Abyei’s solution nears, LRA attacks SPLA – Sudan’s FVP Kiir
By James Gatdet Dak
June 6, 2008 (JUBA) – The First Vice President of the Sudan and Chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), Salva Kiir Mayardit, on Friday said the Abyei crisis may soon be resolved.
Kiir made the positive remarks as he briefed the Council of Ministers of the Government of Southern Sudan about the ongoing discussions in Khartoum on the Abyei crisis between the committees of his party, led by the SPLM Deputy Chairman, Riek Machar Teny, and the National Congress Party (NCP).
In a press statement after the briefing, the Minister of Information and Broadcasting and the official Spokesperson of the government, Gabriel Changson Chang, said a joint SPLM-NCP team led by Machar arrived Juba on Friday and briefed the SPLM Chairman, Salva Kiir on the status of the talks in Khartoum to resolve the crisis.
Minister Chang said the team was directed by the President of the Sudan and Chairman of the National Congress Party, Omer el-Beshir to come to Juba for more consultations in order to iron out any differences on the Abyei issue and reach a final agreement once they go back to Khartoum.
He explained that the SPLM team chaired by Dr. Riek Machar will fly back to Khartoum on Saturday to try to finalize the talks that may result in establishment of Abyei administration and withdrawal of the fighting forces in the area.
In another news development, Minister Chang told the press that the Ugandan rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) attacked Nabanga village in Western Equatoria state near the Democratic Republic of Congo’s border where they clashed with the SPLA forces in the camp on Thursday.
He said the fighting left a number of SPLA soldiers and civilians dead before the LRA could withdraw from the area after several hours of fighting.
The Government of Southern Sudan’s mediated Juba peace talks was finalized in April this year, but the LRA leader Joseph Kony failed to turn up on an organized occasion to sign the final peace agreement on April 10 at Ri-kwangba’s LRA assembly area at the Sudan-DRC border.
President Museveni of Uganda was also scheduled to sign his part of the document on April 14 in Juba if Kony signed his part.
Kony argued that he wanted more explanation first on how he should face justice once he signs the agreement, but also failed to meet with his negotiating team, elders, religious leaders and members of parliament from the Acholi community in Uganda whom he requested to explain to him what was reached in the agreement on justice mechanisms as an alternative to the International Criminal Court (ICC’s) justice system.
The LRA leader including his two living colleagues in the rebels’ top leadership are under arrest warrant issued by the ICC for crimes they allegedly committed which include killings of civilians, rape, cutting of victim’s lips and ears and using young girls as sex slaves.
President Museveni on Thursday announced that his government would resort to military means against the LRA if Kony refused to sign the final peace agreement.
In a statement to the press, the LRA’s chief negotiator in Juba peace talks, Dr. James Obita on Thursday asked for ‘one more chance’ to talk to Kony to convince him to sign the agreement, adding that his team was also looking for some ‘new ideas’ to save the peace process from collapsing.
(ST)