Who is really responsible for holding refugees and asylum seekers hostage?

I believe that political power is all about guiding people through various institutions to provide services as needed. Most government that has received full democracy believe that the core of democratic values was formulated and signed by international law to ease the suffering of people after World War II, and that's what we know as "No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”

The question is not nations signed the international human rights do so follow international law? The answer is no! Why? Because political power and economic power is supposed to itch conventions do not protect national interests as we see it today in the western democratic states.

Their national interests are that refugees and asylum seekers are invading their countries, threatening their cultural values and economy. They are not seen as fleeing for their lives, but as criminals, and therefore should be denied access to safety, economic benefits, a fear many sound mind would described it as prejudice and discrimination. As a result, they have built physical and invisible wall, that anthropologist called global apartheid. Instead of building a global village as economists believe would ease suffering; they are building walls to separate the rich from the poor.

Thousands of refugees and asylum seekers across Europe who found themselves in this new asylum and refugee politics are hostages, in asylum camps for over 5 years without any hope in life. They are living through psychological and mental torture, yet any form of torture is described by international law as a crime. I am wondering if such treatment will make the world a better place.

Who is really responsible for holding refugees and asylum seekers hostage? What justification can we give to make people believe that human rights are being respected by those who signed it? It is easy to criticise others, but difficult to accept our own failures, because we have the economic power to cover up shame, as I observed here in this country. I am wondering to what democracy exactly mean!

My life has change for the better

After reading books from IIGL, my life has changed.

I have always perceived a government as a political organization comprising the individuals and institutions authorized to formulate public policies and conduct affairs of state. Governments are empowered to establish and regulate the interrelationships of the people within their territorial confines, the relations of the people with the community as a whole, and the dealings of the community with other political entities.

In the theory of political science, the function of government is to secure the common welfare of the members of the social aggregate over which it exercises control. In different historical epochs, governments have endeavored to achieve the common welfare by various means. Among primitive peoples, systems of social control were rudimentary; they arose directly from ideas of right and wrong common to the members of a social group and were enforced on individuals primarily through group pressure. Among more civilized peoples, governments assumed institutional forms; they rested on defined legal bases, imposing penalties on violators of the law and using force to establish themselves and discharge their functions.

This is where I started to see myself as primary asset and focus in any government, and as a human resource with the entire responsibilities to organize, plan and execute, I am the source and core of the entire problem in the process of governing. At this point the question in my mind as an individual is, “what is wrong with us as human beings?

I have followed International Institute for Global Leadership (IIGL) and I can now say without doubt that I have found the answer. After reading the books that were sent to me I realized that human being has a giant resource beneath his/her unconscious self that only IIGL method can awaken it. Such a sleeping giant resource in us requires special tools that I have use to awaken my sleeping giant. My eyes are widely open and I can perceive my limitations, potentials and self-esteem more clearly than ever before. It has changed my life.

The IIGL courses have taken me through my sleeping giant (unconscious self) and I have discovered most of my potentials, weakness, self-esteem, communication ability, etc. It was an amazing and practical experience that has changed my life entirely since I started reading the books that I believe were precise to my needs. I have learnt through some of the books that my previous behaviors were influenced greatly by negative cultural and traditional values. The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection (Gandhi) and it is true that no one is perfect, but we can change our habits, behavior and gained self-esteem, and I believe that if we all make such effort, we can make this world better and comfortable place for everybody.

The debate over globalization focuses in particular on how it can be regulated to address growing income and wealth inequalities, labor rights, health and environmental problems, and issues regarding cultural diversity and national sovereignty is true but we must first change our habits and those negative cultural values and behavior. The world needs honest and responsible citizens for it to be a better place and I believethat IIGL can bring us there. I have learned that democratic values are manifested by individuals through love, compassion and sympathy and not greed, hatred and prejudice. The misery and suffering of people on this world is because people don’t want to change, yet we understand the words of Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865), “No man is good enough to govern another man without that other's consent.”

In conclusion, although I am still struggling with myself to be where I want to be, I see myself as a responsible citizen, ready to implement the change I want to see in the world.

