South Sudan Ends Vote on Independence; North Expects Secession

South Sudan Ends Vote on Independence; North Expects Secession

www.bloomberg.com

A vote for independence will give the south control of almost 80 percent of Sudan’s current oil production of 490,000 barrels a day, ...

"The referendum is being conducted with a big degree of fairness. The expected result is secession,” Rabie Abdel Ati, a senior member of Bashir’s ruling National Congress Party, said yesterday in a telephone interview from Khartoum, the capital. “Accepting the results has become inevitable.”

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Keep in mind, a large portion of this oil goes to China, so they definately have a large interest in what happens.

Could this be the first instance of China shaping the world as it sees fit, much like the U.S. has done for decades?

I find it hard to believe that this could go through without 'behind closed doors' threats and garuntees by a large outside government and its military.

www.bloomberg.com
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www.bbc.co.uk...

Update : It appears that it has become increasingly apparent that the vote will lean toward cessation. I still feel that China has a role in this.

Full results of the poll are not due until next month, but the region is widely expected to choose to secede.

Southern Sudanese people living in Europe have already voted 97% in favour of a new state.

The historic referendum was part of a peace agreement signed with north Sudan in 2005, ending decades of war.

Polling stations opened on 9 January and were officially closed on Saturday evening.

A minimum 60% turnout was required for the vote to be considered valid, a target which had easily been passed by the middle of the week.

The chairman of the Southern Sudanese Referendum Commission, Mohamed Ibrahim Khalil, has said more than 80% of eligible voters in the south had cast their ballots, along with 53% in the north and 91% of voters living in the eight other countries hosting polling stations.