The deals, signed by Presidents ‘Umar al-Bashir and Salva Kiir on 27 September, came after more than three weeks of intense AU-brokered negotiations in Addis Ababa, and were designed to both bring an end to hostilities between the two nations, and restart southern oil exports through the north (MEES, 27 September).
In South Sudan on 16 October, an overwhelming majority of its members of parliament – 189 of 204 – voted to approve the deal signed with its neighbor to the north in its entirety, while the remaining 15 members gave their approvals ‘with reservations.’ It was a similar scene in Sudan the following day, where parliament approved almost unanimously the deals, with only two of the near 175 members of parliament present that day voting against the motion. (CONTINUED - 660 WORDS)
