AU envoy urges rebel leader to join Darfur peace process
August 22, 2007 (KHARTOUM) — The African Union’s special envoy for Darfur Salim Ahmed Salim urged on Wednesday a Darfur rebel leader to take part in the next peace negotiations.
Salim told reporters after a meeting with Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol that the participation of Abdelwahid Mohamed al-Nur, leader of rebel Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), in the coming negotiations would make the Darfur peace process a comprehensive one.
Al-Nur demands that Sudanese government stops violence against civilians in Darfur before to start peace talks.
The AU envoy also called on the international community to continue its efforts to press all the rebel groups in Darfur to participate in the peace process.
Spokesman of the Sudanese Foreign Ministry Ali al-Sadig affirmed his government’s readiness to tackle the issues which would be raised by the non-signatory parties of Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA).
He reiterated the Sudanese government’s position that the DPA should be the basis for the next negotiations.
Al-Sadig said that the government was ready to get engaged in negotiations with the rebel movements at any place that the movements agree upon.
As head of the SLM, Nur has most supporters in the biggest tribe of Fur in Darfur. Currently living in France, Nur rejected to attend the Arusha meeting, which was sponsored by the African Union and United Nations.
Salim is scheduled to meet with Women’s groups in Khartoum before leaving for El Fasher on Sunday 26 August, where he will meet with senior AMIS officials, Also he will travel to Zallingei to discuss the peace process with Darfurian leaders and civil society representatives.
On Monday, 27 August, Salim will travel to the capital of West Darfur State, El Geneina, where he will meet with the Wali, representatives of Internally Displaced Darfurians, leaders of Civil Society organisations and traditional authorities. He will return to Khartoum on Tuesday, 28 August 2007, and brief the international community, including International Non-governmental Organisations (INGOs), on his consultations in Darfur. He is expecte to leave Sudan the same day.
This visit is in furtherance of the implementation of Phase II, the Pre-Negotiations Phase, of the Joint AU-UN Roadmap for Darfur Political Process.
(ST)