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Sudan's Fledgling Peace Now in Peril
Rebecca Garang, right, wife of John Garang, grieves after his death in a helicopter crash. She said there was no evidence of foul play. The former Sudanese rebel leader had become a vice president as part of a peace deal.
(By Radu Sigheti -- Reuters)
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Some rioters accused the Sudanese government of plotting a coup to kill Garang, shouting, "Killers and murderers!" observers reported.
The mood quieted but remained tense after officials imposed a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew. A Western diplomat reported that the streets were "empty, very quiet," but that there had been "lots of looting, burning, stoning and some deaths." The diplomat said there was "great despondency" among both southern and northern Sudanese.
In Juba, one of southern Sudan's largest cities, soldiers once under Garang's control started looting Arab-owned businesses, according to television reports. They also demanded the expulsion of thousands of Sudanese army troops. Aid workers in southeastern Sudan reported that at least one person had been killed in rioting.
Sudan's civil war took 2 million lives and left millions more displaced. Under the peace agreement, residents of the south will vote in six years to determine whether they want to secede from the rest of the country. The area is one of the poorest places on Earth; children routinely die of malaria and other diseases, such as guinea worm, because of lack of health centers in 90 percent of the region.
On Monday there were concerns that the north-south peace could collapse, and that the loss of Garang's might also lessen chances of bringing an end to the conflict in Darfur.
"John Garang's death has enormous implications for regional peace and security. He was the linchpin of the north-south deal; he was going to be called upon to play the essential role in bringing the warring parties in Darfur together," said John Prendergast, a Sudan expert with the International Crisis Group, who was visiting the region. "His passing has potentially catastrophic consequences."
Gen. Lazaro Sumbeiywo, a Kenyan who helped mediate the peace talks in Kenya, said Garang's death "means a huge setback . . . a loss of a father and a loss of a real leader."
Some officials from Garang's rebel group said they were worried about fighting within the movement, even though his top deputy, Salva Kiir Mayardit, was named to replace him. Kiir is a charismatic figure who commands most of the rebel forces. He sparred with Garang in the past but had recently stood by his side.
"The death of Garang comes at a very critical time in the peace process. There is already a problem that people might misread or read some foul play into his death," said Peter Adwok, a spokesman for the movement.
Staff writer Colum Lynch at the United Nations and staff researcher Robert E. Thomason in Washington contributed to this report.
