Many elements of South Sudan peace deal unfulfilled – Annan

Sept 13, 2006 (UNITED NATIONS) — Many of the most important promises made under a peace deal that ended a 21-year civil war in Sudan’s south have not been met, threatening to plunge the long-suffering region back into violence, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a report Tuesday.

The dire assessment of the situation in Sudan’s south was that the Khartoum-based government and the southern Sudan People’s Liberation Army, which signed the deal with great fanfare in January 2005, have fallen well behind on plans for elections and are not sharing power and wealth as called for.

“While they are observing their security commitments reasonably well, the implementation of several other major provisions of this agreement has fallen behind schedule,” Annan said in the report. “Disappointingly, implementation of the (Comprehensive Peace Agreement) provisions appears to be selective.”

There has also been little progress in establishing human rights commissions and disarming fighters. Sudan’s parliament has shown little inclination to pass a raft of legislation necessary for the peace deal to be carried out fully.

Nonetheless, Annan recommended that the U.N. Security Council extend the mandate of the U.N. Mission in Sudan, or UNMIS, which was set up to monitor and support the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. The force also facilitates the return of refugees, conducts de-mining efforts, and monitors human rights.

Throughout the 14-page report, Annan criticized Sudan’s government for its behavior toward civilians and the peacekeeping force.

For example, Annan said that the government had refused to release items destined for UNMIS, including food rations and communications equipment from its Port Sudan customs point.

“UNMIS has protested many times, and at many levels, to the Government about this issue,” he said. “The situation has now slightly improved, however UNMIS communication equipment has yet to be released.”

Police in Sudan’s north have also repeatedly raided camps for displaced people, the report said. In mid-August, they evicted some 12,000 displaced in one camp near Khartoum and destroyed 3,500 homes.

There was some good news: Some 10,000 displaced have returned to south Sudan thanks to road repairs, which also allowed for the delivery of food aid and a polio immunization campaign. South Sudan’s economy also continues to improve, Annan said.

However, international donors have only provided about 56 percent — or $896.5 million (A705.41 million) — of the money called for to rebuild south Sudan. Pledges for more are also well below the amount needed, Annan said.

In the report, Annan said lasting stability would be impossible unless the government also agrees to implement deals to end the fighting in western Darfur, which has been plunged into humanitarian crisis because of unrelenting violence between rebel groups and government-backed militias.

The government so far has stymied U.N. Security Council plans for UNMIS to take control of a peacekeeping force in Darfur that is now run by the African Union. The A.U. force is undermanned and underfunded, and has been largely unable to stop the violence in Darfur.

(AP/ST)