UN chief welcomes Doha document for peace in Darfur
June 22, 2011 (NEW YORK) — UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon welcomed this week the Doha Peace Document adopted recently by Darfur stakeholders as basis to end the eight year conflict in the restive region of western Sudan.
Prepared by the mediation, the document is seen as a framework document for the resolution of Darfur conflict. The mediators said the text will serve as basis for the divided rebel groups to negotiate a lasting peace with the government.
“The Secretary-General and his interlocutors reviewed the outcome of the All Darfur Stakeholders Conference (ADSC). The Secretary-General welcomed it as the basis for reaching a permanent ceasefire and inclusive peace settlement, and sustainable peace and stability in Darfur,” said a statement issued by the UN chief office.
Ban Ki-moon and the mediators urged the Sudanese parties to swiftly sign a permanent cease-fire agreement and make the necessary concessions to reach a just and permanent peace on the basis of this document.
Before the 500 delegates, who endorsed the document, the two armed movements participating in the peace process welcomed the text as solid ground for talks with the government, which refuses to make significant concessions to the rebels.
The Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) has said it is ready to sign a peace agreement with the government. However, the group criticized the government for refusing to delay a referendum or to associate them in the appointment of a vice-president from Darfur. The rebels led by Tijani El-Sissi also says Khartoum seems more intransigent in the security arrangements and they had not yet agreed with them on the integration of their combatants.
The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) slammed Khartoum for offering them to negotiate only on the security arrangements and their participation in the national and regional institutions. JEM also stressed that this text is not an agreement as the government says but a basis for comprehensive and inclusive talks.
Al-Mahmoud and Bassole on Wednesday handed a copy of the Doha Peace Document to the President of the Security Council for June, Gabonese Ambassador Nelson Messone who welcomed the text. They also met during their stay in New York with the other members of Council who assured the mediators of their support to the peace document.
Ban Ki-Moon praised the support of the host country, Qatar, to the AU-UN efforts to end Darfur conflict, he also thanked Bassolé and Al-Mahmoud for “their painstaking efforts and perseverance during the past two and half years”.
(ST)