Sudanese peace talks postponed to 22 December as debate on oil continues

By Al-Ra’y al-Amm daily newspaper

KHARTOUM, Dec 19, 2003 — Mediators at the peace negotiations have decided to postpone the talks which had been scheduled to end today [19 December] to Monday next week.

A definitive meeting will be held today between [First Vice- President Ali Uthman Muhammad] Taha and [SPLM leader Dr John] Garang to resolve fresh outstanding issues which emerged yesterday regarding wealth. This comes after the government side insisted on limiting the SPLM’s [Sudan People’s Liberation Movement] share of the southern oil to 32 per cent.

According to sources close to the negotiations, the government has not yet responded to SPLM’s letter regarding its final view on the issue of oil revenue. Consultations between [members] of each group continued at length yesterday afternoon and the day before. According to the sources, the government delegation holds that SPLM delegates should not debate oil from the north, but instead they should be satisfied with the southern oil, because this might raise obstacles to any agreement likely to be reached.

The sources said that the mediators were studying an alternative way of intervening between the two sides and obtain their approval.

BBC Monitoring Middle East