VZCZCXRO9023
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #2745 3311259
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 271259Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5382
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 002745 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL CVIS SU
SUBJECT:  Sudan Plans New Visa Procedures for South 
 
Ref:  STATE 187662 
 
¶1.  Consul General Juba (CGJ) delivered reftel demarche on November 
20 to Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) Minister in the Office of 
the President Luka Biong and GoSS Minister for Regional Cooperation 
Barnaba Benjamin, but modified the text slightly to reflect 
additional guidance from Embassy Khartoum based on the report that 
President Bashir had rescinded the travel restriction limiting the 
movement of Americans in Sudan.  (Note:  First Vice President/GoSS 
President Salva Kiir was unavailable.  End note).  The two ministers 
said that the restrictions on travel of Americans had already been 
lifted.  CG requested written confirmation of that decision.  (Note: 
 The Embassy has still not received an official, written 
notification of the lifting of the travel restriction from the MFA. 
As of November 26, visas issued to officials Americans traveling to 
Sudan were still being annotated to limit travel to a 25-mile radius 
of the Presidential Palace in Khartoum.  End note.) 
 
¶2.  The CG also discussed the general problems with visas issuances 
for travelers to the south, including long delays and non-issuance 
to both aid workers and foreign government officials.  The ministers 
said they had reached a deal with the Government of National Unity 
(GNU) to establish special visa-issuance units for southern 
travelers staffed by the GoSS in Ethiopia, Uganda, and Kenya.  This 
would initially include offices in the respective embassies, but 
could expand to cover consulates in places like Gulu, Uganda and 
Lokichoggio, Kenya, as well as at embassies in other countries. 
 
¶3.  Finally, CG asked about the plans for the controversial Southern 
Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (SSRRC) passes.  The 
SSRRC passes were de facto visas issued during the war by the SPLM 
to areas they controlled.  After the war, the GoSS continued to 
issue these passes in an effort to avoid problems associated with 
GNU visa delays, despite the fact that doing so contradicts the 
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).  While many governments and 
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) use these passes to travel to 
the South, USG employees, contractors, and NGO partners are required 
to get visas. 
 
¶4.  The ministers responded that a compromise was also reached on 
this issue after extensive meetings between the GoSS, led by 
Minister of the Interior Paul Mayom, and the GNU.  They explained 
that the SSRRC passes will be phased out, possibly over the next two 
months.  In that time, GNU immigration officers will establish 
offices in police stations throughout Southern Sudan where holders 
of SSRRC passes can apply to convert their passes to either 
residency permits or multiple-entry visas, as appropriate.  The 
ministers emphasized that until the transition period is complete, 
the GNU agreed to recognize the SSRRC passes as valid documents.  CG 
requested this decision in writing as well. 
 
HUME