US forgoes penalties on Sudan, urges negotiations to continue
WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) – U.S. President George W. Bush urged the Sudanese government and southern rebels on Wednesday to continue negotiations to end a 21-year civil war, opting for now not to impose any new economic penalties on Khartoum, administration officials said.
“I hereby determine and certify that the government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement are negotiating in good faith and that negotiations should continue,” Bush said in a statement.
Under the Sudan Peace Act, Bush was required to report to the U.S. Congress on whether the government and the rebels were negotiating in “good faith” to end a civil war that has killed some 2 million people.
If Bush had found the government was not doing so, he could have punished it by moving to block oil revenues and loans through international financial institutions, seeking a U.N. arms embargo and downgrading diplomatic ties.
A senior administration official said no penalties were imposed by Bush, but that Washington was “concerned about the difficult and stagnant pace of the talks and minimalist approach taken by both sides.”
The U.S. State Department has said it would be “foolhardy” to expect a quick peace deal to end the conflict, which broadly pits the Islamist government in Khartoum against the mainly animist or Christian south.
The State Department said peace talks in Naivasha, Kenya, were snagged over issues including whether Islamic sharia law should be imposed in the capital, governorships of the southern Blue Nile and the Nuba Mountains regions and power-sharing.
“We believe an agreement is likely,” the senior administration official said.
Bush is “especially concerned” about the Sudanese government’s actions in the western Darfur region. “Although not directly related to the North-South talks, he urges the government to ensure the unrestricted freedom of movement for international aid agencies,” the official said.
“The government is also responsible to ensure that there are no attacks or harassment of any kind against civilians by local militias,” the official added.
Arab militias, looting and burning African villages in Darfur, have driven some 75,000 people from their homes. Human rights groups speak of killings, rapes and arbitrary arrests and have accused government forces of complicity.
(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed)