Fr Lombardi's weekly editorial focuses on Southern Sudan

Vatican Press Office Director Fr Federico Lombardi's weekly editorial: Support for Southern Sudan

Southern Sudan, Africa’s 54^th independent state is scheduled to be born on July 9^th. A referendum on January 9^th this year concluded with the overwhelming majority of the population voting for independence. It will be a State with borders that are different from those inherited from the colonial era and with a population that has endured over twenty years of bloody and savage civil war to free itself from the supremacy of the Arab and Islamic North. Its people have waited a long time for freedom and peace and they are looking forward to the declaration of independence in Juba as a great celebration and as a sign of great hope. The whole of Africa views these events as an important and significant change on the continent. Will a new African democracy emerge?

The stakes are high. The international community cannot remain indifferent to the threats to establish Sharia Law in the North and to the military attacks on Abyei that constitute a new provocation to war. We cannot remain indifferent to the suffering of countless refugees returning form the north to the south, or those fleeing from Abyei, risking hunger and disease in the coming rainy season. Then there’s the challenge of uniting a population that still suffers from tribal divisions and a poverty that is not only economic but cultural as well. The formation of a new ruling class is yet another priority. So we understand why the local bishops are urgently appealing for international solidarity. There are reasons for hope - but they are fragile. If we want to see the light of justice and peace rise in the heart of Africa, this hope needs to be strengthened and encouraged by us all.