3   CONFLICT IN SUDAN

The order of the day having been read for the resumption of the debate on the motion of Ms Parke—That this House:

(1)    notes that:

(a)    on 9 July 2011 two new nations emerged, the nations of South and North Sudan, which follows an overwhelming vote for independence by voters in South Sudan’s referendum for independence on 9 January 2011;

(b)   the future of these nations are interdependent and their stability has regional border security implications for North and East Africa;

(c)    the emerging picture confronting both new nations is dire and with significant political, humanitarian and developmental challenges;

(d)   the overall security situation in Sudan is deteriorating at an alarming rate, having severe humanitarian consequences with millions of civilians in both North and South Sudan in need of protection and critical humanitarian assistance;

(e)    Sudan, after Zimbabwe, is the second largest recipient of Australia’s humanitarian and development assistance in Africa—since 2004, the Australian Government has provided $136 million to Sudan;

(f)    the North/South Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in 2005 that ended over two decades of civil war is at risk, due to recent violence, with outstanding issues such as border demarcation, oil revenue sharing, currency and citizenship status, unresolved;

(g)   Sudan has the highest level overall of people remaining internally displaced according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and the highest number of people newly displaced by conflict; and

(h)   the plight of internally displaced people and Sudanese refugees will therefore continue to be a shared legacy of decades of conflict;

(2)    condemns the most recent violence that has seen conflict spread across North and South Sudan and has recently escalated in the contested border region of Abyei and in two of the ‘three protocol areas’—South Kordofan and the Nuba Mountains—causing mass displacement;

(3)    recognises that the inter-ethnic conflict also affects South Sudan, and people in South Sudan’s Western Equatoria region are still victims of attacks by the Lords Resistance Army along the border areas of Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic;

(4)    expresses deep concern at the:

(a)    protracted nature of the conflict and displacement in Darfur, now in its eighth year;

(b)   United Nations estimate that 300,000 people have been killed as a result of violence, malnutrition and starvation, and 4 million people are in desperate need of aid, representing nearly two thirds of the entire estimated Darfur population of 6.5 million; and

(c)    estimated 2.5 million people that live in refugee camps in Darfur and neighbouring Chad, while others struggle to survive in remote villages;

(5)    notes that:

(a)    humanitarian relief efforts to provide assistance to vulnerable populations are being hampered by limited humanitarian access in some of the most affected conflict areas including in South Kordofan and Darfur; and

(b)   insecurity and inaccessibility remain amongst the biggest challenges facing the delivery of assistance by humanitarian agencies to vulnerable populations;

(6)    urges the Government of South Sudan and the Government of Sudan to reaffirm their commitment to peace, conflict prevention, the inclusion of the peripheral regions and ethnic minorities in political representation and decision making, and the recognition of cultural and ethnic diversity through durable political solutions; and

(7)    encourages the Australian Government to provide ongoing and predictable diplomatic and funding resources to address humanitarian and development needs in North and South Sudan ( see item No. 2, Votes and Proceedings )—

Debate resumed.

Debate adjourned, and the resumption of the debate made an order of the day for the next sitting.