Sudan’s second day of unity vote

People have been queuing for hours to vote in Juba on the second day of the landmark poll

Voters in Southern Sudan have returned to polling stations for a second day in an independence referendum which is widely expected to result in the birth of the world’s newest state.

The BBC’s Will Ross says early turnout has not been not as heavy as on the first day of the week-long vote, but voters seem just as determined.

The poll was agreed as part of the 2005 deal that ended a two-decade civil war.

Some in the queues said they voting for friends and relatives killed by war.

Our correspondent, with voters in the southern village of Kotobi, say many fear elements in the north could still try to disrupt the process to block Southern Sudan’s independence.

But the mainly Muslim north has promised the south, where most people are Christian or follow tradition religions, it will not block its plans to secede if that is the result of the vote, as expected.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has said he will respect the outcome, but warned an independent south would face instability.

Clooney was in Sudan to lend his support for the referendum

For the referendum to be valid, at least 60% of the 3.8 million registered voters must take part.

South Sudanese leader Salva Kiir, casting his ballot on Sunday, urged people to “be patient”, in case they were not able to vote on the first day of polling.

The international community is watching the vote closely and US President Barack Obama said it represented a “new chapter in history”.

The action of Sudanese leaders would help determine whether Sudanese people move “toward peace and prosperity, or slide backward into bloodshed”, he said in a statement.

The run-up to the vote was marred by clashes between the south Sudanese military and rebels in the oil-rich Unity state.

There are also reports of fighting between southerners and Arab nomads over grazing rights for their cattle in the disputed oil-rich region of Abyei, long seen as a potential flashpoint which could trigger wider violence.

Sudan’s Historic Vote

Voting: 9-15 JanuaryTo pass, 60% of those registered need to vote plus majority of ballotsVote a condition of 2005 deal to end two-decade north-south conflictMost northerners are Arabic-speaking MuslimsMost southerners Christian or follow traditional religionsOil-rich Abyei area to hold separate vote on whether to join north or southReferendum could divide Africa’s largest countryFinal result due 6 February or 14 February if there are appealsSouth would become continent’s newest nation on 9 July 2011National anthem and flag chosen, but not new country’s nameSudanese voters: Your stories

Abyei was due to hold a separate referendum on whether to join north or south Sudan but this has been postponed indefinitely because of disagreements over eligibility.

North and south Sudan have suffered decades of conflict driven by religious and ethnic divides.

Southern Sudan is one of the least developed areas in the world and many of its people have have long complained of mistreatment at the hands of the Khartoum government.

Last week Mr Bashir said he understood why many southerners wanted independence, but he expressed concern at how the new nation would cope.

“The south suffers from many problems,” told the Arabic news channel al-Jazeera.

“It’s been at war since 1959. The south does not have the ability to provide for its citizens or create a state or authority.”

Mr Bashir said southerners living in the north would not be allowed dual citizenship, and floated the idea of the two nations joining in an EU-style bloc.

The official result of the referendum is not due to be announced for at least four weeks, partly because of the logistical difficulties gathering the ballot papers from across a region the size of France and Germany that has few paved roads.

The great divide across Sudan is visible even from space, as this Nasa satellite image shows. The northern states are a blanket of desert, broken only by the fertile Nile corridor. Southern Sudan is covered by green swathes of grassland, swamps and tropical forest.

Sudan’s arid northern regions are home mainly to Arabic-speaking Muslims. But in Southern Sudan there is no dominant culture. The Dinkas and the Nuers are the largest of more than 200 ethnic groups, each with its own traditional beliefs and languages.

The health inequalities in Sudan are illustrated by infant mortality rates. In Southern Sudan, one in 10 children die before their first birthday. Whereas in the more developed northern states, such as Gezira and White Nile, half of those children would be expected to survive.

The gulf in water resources between north and south is stark. In Khartoum, River Nile, and Gezira states, two-thirds of people have access to piped drinking water and pit latrines. In the south, boreholes and unprotected wells are the main drinking sources. More than 80% of southerners have no toilet facilities whatsoever.

Throughout Sudan, access to primary school education is strongly linked to household earnings. In the poorest parts of the south, less than 1% of children finish primary school. Whereas in the wealthier north, up to 50% of children complete primary level education.

Conflict and poverty are the main causes of food insecurity in Sudan. The residents of war-affected Darfur and Southern Sudan are still greatly dependent on food aid. Far more than in northern states, which tend to be wealthier, more urbanised and less reliant on agriculture.

Sudan exports billions of dollars of oil per year. Southern states produce more than 80% of it, but receive only 50% of the revenue, exacerbating tensions with the north. The oil-rich border region of Abyei is to hold a separate vote on whether to join the north or the south.

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