EU calls on Sudan to allow UN team visit straight away

European Union Declaration by the Presidency 4 May 2006 - excerpt:

The EU expresses grave concern about the serious fighting currently occurring in Darfur, which is in contradiction with the positive spirit of the Abuja talks. The EU reiterates its strong condemnation of all cease-fire violations and in particular of attacks on civilians and humanitarian agencies. It urges the Government of Sudan and the leaders of the SLM/A and the JEM to take the necessary steps to ensure that the N'djamena cease-fire is strictly respected by all forces they claim to have under their control, and to fully cooperate with AMIS.

The EU believes it to be essential for the transition from AMIS to a UN operation in Darfur to happen as quickly as possible. The EU expresses its concern at the continued failure of the Sudanese Government to allow the visit of the UN planning team and calls on it to do so straight away.

Sudan denies approval of rebels' demands to amend Darfur peace accord

According to Sudan News Agency (SUNA), Sudanese government's disapproval to amendments to the preliminary accord was clear and unchanged, confirming that no amendments will take place without the government's approval, which has not taken place yet.

Some media outlets claimed that the government has approved some amendments to the accord's draft as requested by the rebels.

Darfur rebels presented with new peace deal

"A package has been put together and presented to the parties, but there are no takers yet," said a senior member of a US-led diplomatic team at Darfur peace talks in Abuja - Reuters Estelle Shirbon reported:

"What we are saying to the (rebels) is, 'Please take it and then we can put pressure on the government'," said the diplomat, requesting anonymity.

He said it was possible the parties would agree to the new peace package at a meeting due to take place at the Nigerian presidential villa but there was no certainty.

The new deadline is midnight (2300 GMT) on Thursday.

A senior AU source said the midnight deadline was likely to slip but only for discussions to continue late into the night.

"The clock will stop at midnight but this is it. There is no extension," he said.

Message is clear now: There is no political way out of the Chida Hotel without a deal

"The gaps between the parties are so wide that only the kind of concerted international pressure we're seeing here has a chance of working," said a Western diplomat who is closely involved in the talks and requested anonymity, Reuters (Estelle Shirbon) reported:

"The message to them is very clear now: There is no political way out of the Chida Hotel without a deal," he said, referring to a small hotel on the outskirts of the Nigerian capital Abuja where the talks are taking place.

Observers say a collapse of the Abuja talks would be disastrous.

"The scenario of failure is very scary. You can be sure that the government would go after these guys (the rebels)," said one Western diplomat, adding that parties who block a deal would likely face U.N. sanctions.

Zoellick's team, along with Britain's International Development Secretary Hilary Benn and a host of European Union and Canadian diplomats, shuttled between government and rebel delegations.

Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and Congo Republic Denis Sassou Nguesso, who is also chairman of the AU, were due to meet with the two sides and mediators in the evening to ratchet up pressure for a deal.

A senior AU source said this would take hours and the midnight deadline was likely to slip but only for discussions to continue late into the night.

"The clock will stop at midnight but this is it, there is no extension," he said.

SLM rebels back proposal to end war in Darfur

Sudanese rebels today endorsed a new proposal drafted by the US and Britain to help end the war in Darfur, saying it meets their key demands and could set the stage for a peace accord, says Associated Press report by Michelle Faul May 4, 2006 - excerpt:

Jaffer Monro, spokesman for the largest rebel group, the SLM, told The Associated Press that the US-drafted revisions to an earlier draft made an agreement possible.

"We are going to study them, but the improvements give us the sign that we can agree, that we do not need to renegotiate and that there will be no further delay for the final agreement," he said.

The concessions from the Sudanese government make agreement possible, though the rebels remained concerned about security arrangements, according to the negotiator.

The European Union's executive Commission, which has been closely following the talks in the Nigerian capital, also said Thursday a deal was imminent and announced it would contribute $125 million for a humanitarian and initial recovery package.

Sudan appeared ready Wednesday to agree to faster disarmament of Arab militias in Darfur and to accept more rebels into its security forces, government spokesman Abdulrahman Zuma said.

European Commission Welcomes the Imminent Darfur Peace Deal and Announces Euro 100M Aid Package

The European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel, praised today the efforts of negotiating parties in Abuja as the Darfur peace talks are reaching conclusion, and announced a euro 100M package covering humanitarian and immediate recovery needs for the region, PR Newswire reported May 4, 2006 - copy:

"This agreement will be a real progress on the way towards a peaceful and prosperous Sudan and I wish to congratulate the African Union negotiators and the parties for their determination in achieving the agreement which should be signed soon. It will then be our joint challenge to rapidly bring the concrete peace dividends and consolidate peace on the ground," said Mr. Michel.

