By Aggrey Mutambo
NAIROBI, 01 January, 2011 (Sunday Nation) - An umbrella body, the Nairobi Sudanese Unity for Church (NSUC) yesterday launched a civil education programme to educate Southern Sudanese on how to vote.
“We want everyone to be aware of things like where to mark on the ballot paper,” NSUC secretary-general Peter Jak said.
Prayer session
And a week before the country holds the referendum, its nationals in Nairobi have started a prayer session asking for peace and fairness.
On Saturday, the NSUC invited Sudanese artistes to perform at a get-together party at the Kenya Polytechnic University College.
“We wanted to celebrate the New Year together to show the world that we are united,” Mr Jak said.
The group says it will also revisit the history of the country and its relationship with the North and impart knowledge about the road Southern Sudan has travelled.
“We will educate the young on the value of the referendum. We want everyone to know that this (vote) is a very valuable opportunity which should not be thrown away,” said Mr Jak.
Southern Sudan is largely expected to vote in favour of secession from the North, becoming Africa’s 55th nation.
There are an estimated 8,000 Southern Sudanese living in Nairobi and NSUC wants to encourage this constituency to vote.
The referendum rules state that 60 per cent of the total number of registered voters in Southern Sudan will have to vote, and 50 plus another one per cent of those who vote will have to support secession for Southern Sudan to become an independent state.
While there has been concern that the poll outcome could cause bloodshed, Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir last week promised to support the country whichever way it chose to go.
Mr Al-Bashir said he would be the first to recognise the sovereignty of the country.
Southern Sudan fought a war with the Arab-dominated North for about two decades in which the UN estimated about two million people were killed.
The crisis was only brought under control when the two sides signed a Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005 in Nairobi which gave Southern Sudan autonomy and a road map for next week’s referendum.