DRA denies Qatar agreed to transfer venue of Darfur peace talks

September 16, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – Darfur’s Regional Authority (DRA) has said that Qatar expressed reservations over the transfer of the venue for talks between the Sudanese government and Darfur rebel groups from Doha to Addis Ababa.

Doha brokered the Darfur peace negotiations which resulted in the signing of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) by the Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) in 2011.

In 2013 a dissident faction of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) joined the DDPD while the main Darfur rebel movements abstained.

Last week, the head of the African Union High Implementation Panel (AUHIP), Thabo Mbeki, announced that Sudanese government delegations will hold parallel meetings in Addis Ababa with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM) on 12 October and another one with Darfur rebel groups on 15 October to discuss a cessation of hostilitie.

He added that the signing of a truce will pave the way for the rebels’ participation in the national dialogue.

Mbeki informed president Omer Hassan al-Bashir that the Darfur cease-fire agreement will be finalised in Addis Ababa, saying the partners in Doha have approved this initiative.

The African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) on Friday expressed full support to Mbeki’s efforts to address Sudan’s national issues as well as the conflict in Darfur and the Two Areas.

It urged all international mediators active in the Sudanese peace efforts to coordinate activities and pool resources in order to utilise the national dialogue to achieve permanent and comprehensive solution for the conflicts in Sudan.

The DRA spokesperson, Abdel-Karim Musa, said in a press statement on Tuesday they were informed by Qatar that statements made by the spokesperson of Darfur’s joint peacekeeping mission (UNAMID) on Monday about Qatar’s acceptance to transfer the Darfur peace talks from Doha to Addis Ababa are “totally unfounded”.

He added that Doha reservation on changing the venue of negotiations stems from the fact that it is the major sponsor of the Darfur peace process between the government and the rebel groups.

Musa further said Mbeki informed Qatar that talks in Addis Ababa would only be limited to negotiating a ceasefire, stressing rebel groups strong desire to hold the talks in Doha besides to participate in the national dialogue.

(ST)