Since the beginning of the Darfur crisis, the European Commission has provided close to euro 400M in humanitarian aid and support to AMIS (the AU mission in Sudan).

The Commission will continue to meet its responsibilities as a major donor during the post-crisis recovery. Commissioner Michel said: "We are impatient to turn our efforts towards rehabilitation and development of Darfur, with the involvement of all the afflicted populations of the region. We will also maintain our humanitarian effort as long as the vulnerable people need it. In coordination with the international community, we are putting together a euro 100M package covering humanitarian and immediate recovery needs for the region."

Security on the ground remains a major concern as increasing violence in recent weeks has been affecting civilians and humanitarian workers likewise. Commissioner Michel called on the Government of Sudan and rebel movements to respect their commitments and ensure the safety of the population. He also stressed the importance of ensuring immediate, safe and full access for humanitarian workers to bring aid to those in need. He urged all parties to collaborate on the smooth transition from AMIS to the UN peace-keeping mission.

The current AMIS mandate expires on 30 September. The UN forces will then take over from the AU mission. In the meantime, the Commission continues to provide support to AMIS.

SOURCE Delegation of the European Commission to the U.S. Web Site: http://www.eurunion.org/ EUROPA

[via Coalition for Darfur with thanks]



Photo: Alpha Oumar Konare, Javier Solana and Louis Michel address a joint news conference after discussing the situation in Sudan, in Brussels March 8, 2006. (Reuters) via Sudan Tribune (Sudan Watch archive)

Negotiator: Darfur rebels may be ready for deal - Proposal calls for thousands militants to join Sudanese security forces

Good news. Just in from Associated Press - excerpt:

A proposal drafted by the US and Britain to help end the war in Darfur meets key rebel demands and could set the stage for a peace accord, a rebel negotiator said Thursday.

The negotiator, speaking on condition of anonymity because the parties involved had been asked not to reveal details of the proposal, said it called for thousands of rebels to be integrated into Sudanese security forces.

Sudanese government officials were not immediately available for comment.

The negotiator said the draft called for a minimum of 4,000 rebels to be integrated into Sudan's armed forces and another 1,000 in the police force. In addition, 3,000 rebels would be given training and education to prepare them for civilian life.

The negotiator said the concessions from the Sudanese government make agreement possible, though the rebels remained concerned about security arrangements.

Negotiations went late into the night Wednesday, as Zoellick met with Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, a key figure in peacemaking efforts across Africa.

African leaders including Obasanjo and Denis Sassou-Nguesso - president of the Republic of Congo and current head of the 53-nation African Union - scheduled a meeting with AU mediators six hours before the deadline to make a final push for an agreement. Following that, African presidents were to meet with the warring parties.

US credited Khartoum with taking significant steps to cooperate in the global war on terror

Sudanese government spokesman Abdulrahman Zuma said Wednesday his government was considering agreeing to faster disarmament of Arab militias in Darfur and accepting more rebels into its security forces, key concessions included in a revised peace agreement drafted with the help of Zoellick and Benn, the Associated Press reported today - excerpt:

"Through this so-called American initiative, it seems that the government is going to make some concessions, especially about reintegration and disarmament," Zuma told the Associated Press.

While the rebels may embrace the United States as an alternative to the African Union, the U.S. relationship with Khartoum is complicated.

On Friday, Washington counted Sudan among six state sponsors of terror, even while it credited Khartoum with taking significant steps to cooperate in the global war on terror.

The U.N. Security Council a year ago authorized seizure of assets and a travel ban on individuals defying peace efforts or violating human rights law in Darfur. Those sanctions were imposed for the first time last week against a commander of the Sudanese air force, a Janjaweed militia leader and two rebel commanders.

US pushes for Darfur deal before third deadline

Reuters report by Estelle Shirbon - just in, this afternoon - excerpts:

The Sudanese government and Darfur rebels face a third deadline to make peace today.

Zoellick's team, along with Britain's International Development Secretary Hilary Benn, and a host of European Union and Canadian diplomats, shuttled between the government and the rebels in a small hotel on the outskirts of the Nigerian capital.

No details filtered out on what exactly the government may have agreed to give.

It is unclear whether the rebels could be persuaded to sign. They are split into two movements and three factions with complex internal politics and a history of infighting, making it hard for them to agree on any major decision. So far, they have insisted they were dissatisfied with many aspects of the draft.

