Council president invites Taha, Garang to address UN council Tuesday

UNITED NATIONS, Feb 2, 2005 (KUNA) – Security Council president Joel Adechi of Benin on Wednesday said he signed letters inviting Sudanese Vice President Ali Osman Taha and head of the SPLM/A John Garang to address the council on Sudan next Tuesday.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan is also expected to address the council.

Taha and Grang signed a peace agreement early last month to put an end to a 21-year old conflict, Africa’s longest civil war.

The topic will be the peace agreement, Darfur, the latest report issued by the International Commission of Inquiry (ICI) which investigated the gross violations of human rights there and its recommendation that the International Criminal Court prosecute the perpetrators.

The invitees have not responded yet.

Adechi told a press conference that he, as Benin’s envoy, asked the UN Secretariat to quickly translate the ICI report, 176 pages, so the council can “quickly react to it and have a decision on what to do and how to do it” in order to stop the impunity accompanying those violations.