Bassolé calls on rebel groups to ceasefire and join efforts for peace in Darfur

September 27, 2011 (NEW YROK) — Burikna Faso’s foreign minister and former chief mediator for peace in Darfur, Djibril Bassolé called up on the rebel groups in the restive western Sudan to sign a ceasefire and to engage talks with the government.

Bassolé, who made the call during his speech at the 66th session UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday , is also a member of an International Follow-up Committee for the implementation of the Doha Darfur Peace Document (DDPD).

Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) signed the DDPD on 14 July in Doha. The leader of the former rebel group Tijani el-Sissi, is appointed as chairperson of Darfur regional authority and he is expected to be in Khartoum on 10 October.

“We urge the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and the Government of Sudan, to conclude as soon as possible, a definitive cessation of hostilities in Darfur,” he said.

The Cease Fire Commission, established in accordance with the DDPD, held two meetings under the leadership of the UNAMID force commander. The mechanism includes Sudanese army and LJM and also a representative of the State of Qatar.

The UNAMID based body will supervise the implementation of all the ceasefire agreements signed since the first among them the Ndjamena humanitarian ceasefire agreement inked in April 2004.

Bassolé called, at different times during the peace process, for an inclusive pact to end the eight year conflict in Darfur. He was reiterating that no lasting peace in Darfur can be reached unless all the rebel groups are involved together or separately in the peace process.

As the rebel SLM-Abdel Wahid al-Nur did not join the process, and talks between Sudan and JEM were stalled over a number of points, Bassolé thought that the DDPD as framework agreement would serve as basis for separate deals with the rebel groups but dealing with the same topics.

Earlier this month, Bassole discussed the resumption of the peace talks with a high level delegation from JEM in Ouagadougou, capital of Burkina Faso. He told the General Assembly that his country would continue through the follow-up mechanism to encourage all the non-signatories to sign the peace document.

Talks between the Sudanese government and JEM are deadlocked over JEM’s demand to open the DDPD for talks but the Sudanese government says talks can only be held over the participation in the national and regional governments and the integration of the rebel fighters.

(ST)