The diplomats were due to present the results of the discussions to AU mediators who would then meet Nigerian Olusegun Obasanjo. He is trying to increase pressure on the parties, along with other African heads of state who are in Abuja for a separate conference.

"There is an astonishing alignment of international pressure and there is a whole array of U.N. sanctions that can be used against people who block a deal so everyone knows there are consequences for not signing," said a Western diplomat, who is closely involved in the talks and requested anonymity.

"But there are a lot of internal divisions in the rebel movement and they are just not structured to make decisions ... it could really go either way," he added.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights visits Darfur

"The situation (in Darfur) is poor, bad and very alarming and what is particularly sad is to see no progress and a deterioration of the situation," Louise Arbour, U.N. high commissioner for human rights, told Reuters in Khartoum.

"I am absolutely persuaded that the sexual violence against women ... is worsening every day," she said after a two-day visit to Darfur this week.

Diplomats called disgruntled members of the Darfur rebel factions who are based in Chad on Thursday to try and stop them from undermining a possible deal in Abuja, said a Western diplomat.

(additional reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian in Nairobi and Kamilo Tafeng in Khartoum)
- - -

Aid work cannot be sustained under attack

May 4 2006 IRIN report Clock ticks on third Darfur peace deadline in a week:

In an interview with Reuters news agency, Egeland said a failure to secure a peace deal in Abuja could jeopardise humanitarian operations in Darfur.

"If there is no agreement in Abuja, it could get much worse," said Egeland, "and we are unarmed humanitarian workers, so we cannot sustain it if we are attacked."

See May 4 2006 Opinion piece by Jan Egeland in the Wall Street Journal Darfur: Killing Fields

Careless talk costs lives: This week of all weeks, please be careful what you say about Darfur, Sudan

Daniel Davies' insightful opinion piece at the Guardian's Comments is free, reminds us all that careless talk costs lives:

This week of all weeks, please be careful what you write about the situation in Darfur, the Government of Sudan and Darfur rebels.

Darfur peace talks over the coming hours and days could make or break the region, affecting the lives of millions of refugees throughout Sudan and neighbouring countries Chad, CAR. Uganda, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Eritrea.
- - -



Photo: Actor George Clooney, who has recently returned from visiting refugee camps in Darfur with his father, called the situation in Darfur "the first genocide of the 21st century". (BBC pictures online)

[Note, The International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur, chaired by the Italian judge Antonio Cassese, concluded in its report published on 31 January 2005 that crimes against humanity and war crimes such as killings, rape, pillaging and forced displacement have been committed since 1 July 2002 by the government-backed forces and the Janjaweed militia. It declared, however, that the government of Sudan was not pursuing a policy of genocide in Darfur.

See Apr 9 2006 Juan Mendez, UN Special Adviser on Prevention of Genocide, tells press "definitely ethnic cleansing, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur"]

Stark warning at the Darfur talks: Serious danger of major regional war unfolding - Alex de Waal

"If this deal is not signed this week there is a very, very serious danger of a major regional war unfolding which would make the situation in Darfur probably insoluble," AU adviser Alex de Waal told the BBC's World Today programme, May 3, 2006:

Mr de Waal said the situation on the ground in Darfur was deteriorating and becoming more complicated.

In public, some of the rebels are holding out for a regional Darfur government.

But the BBC's World Affairs correspondent Mark Doyle says Khartoum sees this as the thin end of a dangerous trend and is resisting.

In the southern peace deal, SPLM rebels gained control of some ministries in Khartoum and a share of Sudan's oil wealth.

EU urges Darfur rebels to agree truce or face sanctions

The European Union said it welcomed the draft peace deal for Dafur and urged the rebels to reach a final agreement with the Sudanese Government or face travel bans to UN member countries and a freeze on assets held in those states, Reuters Estelle Shirbon reported May 3, 2006 - excerpt:

"Failing to do so would be irresponsible in the light of the immense human suffering of the people in Darfur, and any party standing in the way of an agreement would have to face the consequences outlined in the UN Security Council Resolution 1591," a statement from current EU president Austria said.

Mediators have started the grim task of planning for defeat

Canadian Press report May 3, 2006 excerpt:

A Canadian government source close to the talks said the American and British delegations are now effectively steering the talks and have "streamlined'' the negotiations.

They included only a handful of advisers from Canada and the African Union, leaving representatives from various European and African nations on the outside.

"The U.K. and U.S. decided working with the large community of nations was too cumbersome at this stage and the African Union approach had been exhausted,'' said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "If this (new) strategy succeeds, it could break the logjam.''

