Pro-Sudan’s ruling party protesters disrupt mediators’ meeting with Darfur IDPs

November 30, 2010 (NYALA) — A group of pro-National Congress Party (NCP) protesters disrupted for two hours yesterday a meeting the mediators organized with Darfur civil society representatives in South Darfur, Nyala, multiple sources told Sudan Tribune.

Joint chief mediator Djibril Bassole and Qatar’s state Minister for foreign affairs Ahmed bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud were holding a meeting with the Civil Society and IDPs representatives in Kalma camp when some four hundred protesters erupted into the UNAMID compound inside the camp.

Darfur peacekeepers have contained the crowd that was chanting slogans hostiles to the UNAMID selected IDPs delegates however some dozens of protesters forced their way into the meeting room where the meeting is held.

Minister Al-Mahmoud and mediator Bassole who co chaired the discussions with the civil society delegates attempted to calm the protesters who claimed they are the true elected representatives of the IDPs.

Having failed to control the situation the body guards escorted the mediators back into their vehicles as security controlled the crowd and pushed them out of the room. The meeting resumed two hours later.

The IDPs representatives in the pro-rebels camp had asked to not associate the government or security people to the meeting. In the past, delegates were arrested and interrogated by the security service for criticisms they made against the authorities.

The meeting gave the opportunity for the mediation to tackle directly with the IDPs on their demands for peace in the restive region seven years after the start of the rebellion in Darfur and before the signing of a peace agreement between the government and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) expected to take place in December.

A delegate from Kalma residents who attended the meeting told Sudan Tribune they requested the mediation to work for rebels’ unification. They also said their participation in the process should be after consultations with the rebels to get one stance during the talks and to enable the latter to better express their demands.

“The Sudan Liberation Movement, SLM, (led by Abdel Wahid Al-Nur) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) have to come together to the peace talks to defend our demands and interests,” the delegate said.

The representative that Sudan Tribune prefers for security reasons to not mention his name further said they delivered to the mediation a letter expressing their demands which include security, compensations, establishment of one region in Darfur, and a vice-president at the federal government.

The SLM leader who is currently visiting Nairobi said recently he will organize a meeting in the French capital Paris to discuss the position of the rebel group towards the peace process. The meeting is expected to be attended by some IDPs and refugees delegates.

In El-Fasher, capital of North Darfur some people also asked the mediation to review the choice of IDPs representatives selected by the UNAMID saying they do not represent them.

The Mediator Bassole believes that any peace agreement cannot be successfully implemented on the ground if the concerned IPDs are not prepared and consulted during the process. He organized two meeting in November 2009 and June 2010 for the civil society representatives.

(ST)