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On the 15th of January the self-determination referendum of Sudan wrapped up. According to the preliminary results, 80% of South-Sudanese people cast their ballots. The international observers, about 17 thousands of them, recorded that the referendum was in line with the international standards. Thus the referendum is supposed to be successful.

On the 31st of January the preliminary results will be published and on the 14th February the final official results are expected. Experts say they are sure the majority of Sudanese people cast their ballots for the independence. This means soon after the official records are published a new independent state will occur on the world map – re-forming postcolonial borders of Africa.

This outcome that US president Barack Obama assessed in a story published by “New York Times” on 9th of January as a significant step towards the democracy and justice, is a result of decades of efforts for peace and struggle.

The black-Christians of Southern Sudan started their fight for independence in the middles of previous century. In the aftermath of armed struggle, from 1955 to 1973, the Sudanese people got domestic independence. But a few years later, after the activities of Islamist government, in 1983 the Sudanese people again took up the arms. 20-year-old conflict wrapped up in the 21st century. The negotiations held in 2003-2004 finished with a peace deal signed in 2005. The new treaty granted domestic independence to Southern Sudan for 6 years and suggested a referendum in its deadline. Sudanese people should have decided whether to remain in forms of Sudan or to found a new independent state.

Everybody feared that Sudanese authorities would break the referendum or would postpone it. Meanwhile, on 22 December, 2009 the Parliament of Sudan adopted a law which defined the order of 2011 referendum. A couple of months later, on 27 May, 2010 President of Sudan Omar al Bashir, who has certain problems with the international community, declared that the referendum was scheduled and would take place according to the peace deal.
Though guarantees were given, the international community couldn’t believe the referendum would take place. “The international community is decisive, all the parties in Sudan should implement their responsibilities. We know there are some people who will be trying to obstruct the voting,” US President Barack Obama declared.
Generally speaking, President Obama’s this kind of care towards Sudanese referendum is noteworthy. The international community has never ignored vital events of this or that region. Particularly, US State Secretary Hillary Clinton, UK Foreign Minister William Hague, Norwegian FM Jonas Gahr Store and others, released special statements. But the way President Obama preferred to express his attitude was remarkable and special.

And the lexicon used by the US president is a chance to make special remarks. Barack Obama said that the successful implementation of the referendum would mean breakthrough towards democracy and justice in Africa. This means that the US Administration monitors the possibility of people’s right of self-determination as a significant condition for establishing democracy. We think, it would be silly to underestimate the attitude. But from another point of view the linkage of democracy and justice is rather remarkable.

We’re sure that Barack Obama’s story will be soon referred in the background of obstacles for right of self-determination and conflicts in different parts of the world. It’s more than obvious that the voting of Southern Sudan and the approach of the international community will become a precedent case. To assess in a whole, we could conclude that in the 21st century the defence of human rights is of top priority, including the right of self-determination. And nobody and nothing should obstruct its implementation.

Referring to Sudan, we should record that the international community saved no efforts not to obstruct the implementation of the right. The people of Southern Sudan, about 90% of which is uneducated, was given a certain chance to cast ballots. Special ballots were created for them – images of an open hand as symbol of independence and hand shaking as symbol of unity.

Naturally, the Sudanese preferred open hands approving that nothing in the world is permanent, including state borders. The borders surely are changeable but they should be changed according to democratic and justified norms.