The current U.S.-British strategy is to split up the rebel concerns between them, and come up with amendments to the peace deal the rebels might accept. They've seen progress on the issue of security, but are still stuck on power-sharing within the Sudanese government.

And so, negotiators have started the grim task of planning for defeat, the senior source said.

That Plan B would include a ceasefire, safe access to the country for humanitarian workers, and protection for camps of displaced persons.

"If they don't agree, the results will be nothing short of catastrophic,'' said the Canadian source.

US proposals for Darfur peace not enough: rebels

US proposals to save the Darfur peace talks do not go far enough Sudan Tribune reported May 3. Excerpt:

A spokesman for the SLA Seif Haroun said that unless the peace deal included a proposal to turn the devastated western Sudanese region of Darfur into a unitary administrative unit - it is currently divided into three states - it would fail.

"The US government’s initiative is a good step forward for negotiations. We are happy about it, but it still falls short of our expectations because it has left out our crucial demand for a Darfur region," he said.

"The Darfur region issue is the main issue in our demand. The issue of region is not something we are going to negotiate away because that is where our key interest is," he said.

Under the African Union plan, the people of Darfur would be allowed to hold a referendum on coming together as one autonomous region once fighting has halted and national elections are held, perhaps in several years’ time.

Sudan’s government has already accepted the AU peace plan and has made positive noises about the US version. A second rebel group, the JEM, has yet to make its position clear.

Reuters report by Estelle Shirbon May 3, 2006 tells us senior Sudanese diplomat said the U.S. ideas were "interesting" but Khartoum would only agree on measures it considered "workable and cost-effective". He said he was optimistic that a deal would be reached.

Sudan may make concessions on Darfur peace deal

Sudanese government spokesman Abdulrahman Zuma told Associated Press May 3, "Through this so-called American initiative, it seems that the government is going to make some concessions, especially about reintegration and disarmament."

AU, UK, US prepare new Darfur peace proposal

AU mediators joined by senior US and British officials are preparing a substantially changed Darfur peace proposal after rebels rejected the original draft, said two Sudanese close to the negotiations who saw the new document Wednesday.

The two Sudanese, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the new proposal was not yet official, said it was aimed at meeting rebel demands for a greater share of power and wealth.

Full report AP/ST May 3, 2006.

Note, the report says that earlier, Jaffer Monro, spokesman for SLM, said if the initial proposal was not significantly changed, the rebels would press for the UN or another body to take over the peace talks from the AU. [This is what the rebels have wanted all along over the past two years - they are anti AU troops and mediators]



Photo: US Deputy Secretary of State, Robert B. Zoellick, center, and US Charge d'Affaires in Khartoum, Cameron Hume, left, meet with leaders of the JEM, one of the Darfur rebel factions, at Darfur peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria Tuesday, May 2, 2006. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

When asked late Tuesday what would happen if there is no agreement by Thursday, chief AU mediator Salim Ahmed Salim said: "There will be continued killing, continued suffering, and all the destruction that has been going on."



Photo: UK Minister Hilary Benn speaks in Khartoum after a visit to Darfur, February 2006. (AFP/Salah Omar)

Sudanese tribal leaders at Darfur peace talks, Abuja

Photo: Sudanese tribal leaders attend the Darfur talks at the venue of the Darfur peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria,Tuesday, May 2, 2006. (AP/ST)



Photo: Sudanese tribal leaders (from L to R) Ibrahim Abdalla Mohamed, Saeed Mahmoud Madibo, Mostafa Omer Ahmed, Ahmed Alsamani and Mohamed Adam Rijal wait to participate in a meeting with rebel groups during negotiations on a peace plan for Darfur in Abuja, Nigeria May 2, 2006. The government of Sudan has accepted an 85-page draft settlement but three Darfur rebel factions refused to sign, saying they were unhappy with the proposals on security, power-sharing and wealth-sharing. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

First batch of Sudanese refugees back home from Uganda

The first convoy of 160 Sudanese refugees in Uganda repatriating to South Sudan left Tuesday from the northern district of Moyo to Kadjo Keji, some 30 kilometres north of the Ugandan border, Sudan Tribune reported May 3, 2006.



Photo: A Sudanese refugee woman waits to embark in a bus in Kakuma refugee camp in northwest Kenya December 17, 2005 to return into south Sudan.

Sudan's SLA rebel attacks on aid workers in North Darfur breaks international humanitarian law

Jan Pronk, UN SGSR in Sudan, called on Darfur rebel group SLA to stop attacks on aid workers in Darfur.

