Robert G. Loftis

Ambassador Robert G. Loftis is the Acting Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization at the U.S. Department of State.

May 012011

Expeditionary Diplomacy: To Juba and Beyond

Government Affairs, Number 6, Volume 6

Journal of International Peace Operations
Volume 6, Number 6 – May-June, 2011

Sudanese citizens

Sudanese citizens

Last summer, the State Department sent a demography expert from the U.S. Census Bureau named Oliver Fischer to Southern Sudan to support the U.S. effort to ensure a peaceful, on-time referendum on independence in January 2011. In preparation for voter registration, Fischer helped the Southern Sudanese crunch data and fill in gaps in population information so that the government would be able to calculate whether enough voters supported independence.

Before long, Fischer was doing much more than crunch numbers. He helped expand the U.S. government’s reach into rural Southern Sudan, an area the size of France with fewer than 100 miles of paved road. On one occasion, he helped mediate a cattle grazing dispute between two clans, drinking tea with clan leaders and assisting them in planning a dialogue for peace in a situation that could have escalated to regional violence.

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Posted by Robert G. Loftis at 12:23 Tagged with: , , ,
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