Al Mahdi calls for adoption of Heidelberg Document for Darfur

The Chairman of the Umma Party, Sadig Al Mahdi, called on all parties to adopt the Heidelberg Document. He said the principles in the Heidelberg Document could be used as the basis for talks at a major meeting of Darfurians, including political and armed groups, and women groups. He proposed that the meeting and negotiations be coordinated and overseen by the mediators of Qatar, Libya, Chad and Eritrea, through the African Union.Al Mahdi was the last democratically elected leader of Sudan before the coup that brought the current government to power in 1989. His support for the Heidelberg Document was reported by Radio Dabanga initially in July of this year.

The Heidelberg Committee takes its name from three symposia that were organized for Sudanese civil society since January 2008 by the Max Planck Institute in Heidelberg, Germany, in cooperation with the Peace Institute of the University of Khartoum. The dialogue is funded by the German Foreign Ministry. In the latest event held during February and March 2010, the Darfuri civil society participants agreed on a final outcome document containing draft proposals for consideration in a future Darfur Peace Agreement.

The government rejects the Heidelberg Document. In June the government negotiators at Doha objected to the presence of a delegation of the Heidelberg Committee and refused to receive the delegation.

Al Mahdi’s remarks suggest that he is unsupportive of the Doha platform, through which the Liberation and Justice Movement and the Government of Sudan are advancing toward a peace deal.