Sudan’s NLJP calls on African mediation to resume Darfur peace talks

December 25, 2017 (KHARTOUM) – The National Liberation and Justice Party (NLJP) led by Tijani al-Sissi on Sunday has called on the African mediation to resume Darfur peace talks.

The former rebel Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), formed by 19 rebel factions, signed the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) on 14 July 2011 with its leader Sissi became the chairman of the Darfur Regional Authority (DRA).

In December 2014, internal LJM differences surfaced, when Bahar Idris Abu Garda, LJM Secretary-General, publicly accused Sissi of mismanagement.

Sissi then formed the NLJP while Abu Garda established a new political party, the Liberation and Justice Party. The two parties participated in the 2015 general elections and the internal National Dialogue and they are now part of the National Consensus Government.

In statements to the semi-official Sudan Media Center (SMC) on Monday, the NLJP spokesperson Ahmed Fadl called to take advantage of all initiatives to achieve peace in Darfur, stressing their continued contacts with the rebel movements.

He said the seriousness of the rebel movements to achieve peace wouldn’t be tested until a comprehensive peace process be launched, stressing peace is a strategic choice for all Darfur movements.

The African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) in coordination with the Darfur Joint Chief Mediator (JCM) mediate a two-track process in order to achieve a holistic peace in Darfur, South Korodfan and Blue Nile states and pave the way for constitutional reforms.

Talks between the government and two armed groups in Darfur, Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and Sudan Liberation Movement-Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM), over a humanitarian cessation of hostilities, are deadlocked since August 2016.

Darfur holdout groups refuse the DDPD saying they want to discuss security and protection of civilians, compensations, land ownership, and justice. They point that the Doha document omitted to address these issues in the right way.

However, Khartoum says the DDPD is now part of the constitution, and it cannot be changed. They say the armed groups have to sign it and renegotiate what they want to improve it.

Darfur has been a flashpoint for lawlessness and violence since rebel movements took up arms against the Khartoum government in 2003.

UN agencies estimate that over 300,000 people were killed in Darfur conflict since 2003, and over 2.5 million were displaced.

(ST)