Sudan to hold new round of talks with western Sudan rebels
KHARTOUM, Sudan, March 30, 2004 (AP) — The government will hold a new round of negotiations to halt more than a year of violence with rebels in western Sudan.
Reports in the Sudanese press had suggested the government might not send anyone to the delayed talks in N’Djamena, Chad, but a delegation departed Tuesday afternoon for the talks expected to start later in the evening.
“We expect success from the meetings because that is warranted by a number of objective factors on the ground, including a presidential pardon for those who took up arms against the state, the resolve of the (Chadian) mediators and the willingness of the two parties to negotiate,” said delegation member Kamal Obeid, head of the foreign relations department in the ruling National Congress.
The talks between Sudan’s government and the Sudanese Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement are the first since the insurgents boycotted negotiations late last year and come as the U.N. and international aid groups have expressed deep concern over the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, western Sudan.
The two sides are to review the humanitarian situation in the region and possibly arrange a cease-fire to allow for the delivery of aid.
The negotiations will be chaired by Chadian President Idriss Deby and observed by international observers, including representatives from the African Union. The official al-Anba daily newspaper said observers from the U.S., France and the European Union would also attend.
The Sudanese delegation is led by Investment Minister Sharif Ahmed Omar Badr, who heads a Darfur reconciliation committee set up by the president.
The U.S., U.N. and international aid groups have said fighting over the last year in western Sudan has created a humanitarian catastrophe. Aid agencies, which have had only limited access to the region, estimate that more than 800,000 civilians have been displaced by the fighting. More than 110,000 of those forced from their homes have fled to Chad.
The rebels say they are fighting for a share in power and wealth. The fighting, which began in February 2003, has intensified as peace talks between the government and southern rebels fighting a 21-year-long civil war have inched toward their conclusion.
The last round of peace talks fell apart after just one day in December over what Chadian mediators characterized as unacceptable rebel demands.
The rebels reportedly wanted a semiautonomous government for Darfur and also demanded that the Sudanese government give the region 17% of the country’s oil revenue.
Sudan currently produces an estimated 250,000 barrels a day.