Minnawi calls to discuss SRF future, include new groups in Darfur peace process
April 13, 2020 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudan Liberation Movement led by Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) called for a meeting to discuss the future of the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) and to include more groups in Juba track for peace in Darfur.
On Sunday, eight SRF groups issued a strongly worded statement about the progress of achieved in the peace talks. The statement was a response to a tweet Minnawi released on Friday criticizing the Juba process for peace in Sudan.
In turn, Minnawi and Elamin Daoud the head of a faction of the United Popular Front for Liberation and Justice of eastern Sudan issued a joint statement on Monday reiterating their commitment to the Juba process and reassured that they are not in conflict with any SRF’s faction.
“The purpose of our letter to the mediation was to facilitate the negotiation process, according to a clear approach that achieves sustainable peace without obstacles,” said Minnawi.
He further disclosed that the SRF leaders held a meeting in Juba on Saturday 11 April to discuss the SLM-MM’s suspension of its participation in the Juba process and that the participants failed to agree on a joint statement on this respect.
“The meeting decided that the issues related to Darfur region be resolved in the framework of the Darfur Track. Further, it was agreed to convene a meeting for the SRF leadership to discuss the future of the Revolutionary Front,”.
“Therefore we renew calls to hold a meeting to discuss the future of the Sudanese Revolutionary Front,” stressed the statement.
During, the recent months Minnawi criticised regularly the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) in Khartoum, also he organized two military parades of his troops which are deployed outside Darfur region and toured the refugees’ camps in Chad.
During the past six months of negotiations in Juba, Minnawi signed several political agreements with former rebel groups in Darfur that were part of the former regime.
The statement stressed that a successful peace process in Darfur must be holistic and not to monopolized by specific movements.
“Therefore, we demand that the track not be monopolized by certain movements and to open the peace process for other Darfur movements, which have waited for a long time in Juba. the SLM is convinced that peace will not be achieved without these people” reads the statement.
Since its establishment in 2011, the SRF has evolved from an alliance of armed groups focusing on the problems of the marginalized areas to an inclusive umbrella for whole Sudan.
The SRF also, in 2014 the alliance of the armed groups moved from the regional issues to embrace a holistic approach together with main political oppositions parties in Sudan.
However, after the ouster of the al-Bashir regime after peaceful protests in Sudan, the armed groups declined to join the revolutionary forces insisting that they want first to negotiate the issues of their respective regions and rejected proposals for a constitutional conference or an internal peace process.
(ST)