Bashir’s regime intends to reproduce itself, but not genuine in Sudan’s dialogue: SPLM-N

January 26, 2016 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan People’s Liberation Movement – North (SPLM-N) Wednesday said that the regime of President Omer al-Bashir intends only to reproduce itself through the ongoing national dialogue process, but it has no genuine intention to achieve peace and democratic reforms in Sudan.

During the second round of informal talks held in Berlin on 22-23 January, the warring parties in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan states, failed to achieve any progress in the outstanding issues pertaining to the end of war, humanitarian access and the national dialogue process.

SPLM-N secretary general and head of its negotiating team Wednesday said the used the informal character of the discussions to better explain their demands including ; humanitarian access, equal dialogue, new security arrangements and one unified national army, self rule for the Two Areas, simultaneous end of war in the Two Areas and Darfur, relation between religion and state and citizenship state.

But ”We came to the conclusion that the current political process lacks credibility and is used to produce positive the regime. All our proposals have been rejected and this places us in a good position in front of our people, the regional mediators, and the international community,” said Arman in a statement intended to explain why Berlin meeting had failed.

Arman underlined that the persisting deadlock in the negotiations coupled the desire of the Sudanese street for change represent a ”new opportunity” develop a common minimum opposition platform to unite “the forces of change” under a “unified leadership to overthrow the regime ”.

It is no longer clear what the next step the mediators will take in order to push forward the stalled process and bring the parties to the negotiating table, particularly unilateral cessation of hostilities announced by the government Sudanese will terminate by the end of this January.

Also, observers agree that the holdout opposition would seek to put pressure on the regime and increase efforts to peacefully mobilize the street, as it becomes obvious that the government has no intention to associate them in a holistic process ending armed conflict and achieving democratic transformation in line with road map proposed by the African Union.

The regional and international initiatives aiming to engage the opposition forces and include it in the negotiations have neutralized the latter and froze its efforts to mobilize the street against the regime.

The African Union Peace and Security Council endorsed a roadmap for peace and democratic reforms in Sudan providing to hold a pre-dialogue meeting in Addis Ababa to discuss procedural measures that creating a conducive environment in the country and include the holdout political parties.

The SPLM-N “proposed that the government concludes the current dialogue which is taking place at the Friendship Hall (in Khartoum) and held a preparatory meeting with the participation of the Sudan Call forces and the Reform Now Movement (RNM) and in consultation with the rest of the opposition parties to start again and a new phase of dialogue,” Arman said.

However the government maintained that the SPLM-N and other armed groups join the current process excluding the National Consensus Forces and the RNM.

Also, the SPLM-N called to agree on the African Union as facilitator for the national dialogue pointing that the President al-Bashir cannot chair the process considering he is the chairman of a political party participating in the dialogue because he cannot be huge and party at the same time.

Arman added that this proposal will allow the African Union to promote the outcome of the national dialogue to the international community and lead the efforts to lift the economic sanctions on Sudan.

Last Sunday the political secretary of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) Mustafa Osman Ismail has accused unnamed foreign bodies of thwarting the informal talks, saying the Berlin meeting has revealed the SPLM-N connections to foreign powers.

On the other hand, the head of Sudanese government delegation, Presidential Assistant Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid accused the SPLM-N of pulling back from previous commitments to join the national dialogue conference in Khartoum.

Hamid further said the SPLM-N relinquished the principle of the unity of the national army, stressing it was the base of an agreement reached during the first informal meeting in Addis Ababa last December.

(ST)