AU orders Darfur rebel officials to leave its camps

Aug 16, 2006 (KHARTOUM) — The African Union’s peace monitoring force in Darfur has ordered all representatives of rebel groups who did not sign a May peace deal to leave its camps, officials said on Wednesday.

Prior to the AU-brokered deal signed between the government and one of three rebel factions, the pan-African body employed representatives of all three groups to help investigate violations of a shaky truce agreed in 2004.

“The AU have ordered us to leave their camps within 24 hours from this morning,” Hamad Hassan Hamad of the rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) told Reuters.

“This includes all those who did not sign the peace deal, the JEM and the Abdel Wahed faction,” said Hamad, who was a JEM representative at the AU base in el-Geneina town in West Darfur state.

One AU official confirmed the decision, which had been requested by the government in Khartoum, but did not give further details. The government says those who did not sign the agreement in May are outlaws.

The move could hinder investigations of truce violations as AU troops may not be able to travel safely in areas controlled by the two factions that did not sign the peace deal.

The Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) faction led by Abdel Wahed Mohamed el-Nur and the JEM refused to sign the accord despite international pressure, saying it did not meet their demands.

MORE VIOLENCE

Many Darfuris did not support the peace deal, saying they want increased compensation for war victims, more political posts and a monitoring role in disarming Arab militia, known as Janjaweed, blamed for much of the violence.

Non-signatories, including the JEM, formed a new alliance called the National Redemption Front (NRF) and renewed hostilities with the government, which calls them “terrorists.”

They say they now control large areas of North Darfur, although this has not been independently verified.

Tens of thousands have been killed since non-Arab rebels took up arms in 2003 accusing the government of neglect. Some 2.5 million fled their homes and many more need food aid.

Violence has escalated since May with aid agencies involved in the world’s largest humanitarian operation complaining that fighting between rebel factions and increased banditry has left huge swathes of land out of their reach.

Eleven aid workers have been killed since the deal was signed, more than during the entire three-year conflict.

The World Food Programme (WFP) said on Wednesday that they could not distribute food to 470,000 people in need in Darfur in July, a big increase from the previous month. It added that high malnutrition rates have been reported in recent months.

“The safety of staff is crucial and we take great precautions to avoid dangerous situations,” Kenro Oshidari, the head of WFP in Sudan, told reporters in Khartoum. “It would be a disaster for the people of Darfur if security deteriorated to the point where we were unable to deliver more widely.”

(Reuters)

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The attention of the African Union Mission in the Sudan (AMIS) has been drawn to media statements attributed to a Group in the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the “G 19” and the “National Redemption Front” (NRF) on, the decision to suspend the participation of the Non-Signatories of the DPA , from the Ceasefire Commission and the Joint Commission. In the media reports, the above Groups have threatened unspecified hostile military actions targeting AMIS personnel and installations.

The African Union wishes to inform as follows:

The decision to suspend the DPA non-signatories from the CFC and the JC was taken following the paralysis of the two Mechanisms and their failure to address the recent deterioration in the security and humanitarian situation in Darfur, arising from an escalation in fighting between DPA signatories and non-signatories. At about the same period, the Government of the Sudan declared the “National Redemption Front “(NRF), a terrorist organization and formally informed AMIS that it cannot guarantee the security of the personnel of the non-signatory parties in the Ceasefire Commission.

Given the far-reaching implications of that decision, and the fact that AMIS did not want to expose the personnel of these Movements to any personal risks, it had no other option than to suspend their participation from these Mechanisms, pending when the problems would be resolved at the appropriate fora, as decided by the Joint Commission that met in Addis Ababa, on 3rd August 2006.. It should also be pointed out that the decision was not taken unilaterally by AMIS. It was only announced after consultations had been held with the international Partners involved in the CFC and the JC and the discussion that took place at the last Session of the Joint Commission referred to already.

Most importantly, the decision was taken to put an end to the paralysis of the CFC and JC which had impacted negatively on the implementation of the DPA and the fulfillment of the new mandate of AMIS and CFC, including the neutralization and disarmament of the Janjaweed, among others.

The African Union wishes to strongly appeal for restraint from all concerned, while solutions are found to these problems. The AU rejects any attempt by any of the Movements in Darfur, to target AMIS and its personnel and to drag them into the conflict in Darfur. It wishes to remind all concerned that AMIS is in Darfur, as neutral body, to help put an end to the conflict and the suffering of the people of Darfur. The AU has no other agenda in Darfur and will hold the leaders of these Groups personally responsible for any attempt to broaden the scope of the conflict by military means, especially through the deliberate targeting of AMIS personnel and its installations. It will ensure that such leaders and their accomplices are made to account for their actions under the appropriate international law.

The African Union unequivocally underscores the neutrality of its forces in Darfur and reminds all Darfurians that the only reason these forces are there, is to help prevent further loss of life and the prolongation of the suffering of the people. An escalation of fighting that is now being threatened by some Groups in Darfur, will only lead to a further deterioration of the humanitarian and security situation, thereby compounding the hardships, faced by the IDPs and other vulnerable sections of the Darfurian population.

The African Union Mission in Darfur remains ready to consult, to work and cooperate with all Groups that are interested in a peaceful resolution of the problems in Darfur, within the framework of the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA). The AU rejects any attempt to intimidate and blackmail AMIS, by those who have adopted the military logic as their strategic option, for dealing with the tragedy in Darfur. The deliberate targeting of AMIS by any Group in Darfur will henceforth not be tolerated and there will be an appropriate response by the AU Peace and Security Council, to address such situations in the future.

Khartoum and El Fasher

16 August 2006.