African mediators start consultations to organise Darfur-Darfur dialogue
Mar 29, 2006 (ABUJA) — The African Union chief mediator for the Darfur Peace Talks, Salim Ahmed Salim, on Tuesday 28 March 2006, chaired a Plenary meeting with the Sudanese parties to initiate preliminary consultations in preparation for the Darfur-Darfur Dialogue and Consultation (DDDC).
Salim urged the Sudanese Parties to regard the DDDC as an integral part of the Peace Process, to be organized only after the signing of Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) under the continued auspices of the African Union, said Noureddine Mezni, the AU Mediation Spokesperson.
The Declaration of Principles (DoP) signed on 5 July 2005 by the Sudanese parties had stipulated that Agreements reached by them should be “presented to the people of Darfur to secure their support through the Darfur-Darfur Dialogue and Consultation” implying that the DDDC is a consultative mechanism designed to mobilize critical support among the people of Darfur for the expected Peace Agreement.
He added, the present consultation is intended to build consensus on the terms of reference of the Darfur-Darfur Dialogue, and obtain the vision and practical suggestions of the Parties on how best to organize the Dialogue, so as to make it an inclusive exercise. To this end, he appealed to the Parties to exercise maximum restraint on the ground, and not to dishonour their commitment to cessation of hostilities made by the leaders during the last Steering Committee meeting held on 17 March 2006.
In attendance were representatives of the Parties including the Head of the delegation of the Government of The Sudan (GoS), the Leaders of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM/A) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). The meeting was also attended by representatives of the AU Mediation, the Facilitators and the International Partners.
For the expected Peace Agreement “A durable and just solution to the Darfur conflict”, he further said, calls for “inclusion of all the stakeholders in Darfur and for communal reconciliation above and beyond what is possible in Abuja”.
In response, and while generally underscoring the importance of and their support for the DDDC, the Sudanese Parties emphasized that the dialogue should be organized in a manner that would enhance the integrity and legitimacy of the Peace Process.
For their part, the representatives of the Co-mediation, Facilitators and International Partners welcomed the AU initiative and urged the Sudanese Parties not to delay any further the conclusion of a Peace Agreement, as the only way to ensure the return of peace to the long suffering people of Darfur.
(ST)