Darfur rebels want UN to supervise talks with Sudan government

CAIRO, Feb 8 (AFP) — One of the main rebel groups in Sudan’s troubled Darfur region called on the United Nations Tuesday to oversee peace negotiations with the government.

Sudan Liberation Army rebels gather near a base in the desert east of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state November 8, 2004. (Reuters).

“The movement calls on your esteemed council to have direct supervision over negotiations with the government,” the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), said in a statement.

Peace talks between the SLM and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the other rebel group in Darfur, and the government are currently being sponsored by the African Union in the Nigerian capital Abuja.

The talks were suspended last year following accusations by each side that the other was not abiding by the terms of an April ceasefire agreement they signed in the Chadian capital Ndjamena.

They were due to resume early this year, but no date has been set, and the SLM said it would not return to the talks unless the people of Darfur get international protection.

“The movement demands immediate international protection for the people of Darfur before entering any political negotiations,” the SLM stated.

Sudanese first Vice President Ali Osman Taha last week warned the rebels not to rely on foreign intervention to secure satisfaction of their demands.

“Seeking foreign protection and resorting to international powers will not contribute to confidence building and will only lead to renewed fighting among the sons of the homeland,” he said.

Tens of thousands of people have died and nearly a million and a half been driven from their homes since the rebellion began in early 2003.

A UN panel has concluded that the Khartoum government is guilty of gross and systematic human rights violations in Darfur but stopped short of labeling the violence in the region as genocide.