TEXT- AU Mediator urges Sudanese to accept Darfur Peace Agreement
April 25, 2006 (ABUJA) — In his speech before the Sudanese parties at Abuja peace talks on Darfur crisis, the African Union Chief Mediator urged the different delegation to “accept these proposals and sign on to the Darfur Peace Agreement at the earliest time possible”.
On the Wealth Sharing, he said the deal contains “proposals on the four outstanding issues relating to Return of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs); Fiscal and Financial Allocation Monitoring Commission (FFAMC); Seed Money for the Darfur Reconstruction and Development Fund (DRDF) and the Compensation Fund.”
He described the Security arrangement as the most challenging issue during these negotiations. But he did not elaborate on the nature of the proposed compromise on this issue. Salim said “we have been able to put together, a package that should address the fundamental concerns of all the Parties.
Below the full text of the Statement of Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim, Special Envoy and Chief Mediator on the Occasion of the Submission of the Draft Darfur Peace Agreement to the Sudanese Parties :
—
Excellencies,
Distinguished Representatives of the
Government of the Sudan,
Distinguished Representatives of the Sudan
Liberation Movement,
Distinguished Representatives of the Justice
and Equality Movement,
Distinguished Facilitators, Partners and Observers,
Ladies and Gentlemen.
Today marks an important milestone in the history of the Abuja Peace Talks on the conflict in Darfur. We are now in the last days of the 7th Round of the Talks, that was opened nearly five months ago, with the stated commitment of the Parties to make it the decisive, and some added “final”, Round of the Talks.
As you are all aware, the last five months, have truly witnessed life-enriching interactions and experiences. My colleagues and I in the Mediation are gratified by the opportunity that we have had to work with our brothers and sisters of the Government of the Sudan, the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army and the Justice and Equality Movement. This is a good opportunity for me to commend the leadership of the Parties, particularly those who have steadfastly remained engaged in the process till this crucial period.
To the Movements, I salute your courage and dogged determination to persevere, in spite of the challenges that you have been confronted with during the period of these negotiations. Along with the Government delegation, your involvement on the negotiating table signifies your collective desire to end the suffering of your people.
By all accounts, the enormity of the problems in Darfur arising from the conflict are well known. These problems have been acknowledged within the Sudan itself, on the African Continent and internationally. If there is so much emotion in this process, it is totally understandable, and we have never been under any illusion over what needs to be done to address the concerns and challenges that Darfur continues to pose to us, in Africa and internationally.
Excellencies,
If I have started by highlighting the areas of concern in Darfur, it is because we should never allow ourselves for one minute to imagine that we can approach Darfur in a “business-as-usual” fashion. It is not, and our collective engagement in this process symbolizes the fact that we have never lost sight of our ultimate objective in this Mediation.
Today, the results are mixed. There have been some positive elements in the negotiation. We are currently witnessing a more proactive engagement by the Parties with each other. Such an engagement set the stage for a more effective involvement by the leadership of the African Union in the process. At this junction, I should like to pay deserved tribute to the African and non-African leaders who have done so much to advance the cause of peace in Darfur. Our distinguished Partners, Facilitators and Observers in this process deserve our warmest commendation and gratitude for their support and direct involvement over these many months.
Needless to point out that in the last few days, the presence in Abuja of Vice President Ali Osman Taha of the Sudan, a high level delegation of the SPLM and the Government of National Unity, as well as Eritrea, have all combined to provide a much-needed momentum for our efforts here at the Chida International Hotel in Abuja. I have no hesitation to say that in spite of media and other public pronouncements, we are beginning to see real substantive interactions between the Parties here in Abuja.
Internationally, I believe also a more favourable and balanced international environment as well as the involvement of governments across the world, has enhanced the prospects for peace in Darfur.
Last month, the African Union Peace and Security Council adopted the end of April 2006 as the deadline to conclude the Abuja Peace Talks. That deadline was subsequently endorsed by the UN Security Council. In general terms, those two institutions have kept the faith with the people of Darfur, by keeping the conflict under their active consideration. Now the time has come for you as representatives of the people of Darfur, to keep the faith with your own people.
We have come a long way, with a difficult Mediation. There is a high level of suspicion and mutual distrust among the Parties in Abuja. However, in fulfilling our role as Mediators, we have been guided by three important considerations. The first is the primacy of the need to maintain the unity, sovereignty, territorial integrity and cohesion of the Sudan, as an important member of the African family of nations, a microcosm of Africa, with a diversity of ethnic groups, cultures, racial mix and sometimes diverse religions, which, if positively harnessed, can be a catalyst for peace, growth, stability and development.