Over the past few weeks, aid workers have come under continuous attacks and harassment by armed groups in the Shangil Tobayi, Tawilla and Kutum areas of North Darfur, with several reports indicating that SLA factions were behind the attacks:

"Armed robbery and hijacking have endangered humanitarian workers assisting over 450,000 vulnerable people living in the area," Pronk said in a statement. "Moreover, credible information points to the use of hijacked vehicles for military purposes by these armed groups. This is unacceptable and contrary to international humanitarian law."

Full report (IRIN) Government offensive raises fears of attack on Darfur's Gereida May 2, 2006.

Darfur peace talks extended for second time

A new deadline of 48 hours has now been set. It expires on Thursday night.

The original deadline for signing the deal expired on Sunday, prompting a new extension - till Tuesday - and a flurry of diplomatic activity.



Photo: US Deputy Secretary of State Robert B Zoellick, 3rd from left, and US Charge d'Affaires in Khartoum Cameron Hume, 2nd from left, meet with leaders of Darfur rebel factions at Darfur peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria Tuesday, May 2, 2006. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Meanwhile, AU mediator Salim Ahmed Salim urged the black African rebels "to show leadership and make the compromises necessary for peace, for the sake of the people of Darfur".



Photo: SLA commander at Darfur peace talks in Abuja May, 2006 (AP/BBC)

Reuters news agency quoted a diplomat involved in the mediation as saying that the rebels would be discredited if they reject the deal.

The BBC's Alex Last in Abuja says mediators hope that the proposed deal can be amended to increase the number of rebels integrated into the army, while dropping the provision that the Janjaweed disarm before the rebels.

The government is unhappy at this provision, even though it has signed the deal.

But the rebels are also said to be unhappy about arrangements concerning power-sharing and wealth distribution in the vast desert region. They are also reportedly concerned that the peace deal may not be properly implemented.

"The extension of the deadline does not have any meaning for us," said Saifaldin Haroun, spokesman of the main SLM faction, according to the AFP news agency.

"The AU peace proposal does not address our crucial concerns."



Photo: Darfur rebels in western Sudan (AP/BBC)

UN's Egeland to visit Sudan Saturday to meet senior officials and visit Darfur.

Bush tells Bashir to accept UN force backed by NATO

AP report says US President GW Bush called Sudanese President el-Bashir on Monday night about the importance of peace in Darfur, according to the official Sudan Press Agency and Frederick Jones, a spokesman for Bush's National Security Council - excerpt:

During the call, Bush urged al-Bashir to send his Vice President Ali Osman Mohammed Taha, who left Abuja Monday, back to the peace talks, White House press secretary Scott McClellan said. The president told al-Bashir to accept a U.N. peacekeeping mission backed by NATO logistics and training for Darfur.

Bush phones Bashir to send Taha back to Darfur peace talks

President George W Bush telephoned Sudanese President Umar Hasan al-Bashir to urge him to commit to reaching a peace accord with rebel groups in Darfur, as Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick met with all sides in Nigeria in a bid to keep the talks alive, Bloomberg reported today. Excerpt:

White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan told reporters today that in the call, Bush told Bashir he sent Zoellick to foster a breakthrough, and asked the Sudanese leader to send his vice president, Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, back to the negotiations as a signal of Sudan's desire to end the fighting.

"We will be looking for the government of Sudan to follow through on what the president brought up in the call," McClellan said.

Note, the report says AU mediator Sam Ibok was quoted by the Associated Press as saying that a further two-day extension of the talks was under consideration.

EU's Solana speaks on phone with 3 Darfur rebel leaders

European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana spoke on the phone with three rebel leaders on Tuesday and urged them to seize the opportunity in Abuja.



"I will be here tomorrow (Wednesday), beyond that I don't know," U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick told reporters on Tuesday evening.

Zoellick declined to say how long the talks might now last, noting his role was to try to bridge gaps between the sides.

"I will only continue to do that if I see we are in a position to try and accomplish that," he said.



Archive photo: Robert Zoellick (2nd L) talks with an unidentified Rwandan Army officer belonging to the AU (African Union) force in Darfur, upon his arrival in El-Fasher, Sudan, 2005. See Apr 17 2005 New US envoy for Sudan Robert Zoellick lays out priorities for Sudan's crisis

UPDATE: May 2 Brussels/ST EU urges Sudanese parties to sign Darfur peace agreement - According to Solana's office, Solana spoke on Tuesday with the leaders of the rebel groups, Abdul Wahid Mohamed El Nour (SLM), Minni Arkoi Minnawi (SLM) and Khalil Ibrahim (JEM), to urge them to do their utmost to conclude the negotiations. Solana would also be in contact with Sudanese Vice President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, said the statement.

