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Sudan: The break-up - Sudan: The Break-Up - Al Jazeera English

Sudan: The break-up - Sudan: The Break-Up - Al Jazeera English
http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes/sudanthebreakup/2011/07/201171285056382703.html

The party is over and now the monumental task of nation-building confronts the people of South Sudan.

On July 9, 2011, as the country celebrated its independence from the north in front of numerous foreign dignitaries, very few of those present in the huge square across from the John Garang Mausoleum in the capital, Juba, or the millions watching on television screens around the world, would have known that thousands of poor people had had their shacks and kiosks bulldozed from that same square to ensure the city looked its best for the visitors.

In many ways that sums up the current reality that is South Sudan - it is a façade. To the unknowing eye, everything in the garden looks rosy; the truth is an entirely different matter. The world's newest nation is already in turmoil, and while the government's spin-doctors may attempt to sell an image of unity, this country is far from the dreams of those who fought and died for independence for over half a century.

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