Emir of Qatar, and Chadian president to visit North Darfur
July 13, 2016 (EL-FASHER) –The Chadian President Idriss Deby and the Emir of Qatar are expected to attend celebrations to mark the completion of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), which will be held in North Darfur next week.
In the meantime, the government of North Darfur state, which hosts the celebrations, has announced the participation of Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, as well.
The DDPD was signed on 14th July 2011 between the government and the Liberation and Justice (LJM). Also, a splinter faction of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) led by Mohamed Bashar and Bakheit Dabajo after his death joined the framework agreement on 6 April 2013.
President Deby accepted the invitation and confirmed his attendance to the event, pointing to the special relations between the two countries and its people.
In press statements upon the meeting, Atta said that the meeting reviewed the relations between the two countries, the current situations in the region, especially in Central Africa Republic, Libya, South Sudan and West Africa.
“The meeting also discussed issues of terrorism and the activities of the radical group of Boko Haram and the negative movements”, Atta said.
He further affirmed that Deby has shown clear desire to strengthen coordination and joint work between the two countries.
On his part, the government of North Darfur state announced that President al-Bashir and the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani will visit El-Fasher on July 20.
The spokesperson of the government of North Darfur Abdel-Karim Khalifa has said the visit comes in the context of celebrating the end of the mandate of the Darfur Regional Authority (DRA), and to inaugurate the new mechanism tasked with the completion of DDPD remaining matters.
In June 2016 following a meeting of the High Committee for Peace in Darfur chaired by President Omer al-Bashir, the Sudanese government announced the dissolution of Darfur Regional Authority and Darfur Peace Implementation Office.
The said meeting decided to establish an administration attached to the Presidency of the Republic, to run the activities of the DRA five commissions.
However, the meeting agreed to maintain the High Committee for Peace in Darfur headed by President Omer al Bashir and the International Committee for DDPD Implementation Follow-Up headed by Qatar.
The governor of North Darfur state Abdel-Wahid Youssef has issued a decision to form a higher committee to receive President al-Bashir and the Emir of Qatar.
The DDR information minister, Abdel-Karim Musa, told Sudan Tribune on Tuesday that the expected visit will contribute in building strategic and balanced relations between Sudan and Qatar.
“The end of the DRA mandate does not mean the end of the agreement”, Musa further said. He pointed out that the Doha document is still open for whoever wants peace.
He revealed that the state of Qatar has approved the construction of more 15 villages to be implemented directly by Qatari foundations.
The minister described the move as an indication that Doha is still working to make peace, rehabilitation and development in Darfur.
The Darfur Regional Authority was established in line with the Doha text for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), which was signed in July 2011, by the Government of Sudan and Liberation and Justice Movement, chaired by Tijani al-Sissi.
The regional body had a four-year mandate to implement the framework peace document. However, the DRA term was extended up to July 2016, by a presidential decree in 2015.
(ST)