JEM rebels threaten to withdraw from Darfur peace process

July 13, 2009 (KHARTOUM) — The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) threatened today to pull out of the Doha peace process if the mediation invites other rebel groups to the negotiating table.

Since last year, JEM requested separate talks with the Sudanese government. The rebel group says it is the only active military group on the ground. Also, it says the presence many groups will complicate the talks and weaken the position of Darfur rebels.

“JEM will never be part of these complications. We will never be part of this chaos. We will draw back from this issue,” JEM leader Khalil Ibrahim told Reuters on Monday.

“If people want to join peace talks, they can join JEM or the government group. There is no third party.”

JEM rebels say they had agreed with the Joint Chief Mediator Djibril Bassolé that the ongoing military conflict in Darfur is only between them and the government of Sudan.

The mediation attempted in a first move earlier this year to reunite the two main groups JEM and the Sudan Liberation Movement of Abdel Wahid Al-Nur with the Sudanese government in Doha. But the rejection of the Al-Nur, who is supported by the IPDs, to join the process led the mediation to review its plans.

With the Libyan help and the support of the Sudanese government, the mediation succeeded to gather five factions on a common ground agreement to join the talks. They met the mediator and the US envoy for Sudan last month on the sidelines of the African summit in Libya.

Tripoli group includes two splinter groups form JEM, the United Resistance Front led by Bahr Idriss Abu Garda, and Justice and Equality Movement- Azraq faction, besides Sudan Liberation Movement – Unity led by Abdallah Yahya, the SLM led by Khamis Abdallah Abakr, and the SLM – Juba faction.

Tripoli group and two other factions: People’s Democratic Front for Justice and Development and SLM-Main stream, are now are gathered by the Egyptian government in Cairo to forge a greater alliance before joining the Doha process.

The rebel factions would meet with the Sudanese delegation for the first time next August.

Speaking about the involvement of the rebel coalition in the peace process, Sudanese state minister for foreign affairs Samani Al-Wasilla said “Darfur is broad society with different political parties, a civil society, tribal, civil and religious components, so we do not want the voice of arms to overshadow (the talks).

Sudan government and JEM rebels signed a goodwill agreement in Doha last February but the talks stalled after Khartoum refused to release JEM fighters who are sentenced to death after their participation in an attack on the Sudanese capital in May 2008.

During a visit to Khartoum last week the Qatari state minister for foreign affairs persuade Khartoum to release some of JEM rebels but Sudan stressed that JEM should sign a ceasefire agreement before to undertake such step.

(ST)