Darfur factions to miss Libya talks

27/10/2007| IslamWeb

Hopes for peace in the violence-torn Sudanese province of Darfur have been blighted by the decision of the two main rebel groups to not attend peace talks mediated by the African Union and UN in the Libyan city of Sirte.

"We decided not to go," said Ahmed Tugod Hassan, the chief negotiator of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).

He said the decision was made on Friday with the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) unity factions after consultations in the run-up to the talks scheduled to begin on Saturday.

International mediators had hoped as many rebels as possible would attend the talks to negotiate a ceasefire.

Since a peace deal signed by only one of three rebel factions last year, the fighters have split into more than a dozen groups.

Clinging to hope

In Sirte, Jan Eliasson, the UN special envoy for Darfur, said: "We still have hope that some of the leaders of the movements will come. The final list of participants is not completed."

He said this was an "irreversible process" and represented "a very important step towards a political settlement".

But Mohammed Adow, Al Jazeera's correspondent, said only "a handful of Darfur rebels are ready to talk peace.

"They have been struggling to find common ground before negotiations begin. And their dismal number has been a concern for the mediators. But they are vowing to carry on."

He said Abdelwahid Elnur, leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), had rejected the talks and Khalil Ibrahim, the main leader of JEM, was not attending either.

Frustration

Speaking from Libya on Saturday, Adow said the mood was one of frustration because of the poor response.

Likewise, speaking from Al Fasher in northern Darfur, Al Jazeera correspondent Mohamed Vall said: "Frustration is very deep here, in the IDP (internally displaced peoples) camps.

"The leaders of the Darfur groups such as Elnur and the JEM say they will not attend the peace talks in deference out of respect for the wishes of the people.

"But when we talk to the people here, they say they are not very well informed about the situation and follow the developments on the basis of what their leaders tell them."

The run-up to the talks has also been overshadowed by a rebel attack against an oilfield in a region disputed by Khartoum and Sudan's former southern rebels.

The JEM claimed to have kidnapped two foreign oil workers.

Criticism

Vall said some groups claim that many Darfur tribes have been excluded.

Othman Kibir, the governor of north Darfur, said: "Darfur doesn't belong to a handful of groups only. The African Union, United Nations and the international community should talk to all parties, and listen to all parties."

"To the representatives of the United Nations and the African Union, I urge you to be part of the solution, not part of the problem."

Meanwhile, in the southern city of Juba, the Darfur rebel factions failed to unify their positions and most of them decided to boycott the talks.

Increasing tension

Fighting has continued on the ground despite repeated assertions from all parties that a fragile ceasefire is still holding.

Vall also said that the political mood in the Sudanese capital Khartoum is not optimistic.

"The stand off over the implementation of a 2005 peace agreement is continuing between the ruling party and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, its southern partner in the unity government," he said.

Sudan's stability remains uncertain amid what many see as the possibility of another nationwide conflict.

"The real crisis is a Sudan crisis - it's not just about Darfur. If an agreement is reached in Libya, it will be like a sedative to the issue of Darfur," Adam Bakhit, a Darfur rebel commander, said.

"After that, due to other tensions, another war could break out between the North and the South. There needs to be a comprehensive solution for Sudan."

PHOTO CAPTION

Negotiators from the Darfur's Jem rebel group