South Sudan: From Revolution to Independence - Hardcover

Leriche, Matthew; Arnold, Matthew

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0231704143 ISBN 13: 9780231704144

Publisher: Columbia Univ Pr, 2012

Synopsis

In July 2011 the Republic of South Sudan achieved independence, concluding what had been Africa's longest running civil war. The process leading to independence was driven by the Sudan Peoples' Liberation Movement, a primarily Southern rebel force and political movement intent on bringing about the reformed unity of the whole Sudan. Through the Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 2005, a six year peace process unfolded in the form of an interim period premised upon 'making unity attractive' for the Sudan. A failed exercise, it culminated in an almost unanimous vote for independence by Southerners in a referendum held in January 2011. Violence has continued since, and a daunting possibility for South Sudan has arisen - to have won independence only to descend into its own civil war, with the regime in Khartoum aiding and abetting factionalism to keep the new state weak and vulnerable. Achieving a durable peace will be a massive challenge, and resolving the issues that so inflamed Southerners historically - unsupportive governance, broad feelings of exploitation and marginalisation and fragile ethnic politics - will determine South Sudan's success or failure at statehood. A story of transformation and of victory against the odds, this book reviews South Sudan's modern history as a contested region and assesses the political, social and security dynamics that will shape its immediate future as Africa's newest independent state.

About this title

Review:

"South Sudan is the world's newest independent state and one of its most troubled, confronting both an external threat from an aggrieved government in Khartoum and internal challenges, including the political dominance of a liberation army that retains its militant posture. Arnold and LeRiche provide an excellent guide to the complex history and prospects of an independent South Sudan."--Alex de Waal, Executive Director of the World Peace Foundation and Research Professor at the Fletcher School, Tufts University

"Why did Sudan's first civil war, which aimed at secession, result in a form of semi-autonomy, and why did the second civil war fought in the name of national revolution end in secession? How was such a firmly entrenched (and profitable) civil war finally brought to a close? And what are the implications of Sudan's history of conflict for the future of Sudan's newest state? This fascinating study draws on in-depth knowledge and privileged access to the southern rebels to provide a cogent analysis of these questions. An excellent book that should be widely read."--David Keen, Professor of Complex Emergencies at the London School of Economics and author of Useful Enemies: When Waging Wars is More Important than Winning Them

"A timely, impressively researched and extremely important book on the politics of South Sudan that will become essential reading for students, scholars and analysts of the region as well as the politics of rebel insurgency, and post-conflict state building in Africa and beyond. South Sudan: from Revolution to Independence not only elegantly analyses the complex dynamics behind Sudan s two civil wars, exploring the origins and politics behind the historic secession of South Sudan, but also shows, in impressive detail, the strategic, ideological and political struggles that eventually culminated in Sudan's partition.' --Khalid Mustafa Medani, Associate Professor of Political Science and Islamic Studies, McGill University

About the Author:

Matthew Arnold is an academic and aid worker specialising in post-conflict reconstruction and the co-author of Militias and the Challenges of Post-Conflict Peace. Matthew LeRiche has a PhD from King's College London and has been living and working in South Sudan and the region since 2004. He is currently a Fellow in Managing Humanitarianism at the LSE.

About this edition

• Publisher: Columbia Univ Pr
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0231704143
• ISBN 13: 9780231704144
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 313