Sudan peace talks delayed as rebels refuse demobilisation

ABUJA, Aug 25 (AFP) — The start of the third day of African Union-sponsored (AU) peace talks for Sudan’s troubled Darfur region has been delayed, as rebel leaders continue to refuse to discuss the propsed conditions of their demobilisation.

The rebels had been due to restart negotiations with the Sudanese government at 9.00 am (0800 GMT), but by 9.25 am very few delegates had arrived at the Abuja International Conference centre.

International observers told reporters at the conference centre that rebel leaders were in a separate meeting with a senior African official, who was trying to persuade them to accept an agenda which includes the possible cantonment of their armed forces.

At the talks’ venue Haroun-Abdulhameed, foreign commissioner for the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), said: “When you speak to anyone from our military movement to ask them about cantonment on the agenda, it is just like putting on the agenda the removal of the government.

“We insist that this point be taken off the agenda. We ask the facilitator to help us continue with negotiation. We came here to realise peace. We are ready therefore for further talks if they take off the point of cantonment.”

AU chairman, Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo, is the facilitator and host of the talks.

The UN estimates that between 30,000 and 50,000 people have died as a result of the conflict in Darfur; some 1.2 mln others have been displaced from their homes and a further 180,000 forced to flee into neighbouring Chad