHA - UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: Weekly Humanitarian Bulletin; Sudan; 9 - 15 July 2012, July 2012 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 222883]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1226_1343397700_full-20report-843sudan.pdf -
· UN Security Council: Special report of the Secretary-General on the Sudan [S/2011/314], 17 May 2011 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 161095]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1226_1306940124_n1133817.pdf -
· UN Security Council: Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Abyei [S/2011/451], 26 July 2011 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 199799]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1226_1313065464_n1142979abyei.pdf -
· UN Security Council: Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Abyei [S/2012/175], 23 March 2012 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 213051]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1930_1333528682_n1226949.pdf -
· UN Security Council: Resolution 2046 (2012) [S/RES/2046 (2012)], 2 May 2012 [ID 226978]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1930_1347970347_n1232777.pdf -
· UN Security Council: Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Abyei [S/2012/583], 25 July 2012 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 223846]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1226_1344419478_n1243530abyei.pdf -
· UN Security Council: Report of the Secretary-General on the situation in Abyei [S/2012/890], 23 November 2012 (available at ecoi.net) [ID 233104]
http://www.ecoi.net/file_upload/1930_1355388196_n1260396.pdf -
· USCIRF - US Commission on International Religious Freedom: Annual Report 2011, May 2011 [ID 160409]
http://www.uscirf.gov/images/book with cover for web.pdf
This featured topic was prepared after researching solely on ecoi.net and within time constraints. It is meant to offer an overview on an issue and is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status, asylum or other form of international protection. Every quotation comes from a document available on ecoi.net and is referred to via an ID-search.
