Sudan peace agreement: ‘Role of mediator important’

The head of the South Sudanese mediation committee, Tut Galuak, says that the implementation of the peace agreement that was signed in Juba on August 31 requires the presence of a third party for the flow of the South Sudanese negotiation process.

This presence will be needed in addition to the members of the Sudan peace forum, namely the East African Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the United Nations.

Galuak stressed in a press conference in Khartoum yesterday on the importance of the role of mediator for the Sudan peace negotiations, which started in Juba in September last year. A comprehensive agreement between Khartoum and the parties of the Sudan Revolutionary Front rebel alliance will be signed in Juba on October 3.

Deputy head of the mediation team, Dhieu Mathok, explained that the negotiations in the Juba platform were on behalf of the entire government of Sudan, not for the civilian or military side.

He described the Declaration of Principles signed on September 3 by PM Abdallah Hamdok and Abdelaziz El Hilu, leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North faction in South Kordofan and parts of Blue Nile state (SPLM-N El Hilu) in Addis Ababa, as “a smart step” which can be considered “peace talks outside the official negotiations”.

According to the mediator, bilateral talks supported negotiations between the Sudanese government and the SPLM-N El Hilu, and contributed a lot in converging views to reach peace.

Darfur

As for the other main rebel movement that did not sign the comprehensive peace agreement, the Sudan Liberation Movement under the leadership of Abdelwahid El Nur, in Darfur, Mathok said: “Although the file of Abdelwahid Mohamed El Nur is not our specialty, we strongly advise him to travel to Khartoum for direct negotiations with the government of Sudan, and we assure him that there is no better chance for peace than this, and the entire atmosphere is a catalyst to achieve it.”

The Darfur Displaced and Refugees General Coordination has started to consult the people in the camps about the proposal of rebel leader Abdelwahid El Nur to hold an internal dialogue on the peace process, Yagoub Abdallah, head of the Darfur Displaced and Refugees General Coordination, told Radio Dabanga on September 16.

“We found a 100 per cent support for the initiative among the displaced in the five Darfur states,” Abdallah said.

In an interview with Radio Dabanga on Monday, Ahmed Adam, a Darfuri specialist in international law and conflict resolution, said that the peace agreement contains a number of risks, “the most important of which are the absence of regional and international guarantees and the lack of donors and financiers, in addition to the fact that the two main rebel groups have not signed the peace agreement yet, the continuing insecurity in Darfur and the position of the displaced and refugees.

“New wars may erupt in the event the implementation of the peace accord fails due to the absence of funds,” he warned.

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