Secondly, we have been guided by the articulation of the Movements represented here in Abuja, who have helped us tremendously in understanding the magnitude and complexity of the human suffering and tragedy of the conflict in Darfur.
Thirdly and most importantly, I must confess that we have not been neutral as far as the suffering of the overwhelming majority of the people of Darfur is concerned. Clearly, our bias is in favour of the many unfortunate victims of the conflict in Darfur, especially those in the refugee and internally displaced persons’ camps. A large majority of these victims are regrettably women. Our collective conscience did not allow us to overlook the plight of the women of Darfur, and my greatest hope and wish is that today will mark the beginning of the end of the long suffering of those women, the elderly, the weak and most vulnerable members of Darfurian society. In this regard, I wish to acknowledge the work done by our Senior Advisor on Gender Issues, Dr. Mary Maboreke, and the Gender Experts’ Support Team from Darfur, who spent quality time with us here in Abuja and whose advice I highly value.
In making the proposals that we are about to handover to you today, we were guided by those considerations. I am confident that the same considerations motivated all the Parties to come to Abuja, and to remain here over the past two years.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
You are fully aware that the AU Mediation spent countless hours, weeks and months in trying to harmonize your quite divergent positions on the various issues in the negotiation. Despite our best efforts and that of our International Partners in drafting this Peace Agreement, however, it would be painfully clear to you that neither of you will be fully happy with our proposals. Indeed, if you would be, we shall have considered this as a dereliction of our responsibilities. No agreement, however, cleverly crafted, can fully address the demands of two opposing Parties. In my view, therefore, I am submitting to you an agreement that doesn’t fully give you what you had wanted but an agreement that you can all live with.
In your negotiations in the last five months, you powerfully articulated your positions to the Mediation and the international partners, debated among yourselves, often quarreled, and eloquently defended your political cause.
Now is the time to make a great historic leap and reach out to your counterparts by accommodating their demands and concerns. If you do so, you will have shown to the world that you have accepted the principle that war is an anachronism and not a solution; that no one Party can impose its interests and will on the other; that compromises and concessions are essential political tools; and not signs of weakness; and most importantly, the fact that sooner or later, all wars have to be ended through negotiations and by political means. The sooner the warring Parties got that point, the less suffering there would be for the people of Darfur.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The timing of the presentation of this Darfur Peace Agreement could not have been more propitious as the Parties are all here in Abuja, at the highest level, reflecting, once again, their desire to end the suffering of their people.
In this connection, I wish to pay tribute to Dr. Magzoub Al Khalifa, leader of the GoS delegation, Mr. Abdulwahid Nour, Mr. Minni Minawi of the SLM/A and the Chief Negotiator of JEM, who are tirelessly leading their respective delegations for the cooperation they extended to the AU Mediation, as well as the International Partners. I also wish to profoundly thank Vice President Ali Osman Taha, and his high level Government delegation that came to Abuja over two weeks ago to redynamise the Talks. His support to the Mediation and readiness to assist in the resolution of the complex outstanding issues in the negotiations has greatly helped to narrow the differences between the positions of the Parties.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Since the beginning of this process, the international community, in unison, has expressed its support for the Abuja Talks, while at the same time, not hiding its frustrations over its slow pace. Deadlines came and went while the suffering of the people of Darfur continued unabated. This apparent disconnect between the escalation of violence against the people of Darfur and the almost laissez faire approach of the Parties in the Abuja negotiations, indeed, raised concerns and even doubts in the minds of many, most of whom are the best friends of Darfur. At one point, observers in Africa and outside the continent even questioned the seriousness and commitment of the Parties to negotiate a lasting peace for the troubled land of Darfur.
Let us put all that perception to rest here and now in Abuja. You, the Sudanese Parties, in your infinite wisdom, must bury your mutual suspicions and reach a historic agreement on the following issues:
POWER SHARING
The draft addresses the issues of the status of Darfur, its border, representation at the level of the Presidency, and National Executive, and the National Assembly. At the level of the Darfur States, the issue of representation is also comprehensively addressed. Other areas covered are the National Civil Service, the Armed Forces, Educational Institutions, as well as other important Institutions and Commissions, both at the National and State level.
I wish to express my personal appreciation to Ambassador Berhanu Dinka and the Resource Persons as well as the Legal Experts who contributed to the important work that has been done in the Power Sharing Commission.
WEALTH SHARING
With regard to Wealth Sharing, the work of the Commission was mostly technical in nature. It must be said, however, that the various workshops organized here in Abuja in October 2005 during the Sixth Round, and in Nairobi just before the commencement of the present Round, went a long way in assisting the negotiators and facilitating the negotiating process.
