OBSERVERS APPROVE SOUTH SUDAN INDEPENDENCE VOTE

International observers on January 17 gave south Sudan’s referendum on secession the seal of approval in their first official judgment on the poll, moving the region a step closer to independence

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August 18, 2022

International observers on January 17 gave south Sudan’s referendum on secession the seal of approval in their first official judgment on the poll, moving the region a step closer to independence. Early results from the weeklong vote suggest an overwhelming vote to split away from the mostly Muslim north after decades of civil war. “The European Union election observation mission assess the voting process of the Southern Sudan Referendum credible and well-organised in a mostly peaceful environment,” said a statement. Former US President Jimmy Carter’s mission similarly approved the referendum, which hopes to end a violent cycle of bitter north-south conflict in Africa’s largest country. “The (Carter) Centre finds that the referendum process to date is broadly consistent with international standards for democratic elections and represents the genuine expression of the will of the electorate,” its statement read.