SLM/A Open letter to the World on Darfur Peace Agreement

SLM/A Open letter to the world. Excerpt:

" ... we are hesitant to sign a peace treaty that drafted by the African Union on 1 May 2006. We believe that to reach a comprehensive peace agreement, we need an autonomous region that shall unify Darfur and carry more political weight than the current existing three states. Also, we require a fair representation that shall realize a third vice president, from Darfur. Compensation is crucial for our victimized people. So, individual victims of genocide should be compensated.

Finally, we ask for guarantees that those who have been displaced by government forces and its Janjaweed militias will be safe when they return back to their homes and guarantees that the government will disarm its militias that have been unleashed on our civilian population in Darfur."

signed by Jaffer Monro, Spokesman & Press Secretary, SLM/A
Email: monro_77@hotmail.com
Abuja GSM - +234-806-591-4551

Darfur peace talks deadline extended 24 hrs to May 3

African Union mediation at the Abuja negotiations on Darfur has given the parties 24 hours more, while the Chairman of AU and the head of AU executive are heading to Abuja.

US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick is expected to meet the chairman of the government side in the negotiations, Dr Magzoub Al-Khalifa, Tuesday, Sudan Tribune reported today.

Russian peacekeepers to fly out to Sudan May 3

A new group of Russian peacekeepers will fly to Sudan May 3 to join a UN force, the Air Force said Tuesday. Two planes would deliver some 60 tons of technical cargo and some 20 people on May 5.



Maj. Gen. Viktor Ivanov, head of the Air Force Army Aviation Directorate, said earlier that the peacekeepers would not be involved in combat missions.

Before the first group of Russian peacekeepers was sent to Sudan, UNMIS included 14 Russian military observers and 19 civilian police officers. Photo and report RIA Novosti

Chad war could restart as May 3 election day looms

As election officials report that everything is in place for Wednesday's presidential poll, fears of more rebel attacks are sending residents of the Chad capital N'djamena over the river into neighbouring Cameroon, IRIN reported via Reuters -

"We are going to put ourselves into a safe haven for now. The war could restart at any moment," said a French citizen and N'djamena resident waiting in the line at the Ngueli Bridge that links N'djamena's suburbs to Cameroon.

MAY 2 2006 INTERVIEW-U.N. must back any Darfur peace deal -Chad

May 2 2006 Reuters report by Pascal Fletcher Chad's Deby will talk if rebels accept polls

May 2 2006 Planes with Suspected Rebels Land in CAR - Two aircraft each carrying around 50 armed men suspected of links to a rebellion in neighbouring Chad have landed illegally in Central African Republic's lawless north, a senior official said on Thursday.

150 Janjaweed attack Chadian villagers nr UNHCR camp Goz Amir - 4 killed, 5 wounded

Yesterday, a group of 150 armed men, described by locals as Janjaweed surrounded Chadian villagers near the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) camp of Goz Amir and opened fire on them, killing four and wounding five. They also stole about 1,000 head of cattle.

See full report UN News Centre UN agency calls for increased security near Sudanese refugee camps in Chad May 2 2006.

Diplomats say SLA Minnawi and his Chad chums one of main stumbling blocks to Darfur Peace Agreement

Estelle Shirbon's latest report just in via Reuters - excerpt:

Observers say failure to get a deal would be disastrous.

"Nobody will look good, the AU, the government or the (rebel) movements, but the real victims will be the people on the ground," said Sam Ibok, head of the AU mediation team.

"They will not be able to return to their homes to cultivate their lands. They will have to spend more time in camps. Security will deteriorate. Women will continue to be exposed to rape and children will continue to suffer," he said.

The top two AU officials -- Chairman Denis Sassou Nguesso, the president of Congo Republic, and commission head Alpha Oumar Konare -- are due to arrive in Abuja on Wednesday. Diplomats said this could indicate that the 2300 GMT deadline, already put back by 48 hours, will slip again.

Diplomats said one of the main stumbling blocks to a peace agreement was that Minni Arcua Minnawi, leader of the most powerful of the three rebel factions, was being undermined by some of his former allies because of a crisis in Chad.

Minnawi is a tribal ally of Chadian President Idriss Deby, who is battling an insurrection by fighters he accuses of fronting for Sudan. But Minnawi's friends in Chad accuse him of abandoning Deby and selling out to Khartoum, which makes it difficult for him to sign any deal.

