Darfur peace talks resume in Abuja 15 September

Aug 24, 2005 (Lagos) — The Darfur peace talks are slated to
resume in Nigeria’s capital city of Abuja 15 September 2005, a
statement from talks mediator African Union (AU) said Wednesday.

In the statement, made available to PANA in Lagos, AU said
negotiations on the substantive issues of power sharing, wealth
sharing and security arrangements would be preceded by workshops
for the participants at the sixth session of the talks.

“The decision to resume the talks in Abuja was taken following
three days of consultations undertaken by the Special Envoy and
Chief Mediator, Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim, and the three Parties –
the Government of the Sudan, the Justice and Equality Movement
and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army in the Tanzanian coastal
city of Bagamoyo and Dar-es-Salaam,” the statement said.

“It also follows the broad consultations, which the Special Envoy
has had with the international partners and other stakeholders,”
it added.

The AU appealed to all the parties, the facilitators and
observers to ensure effective participation at the talks, at the
highest level, to facilitate a speedy resolution of the conflict
in Darfur, which has left at least 180,000 dead and over 2
million others displaced since it broke out in 2003.

Before the adjournment of the fifth session of the talks in Abuja
in July, the parties signed a Declaration of Principle (DoP) to
set the basis for the sixth session.

The three-page document consented to by the parties will guide
future deliberations by the parties and constitute the basis for
a just, comprehensive and durable settlement of the conflict in
Darfur.

PANA/ST