SOUTH SUDAN CELEBRATES 11th ANNIVERSARY of SUCCESSFUL STRUGGLE for SECESSION
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To see a video on how South Sudan became an independent country, click here.
Independence
9 July, marks a monumental answer to prayer as South Sudanese celebrate the 11th anniversary of their successful struggle for self-determination and secession from the Arab North. It was a major victory against the oppressive Sharia law of the National Islamic Front government of Sudan.
Date with Destiny
9 July, in South Sudan, marks a date with destiny. It celebrates the culminative effect of many years of intensive prayer, worldwide publicity, international pressure and missionary partnership with courageous persecuted Christians in South Sudan and the Nuba Mountains.
Independence
The longest war, in the largest country in Africa, was concluded with an independent and free Southern Sudan which separated approximately one third of Sudan’s land surface into a new and independent State on 9 July 2011.
Celebrations in Juba
The main celebration events take place in the capital of South Sudan, Juba. This involves their Declaration of Independence, Flag Raising Ceremony and Parades. The flag of South Sudan, a six-coloured flag, was the official flag of the Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army. The National Anthem was chosen through a nationwide competition and the Coat of Arms bears an image of the African Fish Eagle. Their currency is the South Sudan Pound.
The Newest Country in Africa
South Sudan became the 55th country in Africa and the 196th country in the world. The official name is the Republic of South Sudan (RSS). Salva Kiir Mayardit has for the last 11 years been the president of the Republic of South Sudan, based in the capital of South Sudan, Juba.
Self-Determination
Independence on 9 July 2011 concluded the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) of 2005, signed by the Sudan People’s Liberation Army and the government of Sudan. The CPA provided for the people of Southern Sudan to exercise their right to self-determination through a Referendum which was held in January 2011. 98.83% voted in favour of Secession.
Violence in Abyei
The Republic of South Sudan welcomed and helped settle South Sudanese who wished to return from displacement camps in the North. The government of South Sudan stated that they would recognize all legally acquired property rights and land ownership in the South. Some critical areas in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement remained unresolved, such as the final status of the oil-rich Abyei province, which has continued to be afflicted by violence from the North. The arrangements for the Nuba Mountains people of South Kordofan and others, in the Blue Nile, who still want to be part of the South, have yet to be resolved.
The Rocky Road to Democracy in Sudan
Following the successful secession of South Sudan from Sudan on 9 July 2011 the dictator of Sudan Omar al-Bashir was overthrown on 11 April 2019. Al-Bashir was placed on trial for corruption and genocide. A Transitional Military Council (TMC) was established. Massive protests resulted in a massacre on 3 June 2019 of around 100 people and a “march of the millions” on 30 June, which brought much of Khartoum to a standstill. Weeks of negotiations resulted in a power sharing agreement which sought to lead to eventual civilian rule. An 11-member Sovereign Council was established in which 5 civilian and 5 military members would work together with a civilian chairman elected by consensus and led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. At least 246 people died in this Revolution in Khartoum.
Sabotage and Subversion
Opponents to the transitional government blocked the Red Sea ports to bring about shortage of fuel, wheat and essential medicines, to sabotage the attempted move towards freedom of speech, freedom of movement, freedom of conscience and abolishing Shari’a law, flogging, amputations and executions for, amongst other things “Apostasy.” Speculation within Sudan is that the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have, with the Muslim Brotherhood, worked to undermine the transition to civilian rule in Sudan.
God’s Law or Chaos
Friends in Sudan have requested urgent prayer as their country is in a volatile state of transition. “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but happy is he who keeps the Law.” Proverbs 29:18
Firm Foundations
By God’s grace, Frontline Fellowship used the window of opportunity provided by the ceasefire and unprecedented peace in Sudan to deliver and distribute thousands of Bibles and New Testaments and tens of thousands of Christian school textbooks. This, along with leadership training programmes is laying solid foundations for the future.