Is there a law to protect Sudanese children? USA and Somalia not part of UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Here's a thought: couldn't a law be found to force the warring parties at the Darfur peace talks to agree a ceasefire in order to immediately protect the basic rights of Sudanese children - the right not to be cold or hungry and the right to be protected from harm?

The idea occurred to me as I read an email just in from Jen Tabbal at SOS Children's Villages asking us to help spread the word about the effort to protect children's rights around the world.

SOS Children's Villages is an international nonprofit organisation nominated 14 times for the Nobel Peace Prize for their work to help orphaned and abandoned children.

They are gathering petition signatures to urge the U.S. government to ratify a UN document that protects the safety and well-being of children. Every day, children around the world suffer from hunger and homelessness, diseases and abuse, neglect and exploitation. All children deserve basic rights - the right not to be cold or hungry and the right to be protected from harm.

Will you consider linking to or posting on SOS Children's Villages - USA? You can also put up one of their banners which can be found by clicking here.




Just to give you a little background, the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of the Child is an international agreement that requires signing countries to protect the basic rights of children.

SOS Children's Villages - USA Mission's goal is to gather 25,000 petition signatures to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urging the U.S. to join the 192 countries that have already ratified the Convention (it's shameful that the only countries yet to ratify the Convention are the United States and Somalia).

With your help, they can achieve our goal of 25,000 signatures and move in the right direction to protect the rights of children.

SLM rebels waiting to leave Darfur peace talks

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert B. Zoellick headed into a conference room with African Union mediators and delegates from the warring parties, AP reported today - excerpt:

Zoellick, who was joined in Abuja by a top British official, Hilary Benn, later shuttled among the groups, listening to complaints and making suggestions for compromise, according to a member of the U.S. delegation.

A delegate from one insurgent group suggested his side would leave without an agreement. "There's no solution yet," said Calfaddin Aroun of the SLM. "We're waiting to go home."

Sudan tops 'failed states index'

Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo are the world's most vulnerable states, according to a new study.

FAILED STATES 2006 - TOP 10
1. Sudan (3)*
2. DR Congo (2)*
3. Ivory Coast (1)*
4. Iraq (4)*
5. Zimbabwe (15)*
6. Chad (7)*
(Tie) Somalia (5)*
8. Haiti (10)*
9. Pakistan (34)*
10. Afghanistan (11)*

* Position in 2005 report

The report - compiled by the US Foreign Policy magazine and the US-based Fund for Peace think-tank - ranked nations according to their viability.

Judged according to 12 criteria, including human flight and economic decline, states range from the most failed, Sudan, to the least, Norway.

Eleven of the 20 most failed states of the 146 nations examined are in Africa.

Full report BBC May 2, 2006 [Hat tip to http://www.passionofthepresent.org so sorry, permalinks and newsfeed to the site are still not working here]

US, Britain push for Darfur deal - UK's Benn arrives in Abuja

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick and Britain's International Development Secretary Hilary Benn arrived in Abuja today and diplomats said their presence could help jolt the rebels into signing, Estelle Shirbon (Reuters) reports:

"Despite all its shortcomings, this process has yielded a draft agreement which is the best the (rebel) movements will get ever," said Alex de Waal, an adviser to the African Union (AU), which is mediating the talks.

"They have to make the shift from criticizing the many injustices that they and their people have suffered, to seeing that a much better future can be grasped on the basis of this agreement."

The top two AU officials - Chairman Denis Sassou Nguesso and commission head Alpha Oumar Konare - are set to arrive in Abuja on Wednesday, which diplomats said could indicate that the deadline, already put back by 48 hours, will slip again.

Read more in full report at ABC May 2 2006 - excerpt:

The rebels took up arms in early 2003 in ethnically mixed Darfur, an arid region the size of France, over what they saw as neglect by the Arab-dominated central government.

Khartoum used militias, known locally as Janjaweed and drawn from Arab tribes, to crush the rebellion. The fighting has killed tens of thousands of people while a campaign of arson, looting and rape has driven more than 2 million from their homes into refugee camps in Darfur and neighboring Chad.

Washington, which labels the violence in Darfur "genocide," is intensifying efforts to resolve the conflict.

Note, the report explains that under a U.S. proposal, a section of the AU draft that requires the government to disarm the Janjaweed before the rebels lay down their weapons would be amended to better suit the government. In return, Khartoum would accept a detailed plan for integration of specific numbers of rebel fighters into the Sudanese security forces. This is a key rebel demand.
- - -

May 2 2006 IRIN US, Britain urge Darfur factions to sign up to peace - AU deadline for signing peace deal expires midnight tonight. US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick and Brtain's Development Secretary Hilary Benn have both travelled to Abuja to guard against further slippages.

