The US Special Envoy to the Sudan, Donald Booth, held talks in Kampala last Thursday with Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF, an alliance of opposition forces) leaders Abdel Wahid El Nur, Minni Minawi, and Dr Jibril Ibrahim. The talks centred on the SRF’s position with regard to a comprehensive peace, unification of the negotiations platform, and their view about President Al Bashir ‘s call for dialogue.
Speaking to Radio Dabanga, Dr Jibril Ibrahim, head of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and Co-Vice President of the SRF said that they affirmed to the Special Envoy that the SRF is against any partial solution for the crises in Sudan. “This is also the position adopted by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North in its negotiations with the Sudanese government in Addis Ababa.”
Ibrahim said that Booth considered a comprehensive solution “important”, and the government’s call for a national dialogue “a step towards a comprehensive solution”.
The JEM leader noted that the Addis Ababa peace negotiations on South Kordofan and the Blue Nile States are a prelude to unify negotiations on these two states and Darfur. “When the SPLM-N and the government delegations in Addis Ababa come to discuss the issue of a cease-fire in the two southern states, they will discover that there are rebel forces other than the SPLM-N fighting in South Kordofan and the Blue Nile. If these rebel forces are not involved in the negotiations, a cease-fire agreement cannot be reached.”
“These parties will directly or indirectly be part of the Addis Ababa negotiations or dialogue. Thus all initiatives will be merged in a one track.”
Minni Minawi, leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement-MM and Co-Vice Deputy President of the SRF told Radio Dabanga that they discussed with the US Special Envoy in Kampala the vision of the SRF on unifying both the Darfur and the South Kordofan-Blue Nile platforms in order to reach a comprehensive solution. “This means that the SRf will constitute a single platform, discussing the war in Darfur together with the war in Blue Nile and South Kordofan.” Minawi explained that the unification of negotiations on the war-torn regions was the main topic during the meeting with Donald Booth. “He agreed partially on our vision.”
Regarding President Al Bashir’s initiative for a national dialogue, Minawi commented that the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) “is putting the cart in front of the horse rather than the opposite”. He told Radio Dabanga that a comprehensive solution requires the “appropriate atmosphere to enter into a comprehensive national dialogue”.
“This appropriate atmosphere does not exist. The NCP now intends to adopt a policy uniting a national front. This basically means a unification of their old racist front. The traditionally marginalised regions, in particular Darfur, are not to be included. They NCP intends to dismantle Darfur and then move it into a nationally unified front with the same racist view it adopted from the start.”
The leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement-AW and Co-Vice President of the SRF, Abdel Wahid El Nur, added to Radio Dabanga, that they confirmed to the US Special Envoy that no peace will be achieved in Sudan without security on the ground.
“First of all, our people need to live a safe and secure life. The militiamen are to be disarmed, and new settlers expelled from the Darfur lands and the hawakeer. The displaced and refugees have to be able to return to their original villages, and should receive individual and collective compensation. Rule of law has to be reinstated and the offenders brought to justice.”
El Nur said that they explained to Booth that a peace without security and a real change is incomplete. “Former Darfur peace agreements have all failed”.
File photo: US Special Envoy to Sudan, Donald Booth, in a meeting with SRF leaders in September 2013 (SRF)
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‘SPLM-N will discuss AUHIP proposal’: Malik Agar (19 February 2014)