Pray for Sudan
Pray for the many Christians caught up in this unstable situation in Sudan; that they would be steadfast and courageous during this time of uncertainty. Pray that what man means for evil, God will use for good (Genesis 50:20). “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28
An Island of Christianity in a Sea of Islam
Pray for the many Christians in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan who have enjoyed an unparalleled time of peace during which many schools have been built and churches rebuilt. Unless the Islamists and Jihadists are frustrated in their attempts to return Sudan to Shari’a law, the Nuba Mountains could well experience a resurgence of hostile attacks. Visit www.FrontlineMissionSA.org for more articles, videos and radio interviews on the colossal conflict and clash of civilisations in Sudan.
Mobilise Prayer for the Persecuted
Please mobilise your congregation and prayer group to lift up our brothers and sisters in Christ who are in danger in Sudan. Visit www.idop-Africa.org for resources to mobilise prayer and action on behalf of the suffering for Christ. You can view our Missions to the Nuba Mountains of Sudan video here https://vimeo.com/371593435 . Click here for a 3-minute video: Remember the Persecuted, https://vimeo.com/234995889 which you can share and show your friends, family, school and church as we approach the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted on 13 November. “And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ and members individually.” 1 Corinthians 12:26-27
Faith Under Fire in Sudan
Frontline Fellowship has delivered and distributed many hundreds of thousands of Bibles and Christian books in 24 languages, in 15 different regions, of Sudan and South Sudan. For the incredible testimonies of how Christians have endured centuries of persecution in Islamic Sudan and how courageous Christians in South Sudan won their freedom, read Faith Under Fire in Sudan (320 pages, 200 pictures) and see Sudan: The Hidden Holocaust and Terrorism and Persecution – Understanding Islamic Jihad DVD. For the latest Frontline Special 40 Years Thanksgiving Newsletter online, Click here.
Pray for South Sudan and the Nuba Mountains
Please join in with us in fervent prayer that the sufferings of our Christian brethren in South Sudan and the Nuba Mountains become known to the Church worldwide and that the persecutors be exposed and opposed. Let us pray that peace with justice be firmly established in independent South Sudan and in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan. View Behind Enemy Lines in Sudan – Video Interviews https://vimeo.com/723262177
“Cush will submit itself to God.” Psalm 68:31
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Frontline - Behind Enemy Lines for Christ, is a first hand, eyewitness account of war and persecution during tumultuous events. From the Bush War in Rhodesia to the Border war in South West Africa and Angola, to the killing fields of Mozambique, capture, interrogation, imprisonment, smuggling behind the Iron Curtain, the Seven year Jericho Prayer March that led to the Fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of the Iron Curtain, Revolution in Romania, Missions to Albania, the most atheist country in Europe, the Holocaust in Rwanda, under artillery and rocket fire and aerial bombardment in Sudan, to the successful struggle for secession of South Sudan, Frontline - Behind Enemy Lines for Christ covers 40 incredible years of Frontline Fellowship missions throughout 38 countries and eight wars in Africa and Eastern Europe: https://vimeo.com/699396449
To listen to the From the Frontline podcast on Celebrating 10 Years of South Sudan's Independence, click here.
See also related articles:
Sudan in Crisis at a Crossroads
Understanding Islam – Evangelising Muslims
The Nuba Mountains for Christ
An Overview of Sudan in History
Genocide in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan
Freedom Vote for Southern Sudan
Sudan Closes Schools, Confiscates Property and Expels Foreign Christians
A Different Kind of War
Jihad Against Christians in Africa
Christians Under Fire in Africa
Persecution Explodes as Muslims Come to Christ
Pray for Christians Under Fire in Nigeria and Sudan
Urgent Call for Prayer for Christians Under Fire in Africa
South Sudan Celebrates Successful Struggle for Secession
Sudan Government Destroys Churches and Attacks Bible College in Khartoum
Churches Attacked in Tanzania
Churches Bombed in Nigeria and Burned in Ethiopia
Southern Sudan Referendum on Secession
Christians Targeted in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan
Dr. Peter Hammond is the author of Faith Under Fire in Sudan. Peter Hammond has travelled throughout the war-devastated Nuba Mountains, an island of Christianity in a sea of Islam, showing the Jesus film in Arabic, proclaiming the Gospel, training pastors and evading enemy patrols. Peter has conducted over 1,200 meetings inside Sudan.