Darfur talks on the right path, says al-Mahmoud

QNA/Doha Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs HE Ahmed bin Abdullah al-Mahmoud yesterday chaired a meeting in Doha on the Darfur peace process. The meeting was attended by Aichatou Mindaoudou, the Joint AU-UN Chief Mediator for Darfu; Amin Hassan Omar, Sudan’s Minister of State in the Presidency; and Arko Suleiman Dahia, the deputy president of the Sudanese Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). The JEM decided to engage in the peace negotiations after it signed a cessation of hostilities agreement, al-Mahmoud told reporters. The JEM negotiating delegation has asked for more time to study the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), he said, referring to the one-week workshop held in Doha for Sudan’s JEM and run by the UNAMID Mediation Support in which a number of UN and AU experts participated. The workshop aimed at building the capacity of JEM delegation and to explain the provisions of the DDPD, he explained. “The two parties demonstrate keenness to enter into negotiations while I together with the Joint AU-UN Chief Mediator for Darfur will draft an agenda for the negotiations which will be then approved by the parties before starting negotiations,” al-Mahmoud said. On the issues to be discussed during the current round of talks, he said they will be decided by the negotiators, noting that the mediation has suggested forming a number of committees dealing with the specific clauses stipulated at the DDPD. The deputy premier said he has received calls from other movements expressing keenness to join the DDPD. “A third party to the conflict will join the negations...Things are progressing on the right path,” al-Mahmoud said, adding there was a “genuine desire for peace.” “They seek a framework and arrangements ... we are now working with the UN to provide them with such a structure” in dealing with the Darfur conflict, he said. Al-Mahmoud urged non-signatory movements to sign up to the DDPD, calling upon all factions to hear the voice of reason and enter negotiations to find a comprehensive settlement. The DDPD was finalised at the All Darfur Stakeholders Conference in May 2011, in Doha. On July 14, the Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement signed a protocol agreement committing themselves to the Document, which is now the framework for the comprehensive peace process in Darfur. The DDPD is the culmination of two-and half-years of negotiations, dialogue and consultations with the major parties to the Darfur conflict, all relevant stakeholders and international partners. It addresses the root causes of the conflict and its consequences, including Power Sharing, Wealth Sharing, Human Rights, Justice and Reconciliation, Compensation and Return, and Internal Dialogue among others. Asked if there was a time-frame for negotiations between the Sudanese government and the Justice and Equality Movement, al-Mahmoud said Qatar is the host country and so was trying to give both parties enough time to negotiate. He said that Qatar made it clear to both parties that there were other commitments on schedule like the re-building of Darfur. Al-Mahmoud said the secret of the success of Doha Document for Peace is that it welcomes any party or group to join it. He added that the international community backed the document because it was made by the people of Darfur.