Darfur peace mediators meet regional initiatives countries in Eritrea
November 13, 2007 (SIRTE, Libya) — Darfur peace mediators will meet on Wednesday with regional peace partners to discuss progress made in the political process to end the four year conflict in western Sudan region of Darfur.
The regional peace initiative countries are Chad, Egypt, Eritrea and Libya. These countries work with the JMST to bridge difference between the non signatory rebel groups and facilitate their preparation on a common platform for renewed talks. The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement is also involved in these efforts.
The Asmara meeting follows a week of consultations and preparations in Sirte, Libya, by JMST experts on some of the key issues facing war-wracked Darfur, such as power-sharing, wealth-sharing, the humanitarian situation and security conditions.
On 27 October, the Darfur mediators began in Sirte the first the first round of a three-phase process led by the UN and AU to try to end the conflict between rebels, Government forces and allied militia known as the Janjaweed.
Since 2003 more than 200,000 people have been killed and at least 2.2 million others are now homeless across Darfur, a remote and impoverished region on Sudan’s western flank. The UN and AU are deploying a hybrid peacekeeping mission (known as UNAMID) to Darfur at the start of next year in a bid to quell the violence and humanitarian suffering.
As part of the second phase of the peace process, a delegation from the JMST also travelled to Juba, southern Sudan, and to Darfur last week to exchange views with some of the region’s splintering rebel movements to help prepare for scheduled direct negotiations between the Government and the rebels next month.
Those consultations are designed in part to try to bring unity to the rebels’ position ahead of the full talks.
(ST)