I take this opportunity to pay tribute to the Coordinator of the Wealth Sharing Commission, Minister Ablassé OUEDRAOGO and to Mr. Boubou NIANG who so ably assisted and stood in for him, as well as the group of experts and Resource Persons all of whom, in no small measure, contributed to the positive outcome of this process.
The Wealth Sharing Commission made substantial progress quite early in the negotiations. This was for us a great source of encouragement. As a result, the Mediation was able to come up with a comprehensive text, including compromise proposals on the four outstanding issues relating to Return of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs); Fiscal and Financial Allocation Monitoring Commission (FFAMC); Seed Money for the Darfur Reconstruction and Development Fund (DRDF) and the Compensation Fund. The Mediation extends its sincere appreciation to the Representatives of the Parties for the spirit of cooperation and the goodwill that they exhibited in the Wealth Sharing Commission
SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS
You have all been following the negotiations for a Ceasefire Agreement and Final Security Arrangements for quite some time now. I can safely say that for obvious reasons, this has been the most challenging issue during these negotiations. The constant violations of the N’djamena Ceasefire Agreement and the offensive military actions routinely launched by some of the Parties represented here, the climate of mutual suspicion and distrust and the insistence by the Parties to maintain their maximalist positions, did undermine much of the progress that we could have made in the Security Arrangements Commission. Nevertheless, we have been able to put together, a package that should address the fundamental concerns of all the Parties.
I should like to pay tribute to General Chris Garuba and his Team of Experts and Resource Persons, for their commitment, dedication and perseverance throughout these difficult negotiations. I wish in this regard, to single out Mr. Alex de Waal for his commitment and hard work as evidenced by the many hours he put into the earlier consultations, that were undertaken over the Ceasefire Agreement.
DARFUR-DARFUR DIALOGUE AND CONSULTATIONS
Even though this aspect of the negotiations was provided for in the Declaration of Principles, we were unfortunately, not able to explore it as exhaustively as we would have wanted, for obvious reasons. However, in spite of this, we were able to do quite a substantial amount of work on the requirements for the DDD+C. We engaged in wide consultations with a wide variety of stakeholders and happily, there is an emerging clarity on the Dialogue and what needs to be done to meet the expectations of the Parties, as envisaged in the DoP. I wish to thank the colleagues in the Mediation, and particularly Mr. Abdul Mohamed, for the work done in this area.
All told, I see the future of Darfur as bright, peaceful and prosperous, as a result of this Peace Agreement. This is a Peace Agreement that I can as Chief Mediator along with my colleagues in the Mediation, defend as just and honourable for all the Parties. It is in this spirit, that I urge you to accept these proposals and sign on to the Darfur Peace Agreement at the earliest time possible. As you all are aware, both the AU Peace and Security Council as well as the UN Security Council made it clear to us that we have to conclude the Talks by the end of this month and it is my earnest belief that we can achieve an Agreement before that.
I wish once again, to express my personal thanks and appreciation to the Partners, Facilitators and Observers for their invaluable contribution to the mediation process during the course of the last five months.
I wish also to express my deep appreciation to President Olusegun Obasanjo, for his continuous support to this process and for his personal and wise counsel to me. By the same token, I wish to thank the government and people of Nigeria, for their hospitality. As a matter of fact, today is not the day for credits. Today is the day that it gives me the singular honour of presenting to the Parties, the draft Darfur Peace Agreement and I commend it to you for your serious consideration. In doing so, I should like to tell you that every long journey has a destination. Make no mistakes about it, for the Abuja Peace Talks, the end is at hand and the question to ask you the Parties is where are you going to stand on the political spectrum? Will it be the same old tactic of there is nothing new in these proposals and therefore we call on the international community to come and protect our people in Darfur? Or will it be a constructive engagement, bearing in mind the fact that at the end of the day, only we can best protect our people. We can do so by agreeing to a peaceful and negotiated solution, or we can go back to fight as you have being doing these past years, even up to yesterday – shooting, killing, maiming and displacing innocent people.
Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Decision Time. No more procrastination, no more antics, no more delaying tactics. The eyes of the world are on you. The people of Darfur are looking up to you, Africa is encouraging you. Can you as leaders and representatives of the people muster the necessary political courage to end the misery of your people or do you want them to remain in the refugee camps and internally displaced persons camps? The choice and responsibility is yours. I am confident that there are many men and women of courage and vision who can work for an agreement in Abuja. It is my confident hope that you can leave up to this challenge.