AU chief mediator receives Darfurian delegation
Feb 6, 2006 (ABUJA) — The African Union Special Envoy for Darfur and Chief Mediator Salim Ahmed Salim, today Monday 6 February 2006, received in audience a 15-member delegation of Darfurians who are currently in Abuja on behalf of “The Collective Conference of Darfur” held in El-Fasher on 19 – 20 December, 2005.
In attendance were the Head of the AU Mediation Team, Ambassador Sam B. Ibok and other AU officials.
In a press statement the spokesperson of the African Union Mission in the Sudan (AMIS), Noureddine Menzi, said that the leader of the delegation Amin Banani Niew, introduced his delegation as representative for all segments of the Darfur population. Their initiative which he described as a grassroots idea emanating from the people of Darfur, was not a parallel process to the Abuja Talks; rather, its main objective was to support the latter, Menzi said.
Niew added that it was in this connection that they had come to meet their brothers and sisters of the Government of the Sudan and the Movements to urge them to redouble their efforts so as to achieve peace as a matter of urgency.
In his presentation of the outcomes of the Conference, Niew indicated that the Recommendations reflected the global vision of the participants for a peaceful and stable Darfur to be achieved through concrete Political, Security, Economic and Socio-Humanitarian reforms, the statement said.
The members of the delegation, while reiterating their full confidence in the AU Special Envoy and in the Abuja Peace process, which they described as an important platform, called upon the negotiating Sudanese Parties to speed up the negotiations. In this regard, they expressed their readiness to extend active cooperation to the Parties in support of the Peace Process. The leader of the delegation then handed the Final Communiqué and Recommendations of the Conference to the AU Special Envoy.
The spokesperson of the AMIS, said that Salim, commended the Darfurian delegation for its support to the AU-led Peace Process. After a brief overview of the status of the Talks, the Special Envoy reiterated African countries’ unwavering engagement and determination to find a peaceful settlement to the conflict in Darfur as demonstrated by their unprecedented contribution to the African Union Mission in the Sudan (AMIS).
Mezni further said that Salim assured Darfurian delegation that their recommendations would constitute an important reference document in the search for sustainable and durable peace which, he added, was vital not only for Darfur and the rest of the Sudan, but also for Africa as a whole, given the fact that the Sudan, owing to its diversities, represents a microcosm of the Continent.
The AU top mediator reaffirmed AU’s continued support for all efforts, which can contribute to restoring peace and normalcy in Darfur. In this context, he recalled the provisions of the Declaration of Principles (DoP) regarding the proposed Darfur-Darfur Dialogue and Consultation, which would facilitate the implementation of any Agreement reached at the end of Peace Process.
(ST)