Darfur Mediators present draft peace agreement

The Darfur mediators handed all parties a draft peace agreement for Darfur yesterday. They urged the JEM and the government to go into direct negotiations about the document, with the aim for a final draft peace agreement to be ready by the 7^th of May. This document will then be presented at the civil societies forum later in May. The chief negotiator of the LJM, Taj Eldin Naim, told Radio Dabanga that the agreement included a referendum on the administrative status of Darfur after a transitional period. He believed this would cancel all the procedures currently being undertaken by the government to carry out the referendum. Taj Eldin also pointed out the the position of vice-president of the republic of Sudan will be reserved for a person from Darfur.

The JEM is studying the document presented to them by the mediation before making any decisions about it. The chief negotiator of the JEM, Ahmed Tugud, told Radio Dabanga that the mediators requested them to finish their negotiations by the 7^th of May. However no time line has been drawn for the direct talks with the government.