‘No need for Darfur referendum as National Dialogue covers its issues’

The head of the Federal Truth Party and member of 7 +7 National Dialogue Steering Committee strongly opposes the Darfur referendum, scheduled to be held in April.

Fadul El Sayed Shueib told Radio Dabanga that the ongoing National Dialogue tackles all Sudanese issues. “As Darfur is part of Sudan, its problems and demands are dealt with already.

“The Darfur issue is a very important one, yet this Dialogue aims to resolve all Sudan’s crises,” he said.

The Darfur referendum is stipulated in the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur that was signed in July 2011 by the Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement, a coalition of 19 breakaway factions of the Darfur rebel movements formed the year before.

The referendum, in which the people in Darfur will be able to express their preference for a permanent administrative status of the region, was supposed to be held within one year after the signing of the peace accord. Last October, President Omar Al Bashir announced that the referendum will take place in April 2016.

For the Darfuris themselves, the administrative status is no longer a priority concern. “Their priority is to be able to live in peace. They want compensation and the recovery of what they have lost during the war, according to the terms of the Doha Document and in accordance with the agreed-on time schedules,” a Darfuri human rights lawyer told Radio Dabanga on 21 October.

“The Doha Document also prioritises the restoration of the security situation, through the implementation of the security arrangements and the disarmament of the non-military in the region. Yet, the disarmament has never taken place.”

“What the people in Darfur want most is not a referendum but their being able to lead a decent and secure life in their villages of origin,” he stated.