Sudan peace partners ink Abyei arbitration court deal

July 7, 2008 (KHARTOUM) — Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, Vice-President of the Republic and Riek Machar, Vice President of the southern Sudan government today signed the Convention on the arbitration on the Abyei area. The text will be deposited within a week to the Hague International Court of Arbitration

According to the roadmap for the implementation of Abyei protocol signed on June 8, the international arbitration court is designated to settle the NCP-SPLM dispute over the finding of the Abyei Boundaries Commission.

The road map also calls for The Hague’s tribunal to decide whether or not the Abyei boundary commission exceeded its mandate in its 2005 ruling.

The Convention, which exceeded ten pages, identified points of conflict, the laws and mechanisms that should be applied in the selection of arbitrators, and mechanisms for enforcement of the arbitration decision.

In addition, it encompasses the technical details regulating the work of arbitrators’ commission that will begin immediately in accordance with the steps adopted by the Convention. The first of these steps is to deposit the convention within one week to the Hague International Court of Arbitration

During a month of the filing of the Convention, the parties should choose four arbitrators, each one of them will select two, those four arbitrators will select the fifth one.

These procedures are expected to take about a month; thereafter the tribunal meets to begin the work of the arbitration. The court will start by receiving the filing of pleadings from the two parties to conflict. The statements should cover all aspects of the dispute form and content.

While the SPLM has already appointed the Public International Law and Policy Group (PILPG) to represent it in the International Court of Arbitration, the National Congress Party is expected to assign its legal representative in the coming days.

“The entire arbitration process including the issuance of the final award shall be done within a period not exceeding six months from the date of the formation of the arbitration tribunal, and subject to an extension for a period not exceeding three months,” the roadmap stated.

(ST)