Sudan’s latest challenge

THE DEATH OF JOHN GARANG, a longtime rebel leader in Sudan who became vice president of his nation only three weeks ago, threatens a fragile peace. Garang, who fought the government in Khartoum for decades, was killed in a helicopter crash last weekend. Now Sudan’s government, a military dictatorship backed by fundamentalist Muslims, must resist the temptation to renew assaults on the southern rebels. For their part, the onetime insurgents must stick to Garang’s goal of a unified Sudan.

The Bush administration this year pledged more than $1 billion to carry out the peace agreement and help develop the south, Garang’s stronghold. The president has made Sudan a key foreign policy priority, emphasizing that an end to the civil war could give hope to other nations in Africa and the Middle East wracked by years of violence. But if the country that Osama bin Laden once called home slips back into chaos, it could destabilize a region whose strategic importance has only increased since 9/11.

Sudan’s president, Lt. Gen. Omar Hassan Ahmed Bashir, praised Garang in a condolence statement and ordered three days of mourning across the nation. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Monday also urged continuation of the peace process.

Garang fought to keep Sudan one nation, putting down rebellions by his followers, who pushed for an independent south. The intra-rebel battles and north-south civil war killed at least 2 million people, many through famine, and displaced 4 million. A separate conflict in the western Sudan region of Darfur continues; there had been hope Garang could use his influence to urge peace between rebels in Darfur and Bashir’s government.

Washington has maintained economic sanctions on Sudan because of its repression of the south and Darfur, but U.S. intelligence officials have reestablished links with Sudanese counterparts as part of the war on terror. Bashir should understand that if he wants sanctions lifted, he has to continue to work with Garang’s successor. The Sudan People’s Liberation Army, meanwhile, needs to shun conflict to receive aid promised by the U.S. and other countries.

And the African neighbors that urged Sudan to build a peaceful nation should keep trumpeting that message. Chaos in one African nation can spill across borders and create new calamities for a continent often beset by poverty and natural disaster.