Khartoum acclaims African support at UN rights commission

KHARTOUM, Sudan, April 21, 2004 (PANA) — The Sudanese government has acknowledged
the solidarity of a group of African countries, which helped
block a resolution the European Union (EU) and other western
countries proposed at the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Commission
to denounce the authorities in Khartoum.

The EU draft resolution co-sponsored Tuesday by the US expressed
concern at militia attacks on civilians, coupled with inadequate
government protection.

Had the 53-member Commission approved the resolution, it would
have re-appointed a special investigator on Sudan.

“We thank a group of African countries because they did not give
a chance to the Europeans and other countries to distort Sudan’s
image and to implement their well-known strategy,” Foreign
Minister Mustafa Osman Ismael told reporters here late Tuesday.

Last week Khartoum denied allegations by the UN, EU and human
rights organisations that pro-government Arab militia groups were
engaged in ethnic cleansing against Africans in the restive
region of western Darfur.

The government and the rebel Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and
Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) recently signed a 45-day
ceasefire accord and humanitarian aid protocol to allow the
delivery of relief supplies to the area.

Ismael acknowledged that “there are political and technical
problems needing redress” in Darfur, but insisted that some media
and organisations were “making up stories” on developments in the
region.

Ismael said Khartoum was keen to keep the country stable and
secure, adding that the government delegation to talks starting
Wednesday in N’djamena, Chad with Darfur rebels would be flexible
with a view to sparing the troubled region more suffering.

The UN insists that Darfur is currently the scene of one of the
world’s worst humanitarian disasters.

On Tuesday, Khartoum acquiesced for the first time to a probe on
the situation in Darfur by the UN Commission on Human Rights.