Sudan, Darfur rebels sign political compromise
KHARTOUM, April 26, 2004 (dpa) — The Sudanese government and a delegation representing rebels from the Darfur region signed an agreement on a political agenda late Sunday, Sudanese television said.
The agreement was reached in neighbouring Chad after days of intensive discussions between the two parties. It calls for the equal participation of both sides now at war in the Darfur region.
The accord was signed under the auspices of Chadian President Idris Debi, and a representative from the African Union and the United Nations.
The Darfur region in western Sudan has been the site of heavy clashes between nomadic groups of Arab descent and Black African residents. The conflict over the area’s limited resources is one of the worst humanitarian disasters worldwide, according to the U.N.
At least 10,000 people have been killed and about 750,000 have fled the region as a result of the conflict which began about 14 months ago.
On Friday the Sudanese Minister of Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail hailed a U.N. decision not to condemn Sudan for alleged rights abuses in Darfur.
The accord reached Sunday provides for the formation of a committee consisting of three people from each side, according to Sudanese television.
The committee’s objective will be to prepare grounds and draw the agenda for a comprehensive conference on the Darfur region. The committee also will seek a date and venue for the conference. The idea for a comprehensive conference on Darfur was initiated by the Sudanese government.
Sudan approved the deployment of observers from the African Union in Darfur, the television report said. They will be drawn from Chad, Nigeria, Senegal, Algeria, Ghana, Namibia and Mozambique.
United Nations observers last week reiterated their criticisms of the government of Sudan for alleged massive human rights violations in the Darfur region in the west of the country.
A delegation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Thursday cited numerous cases of murder, rape and expulsion in an interim report on Sudan.