All-inclusive conference on Darfur opens
Dec 19, 2005 (AL-FASHIR) — The activities of the all-inclusive conference for the people of Darfur begun today in Al-Fashir city, the administrative capital of Northern Darfur State, with the broad participation of political parties, representatives from political forces, as well as the leaders of the civil administration and civil society organizations, and the representatives of Darfur natives in the Diaspora.
The conference was also attended by diplomatic missions accredited to Sudan.
The representative of the preparatory committee, Alyan Ali Babeh, addressed the opening ceremony of the conference. The conference will run for two days.
He said the conference aims to harmonize the views and ranks of the people of Darfur towards realizing peace and security, as well as achieving a peaceful settlement to the Darfur issue.
The participants nominated Ali Yahya, the chairman of the states council, to preside over a procedural session where the participants unanimously elected the governor of Northern Darfur State, Oshman Mohamed Yousef Kibir, as the chairman of the all-inclusive conference.
Yahya asserted that the conference aims to mobilize the support of the locals in finding a solution to Darfur issue, and keep away from foreign intervention.
The chairman of the conference, Osman Mohamed Yousef Kibir, stressed that this day represented a historical event since all the Darfur people had distanced themselves from tribalism and political inclinations with a view to resolving the Darfur issue. He said the conference would be open to all to air their divergent views, adding that it was organized so as to harmonize the views of the Darfur people with regards to their issue, and forward it to the federal government and the armed rebel movements as a contribution to resolve the Darfur problem.
He said the conference did not aim to exclude any one and does not represent the views of any specific political group.
The conference was also addressed by the representative of the political parties and forces, Mohamed Ahmad Ibrahim, who stressed the need for the unification of ranks and the shunning of violence in order to reach peaceful settlement to the problem.
For his part, the representative of the local administration, Salih Ali al-Gali, stressed the need for overcoming all the differences and pressures in order to reach a common vision for resolving the Darfur problem. He hoped the conference would be the beginning of the end of the Darfur problem.
The conference was also addressed by the representative of the alliance of Darfur students, Ahmad Abdallah Baqal, as well as the representative of Darfur students front, Habib Ahmad Mudalal, who emphasized the need for dialogue to end the suffering of the Darfur people.
The conference was also addressed by the representative of Darfur women, Amirah Abu-Tawilah, who spoke on the suffering of the Darfur women as a result of instability. She said women had lost children, fathers, husbands and brothers as a result of the conflict, and submitted a proposal on behalf of the women which will be presented to the conference as their contribution to a resolution on the Darfur crisis.
(ST)