Al Bashir meets with outgoing UN special envoy for Sudan

Sudan’s President Omar Al Bashir on Monday received the outgoing special envoy of the UN Secretary General for Sudan and South Sudan, Haile Menkerios, at Khartoum’s Republican Palace on the occasion of the expiry of his term of office in Sudan.

In a press statement, Menkerios, who has held the position since 2011, said that the meeting discussed the issue of the national dialogue and the position of the political parties.

He affirmed his support to the efforts of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP), expressing his optimism over realisation of peace in Sudan.

Menkerios referred to positive indicators that happened in Sudan, including the national dialogue which did not exclude anyone.

He said that the ceasefire is considered a positive step which is supporting to the national dialogue and the political efforts for putting an end to the war in the country.

He indicated that the AUHIP roadmap is one of the positive indicators, referring to signals that the armed movement would sign the roadmap and join the national dialogue.

Menkerios expressed hope that AUHIP would succeed in convincing the armed movements to participate in the national dialogue process, adding that he felt keenness of all parties to achieve peace.

Roadmap

He said that the meeting of Sudan Call forces in Addis Ababa aims to persuade the armed movements to framework agreement which was presented by the African Union, describing this meeting as a positive step.

Menkerios, a South African of Eritrean descent, previously served as the Secretary-General’s special representative and head of the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS). He will be succeeded in the position by Nicholas Haysom, also of South Africa.

Haysom, a lawyer with a long international career, has focused on democratic governance, constitutional and electoral reforms, reconciliation and peace processes, including most recently as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) since 2014 and Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for UNAMA since 2012.

Previously, he was Director for Political, Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Affairs in the Executive Office of the United Nations Secretary-General from 2007 to 2012, and Head of the Office of Constitutional Support for the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) from 2005 to 2007.

Haysom served in the Government of South Africa, including as Chief Legal and Constitutional Adviser in the Office of the President from 1994 to 1999.  He was involved in the Burundi Peace Talks as Chair of the committee negotiating constitutional issues from 1999 to 2002 under the facilitation of the late former President Nelson Mandela, and was the principal adviser to the Mediator in the Sudanese Peace Process from 2002 to 2005.

Ramadan banquet

The Deputy Chairman of the National Congress for the Party's Affairs, Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid, gave a Ramadan banquet on Monday in honour of the envoy of Menkerios. Hamid voiced his appreciation for Menkerios's efforts during his term of office, and his keenness to support peace and security in Sudan.

He said that the success achieved by Menkerios in his mission in Sudan has qualified him to be appointed as representative of the UN for the security issues in Africa.

Menkerios said that he considers himself lucky to work in Sudan, indicating he felt himself familiar in Sudan during his office term because he earlier lived in Port Sudan and Kassla areas in the country.

He said that he will work through his new position for realising security and stability in all African countries.

(Source: SUNA / UN)