Cast your votes for complete independence from the north.

I am a native of south Sudan, Torit, Eastern Equatoria state, and would like to say the following to those who know little about south Sudan.

South Sudan is a huge land, inhabited by more that 500 ethnic groups, that was kept apart from each other since independence January 1st 1956. They have been fighting for their rights as citizens of Sudan. The main reason for that division lies on the system of divide and rule.

Sudan is a multi-cultural country, but the north, or rather the ruling party, rules the entire country under Islamic Sharia law. This law does not include those non-Muslim. In other words, in order to be a Sudanese, one must become a Muslim. Given the multi-cultural diversity of the country, this is a nightmare.

The country Sudan belongs to all Sudanese and therefore, because of multi-culture, and traditions put together to form what we call the Sudan, it must be ruled by secular laws for inclusiveness,otherwise there will be no room for peaceful co-existence.

The country is now divided more than ever before along ethnic, religious and race line. Every piece of land that makes the Sudan is complaining of exclusion, discrimination, racist and political neglect etc.

All Sudanese must put aside all their differences in order to keep the country united, otherwise, if the north insist on Islamic sharia laws, then the south has no option, but to secede and become an independent states under secular laws, which they believe will accomodate everybody regardless of religion, political affliation, or ethnic group. After all, democracy demands tolerance.

2 million lives has been sucrificed in the south in the last civil war that began in 1983 and has ended in January 2005 and we believe that was enough to conclude that Sudan can only enjoy peace if the north agree on unity in diversity under secular law, where the capital Khartoum will be without Islamic sharia, in order to accomodate non-Muslims.

There is no single individual in the south who is thinking to cast his/her vote for Unity of the Sudan, because of the experience since independent 1956. Under the peace agreement signed in 2005, the north must develop the south in order to make unity attractive to the people in the south, but the north has not done that up to now. We can now conclude that the people in the north has devorced the south, and we are now ready to cast our votes for complete independence from the north and become first class citizen of your own country.

Leadership is still a nightmare in developing countries

When you hear about leadership, imediately you think of someone elected by the people for the people, to serve the people. But in developing countries, leadership is a prestigious position, where leaders are served by the people and that in my view is a nightmare.

We have leaders in Africa, who are spending public funds for their own interests. For example, you find the son/daughter of the president goes to school with a convoy of six cars, provided by the government to guard, yet a police stations are without a single car. People who need police help are asked to provide transport to the police to go and enforce the law or rather investigate a crime.

Leaders should be made aware that the era of serving leaders has gone, it is time the masses be served by their leaders. We need accounterbility, transperency and honesty. Good governace prevails when leaders serve the people they govern. Every individual in the leadership position must be held accountable for their services.

No one is above the law, and therefore holding public office must have a limit of two terms, depending on service delivery, ability and qualification. Any elected leader who did not deliver the expected service should not be re-elected in the public office.

People need peace and stability to render services in order to develop their economies and leades need to provide security without question. In south Sudan, this is exactly the opposite, where you find leaders using people to get what they want. For example, the leaders are know for inciting division among ethnic group to fight each other, to raise political interests. This is happening due to high rate of illiteracy. I believe that if the people really know what is really happening, they would unite and kick out those selfish leaders.

We need each other more than ever

Today’s political parties in Sudan are largely the products of the long struggle of its people from the colonial era to the present time. Today, as society changes, The South Sudan political parties, must meet new challenges. All parties wants to be alive and eager to develop ways of working towards the realities of the 21st century. This requires, on the one hand, openness to different ways of showing one’s involvement, whilst on the other basing this on a foundation of common values that can create a greater whole. An important role to all parties is to be a link between official decision-makers and the involved citizens in the society.

We nee each other more than ever before, to participate in the development of south Sudan. Each individual plays a unified reponsibility to achieving one goal. Good system govern by principles of law. Every one is accountable for their actions and everybody is equal before the law.

Chaos surrounding the forthcoming presidential election manifest irresponsible management in the system. We need to support our leaders as much as posible to make sure our democratic rights take shape smoothly, and our referendum rights are guarranteed in January 2011.