Statement by AU mediation spokesperson on Darfur peace talks

Dec 11, 2005 (ABUJA) — The Working Group of the Power Sharing Commission continued its meetings yesterday Saturday 10 December 2005, on Item 4 of its Agenda – Federal System, All Levels of Governance and their Competences – under the chairmanship of Ambassador Berhanu Dinka the Coordinator of the Commission. The meeting was held in the presence of the representatives of the Co-Mediators, Facilitators and the International Partners.

During the meeting, the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) presented their common position with regard to the compromise document prepared by the AU Mediation. In their presentation, the Movements basically re-stated their earlier viewpoints on such matters as the status of Darfur as a Region, the Presidency, the Boundaries of Darfur and the National Capital.

In its own presentation, the Government of the Sudan (GoS) delegation reiterated its preparedness to continue the negotiations on the basis of the concrete proposals contained in the AU compromise document.

In the view of the AU Special Envoy, it was encouraging that all the Sudanese Parties had engaged in the negotiations using the compromise document of the AU. It was only natural that in such negotiations, there would be differences. The challenge now is how to arrive at a position of convergence. Consultations would continue in order to attain this objective.

Meanwhile, some progress is being made with the Commission on Wealth Sharing. It reconvened this morning, and after some discussions, it adjourned to resume the negotiations this afternoon at 5 pm. On the other hand, the Commission on Security Arrangements has continued to carry out informal consultations with a view to finalizing its Agenda.