Sudan, Darfur groups to discuss security arrangements
March 18, 2020 (JUBA) – Talks on the security arrangements between the Sudanese government and armed groups in Darfur begin on Wednesday, said the South Sudanese mediation spokesman Dhieu Matouk.
Last month the two sides for the extended the peace talks until 9 April. It is the third extension of the negotiations far behind the first schedule of 14 December 2019.
“Negotiations on the security arrangements will begin on Wednesday evening after the arrival of the negotiating team from the government side in Juba today,” Matouk told reporters on Tuesday evening.
The discussions are scheduled to continue for ten days.
Matouk said that the negotiations are proceeding well and that the parties are committed to the date set for the end of negotiations on the ninth of next April.
He added that the national issues will be discussed after the completion of the discussion of security arrangements, and then the matrix of the comprehensive peace accord before to sign the agreement.
Within the framework of peace talks with the different components of the Sudanese Revolutionary Front, the government finalized separate agreements with the central, eastern Sudan groups and the SPLM-N Agar on the Two Areas.
The government and the SPLM-N al-Hilu have only signed a humanitarian cessation of hostilities agreement, but they failed to engage in political talks because they diverge over the inclusion of the secular state and self-determination in the negotiations.
South Sudanese mediation has not yet proposed a successful formula to be endorsed by the two parties, as the SPLM-N al-Hilu insists on the right to self-determination if there is no clear agreement on the separation between the state and religion.
(ST)