Disagreements have arisen only a few days after the period of registration started last Monday. The referenda is to be held on January 9 and will decide whether South Sudan severs ties with Sudan. Rabie Abdelati, spokesman of the ruling National Congress Party, warned that the state might not recognise the results of the plebiscite because the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) "are using tools to pressure and terrorise people from South Sudan living in the North not to register and this means that the whole referendum will not be free, fair and transparent". According to Abdelati, southerners who fled from war and are currently living in the north -a section of the register which is likely to say no to independence- also have the right to vote.

On the contrary, to Justin Ambago Ramba, Sudanese analyst and supporter of a free South Sudan, the governmental statement "seems to have already concluded that the outcome of the referendum would definitely be in favour of an independent South Sudan, so it is a result to be rejected in advance".

Haille Menkerios, the UN representative in Sudan who is touring the country to assess the registration process, declared that he envisages a peaceful outcome to the conflict through the referendum, and added that the registration process is being carried away without incidents and according to standards.

The referendum on the independence of South Sudan was included in the 2005 peace agreements signed between the SPLM and the NCP in Naivasha (Kenya). It was also agreed that the region of Ngok Dinka would have the right to hold a referendum to secede from South Sudan if the South finally breaks away from the North. The registration period is to end on December 1st.

Further information:

• International Crisis Group: Negotiating Sudan's North-South Future
• Reuters: Sudan's north accuses south of aiding rebels