‘There is no military solution to the conflicts in Sudan’: Troika

The members of the ‘Sudan Troika’, the USA, UK, and Norway, welcome the “recent efforts to reinvigorate a process of genuine national dialogue in Sudan”. In a media note released today, the Troika countries not only welcome the recent efforts by the Sudanese government, the AU, and the opposition forces to achieve a sustainable peace in the country, but also refer to a number of principles the stakeholders should observe and heed. “As the country confronts a new and critical era in its history, we remain conscious of the continuing governance concerns expressed by the Sudanese people, the problems of centre-periphery imbalance, and the articulation of political, economic, and social grievances, particularly in the country’s peripheries”, the Troika states. The USA, UK, and Norway reiterate their support for “a mediation architecture that facilitates both resolution of conflict and a comprehensive process of national dialogue, and thus welcome initial progress with Sudanese stakeholders to this end, under the auspices of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel”. Principles The Troika considers the following principles as a basis for meaningful governance reform and lasting resolution of the conflicts in Sudan: There is no military solution to the conflicts in Sudan; A compartmentalised and regional approach to peacemaking cannot yield a solution to grievances that are national in character; A sustainable peace and genuinely representative political system can best be achieved through a comprehensive national dialogue that addresses fundamental issues of governance, political inclusiveness, resource-sharing, identity, and social equality at a national level; A comprehensive dialogue should be broadly inclusive; its exercise and outcomes should recognise and accommodate the country’s unique diversity of peoples, cultures, and religions; and such a dialogue must necessarily include the Government of Sudan, armed and unarmed opposition movements, political parties, a broad range of civil society representatives, and constituents from every region of Sudan; A comprehensive dialogue can succeed only in an environment conducive to meaningful participation of all of the country’s diverse constituents, free from any restrictions to the right to assembly or the right to freedom of expression; A comprehensive dialogue might best serve Sudan and its people by: – upholding the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Sudan; – yielding an inclusive and participatory governance arrangement that allows all citizens and regions to participate in institutions that are democratic in nature and to benefit equitably from Sudan’s national resources; – agreeing to a timeline and benchmarks for the holding of national elections, so as to ensure elections can be broadly participatory and yield legitimate and widely-recognised outcomes, and thus help to initiate a more democratic political dispensation in Sudan. The USA, UK, and Norway form the ‘Sudan Troika, a group of governments who supported the extensive peace negotiations process between Sudan and the South Sudanese Sudan People’s Liberation Movement that led to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in January 2005. File photo: President Omar Al Bashir inspects troops of the Sudan Armed Forces Related: Darfur rebels to meet with Chadian President (17 September 2014)Revolutionary Front leaders welcome AU decisions on Sudan (16 September 2014) AU communiqué explains decisions on AUHIP for Sudan (16 September 2014) Sudan’s ruling party hails Addis National Dialogue agreement (14 September 2014) Sudan opposition parties call for ‘intifada’ (12 September 2014) Unamid holds consultations in Doha on Darfur, Sudan’s Dialogue (10 September 2014) Sudan rebels meet with AU panel, UN Special Envoy in Addis Ababa (2 September 2014)