Sudanese official says elections will be conducted in all of Darfur

February 24, 2008 (KHARTOUM) — A senior Sudanese official said today that elections will be held in time and will cover all Darfur states.

Last week the Information Secretariat official in the ruling National Congress Party, Kamal Obeid and the minister of State for Information said that the general elections in the country can be completed without the participation of Darfurians due to the political instability in the region.

But Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM) said that any decision on the matter should be discussed between the different state bodies and with the political parties particularly the Darfurian ones.

Nafi said that security has prevailed in Darfur and that the fighting is confined to a small area in West Darfur as a result of Chadian support to Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebel group.

“If for any reason elections can’t be held in parts of Darfur they can completed at a later date” he added.

The elections, planned for 2009, were promised as part of a peace deal that ended more than two decades of north-south civil war and are seen as crucial to the long-term stability of the region.

(ST)