Hamdok demands UN operation to achieve transition in Sudan
February 8, 2020 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s transitional government has requested the United Nations to establish a peace support operation (PSO) to assist in the peace process and help Sudan to mobilize international financial assistance.
The request was made in a letter addressed to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on 27 January dealing with political developments in the country and the government position on a mechanism that may follow the drawdown of Darfur peacekeeping mission.
The Sudanese government “requests the United Nations to seek a Security Council mandate to establish, as soon as possible, a Chapter VI peace support operation in the form of a special political mission with a strong peacebuilding component,” he wrote in a letter seen by Sudan Tribune.
The PSO under Chapter VI means that the international assistance aims to support the maintenance, monitoring and building of peace but not the use of force to prevent resurgent violent conflict as it is the case under Chapter VII.
Speaking about the mandate of this operation, Hamdok went further to suggest that this mission “should cover the entire territory of Sudan and its approach needs to be innovative, agile, coordinated and light.”.
“What should be urgently deployed are capacities for good offices and mediation support to assist in the Juba peace negotiations and to help Sudan mobilize international economic assistance, including by supporting the upcoming donor conference,” he added to illustrate the purpose of the requested international support.
The premier indicated some specific areas that should be included in the mandate of this “special political mission”.
He mentioned supporting the implementation of the Constitutional Declaration, implementation of peace accords in Darfur and the Two Areas, mobilisation of international economic assistance for Sudan, coordination of humanitarian assistance, and support to the constitutional making, legal and judicial reform, civil service reform and security sector reform.
To motivate his demand for international support, Hamdok said the country economic situation is in “downward spiral” as a result of the economic mismanagement and corruption by the former regime.
“The Sudanese people are confronted with soaring prices of basic items, a rising exchange rate and a series of crises triggered by the scarcity of basic commodities,” he said.
A donor conference is expected to take place in the upcoming months as Washington saying working to remove Sudan from its blacklist of state sponsors of terrorism.
However, it is believed that such a “political mission” would help Sudanese government in the implementation of what some political leaders called “Marshal plan for Sudan”.
Several recent international reports about ways to support the transition in Sudan pointed to the need to remove the east African country from the US terror list and to provide international experts to implement political and economic reforms.
(ST)