Sudanese President forms committee to find cause of Garang’s death

Aug 30, 2005 (Addis Ababa) — Sudanese President Omar al- Bashir has issued a decree forming a seven-member committee of inquiry on the cause of death of John Garang, Sudan’s first vice president and former rebel leader, according to a press release from the Sudanese embassy here Tuesday.

Garang, the former leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement for more than two decades, died in a helicopter crash in southern Sudan on his way back from Uganda on July 30.

The press release said the committee is mandated to probe into the circumstances and conditions that led to the crash of the plane and the death of those on board.

The investigations will include inquiry on the condition of the plane at the time of its take off from a technical point of view, on the reasons that led to the loss of communication with the plane, the time at which this occurred and the procedures undertaken, it said.

It would also make inquiry and investigation on the procedures undertaken to locate the crashed plane and the mode in which it was reached, the press release said.

The committee would present a report to the president on the findings of its investigations in a month’s time from the date of the commencement of its function, according to the press release.