Darfur rebels welcome U.S. support to get a better deal

Great reporting by Estelle Shirbon for Reuters - excerpt from her latest report:

"Despite all its shortcomings, this process has yielded a draft agreement which is the best the (rebel) movements will get ever," said Alex de Waal, an adviser to the African Union (AU), which is mediating the talks.

"They have to make the shift from criticising the many injustices that they and their people have suffered, to seeing that a much better future can be grasped on the basis of this agreement."

Note the report says Abdelrahman Musa Abakar, chief negotiator for one of the rebel factions, welcomed Zoellick's involvement.

"This means the U.S. government really cares ... They can put pressure so that we can get better terms," he told Reuters.

But other rebel delegates reiterated old complaints and diplomats said internal divisions were holding back progress. Decision-making is arduous for the rebels, who are split into two movements and three factions with a history of infighting.

Surely failure to get a deal now will lead to more bloodshed and suffering in Darfur. A collapse of the talks would also be a serious setback for the AU, which seeks African solutions to African problems.

UN radio station in Sudan sponsors debate in Khartoum on progress of press freedom in Sudan

UN radio station in Sudan is sponsoring a debate on press freedom in the Sharja Hall of Khartoum University Wednesday 3 May but Sudanese authorities have barred the station from broadcasting nationally from Khartoum, reports Sudan Tribune today.

Southern Sudan government has agreed to allow the station to broadcast from Juba, capital of Southern Sudan.

Feb 13 2006 BBC Arabic road show at Khartoum University, 6 March 2006

May 2 2006 BBC Arabic live debate from Khartoum Uni inspires young

BBC Arabic live debate from Khartoum Uni inspires young

Safaa Faisal, who presented the BBC's live debate from Khartoum, Sudan, said meeting with the young Sudanese to talk about one of the most sensitive issues they face, identity, was an eye-opening experience for her, Strategiy.com reported Apr 30, 2006:

"We had over 250 passionate, educated and opinionated young people, and many of them were very brave, debating in public an issue normally reserved for private discussions. We were keen to make sure every form of opinion was represented to the millions of our listeners across the Arabic-speaking world. In fact, it was the heart of the matter, the whole reason why we embarked on this debates road show: giving the youth a voice, listening to their untold stories."

Feb 13 2006 BBC Arabic road show at Khartoum University, 6 March 2006

May 2 2006 UN radio station in Sudan sponsors debate in Khartoum on progress of press freedom in Sudan

Sudan's Bashir receives phone call from US's Bush?

Nnsourced news report at Sudan Tribune today says Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir received a telephone call from US President GW Bush, who expressed his concern over Darfur amid a push by Washington to broker a deal with rebels at peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria.

"President Bashir reiterated the national unity government's commitment and determination to reach a peace agreement and achieve stability in Darfur," the official SUNA news agency reported today.

UPDATE: May 2 2006 Associated Press Bashir Adigun Top U.S. Diplomat Joins Darfur Talks: The official Sudan News Agency reported Tuesday that Bush called Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on Monday night about the importance of peace in Darfur, but White House aides said they were unaware of any call.

Annan urges Darfur rebels to intensify talks

"The situation in Darfur continues to be dire," Mr Annan warned through a statement issued by his spokesman today addressing the parties, especially the SLM/A and the JEM.

Pointing out that millions of civilians remain dependent for their survival on humanitarian assistance which is threatened by the continuing violence, he added: "The clear solution is for the parties to seize this historic opportunity to achieve peace and begin the task of recovery and reconstruction."

The Secretary-General pledged that the UN "stands ready to assist" in this endeavour. Full report UN News Centre May 1 2006.

Japan funds UN Joint Programme helping AU in Darfur

Over the weekend, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) together with other UN agencies, launched a training programme designed to strengthen the capability of the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) to restore the rule of law in Darfur, says UN News Centre report May 1 2006:

The programme, the very first UN Joint Programme in Darfur, is fully funded by the Government of Japan through the Human Security Fund and will cover a broad area of topics including, internally displaced persons, child rights and protection, gender-based violence, codes of conduct, the notion of voluntary return, and Sudanese legal and cultural frameworks, according to UNDP.

SLA/JEM not serving the people they claim to represent

The Daily Trust quotes SGSR Jan Pronk as saying yesterday:

"Too many objections are going right back to the start of the discussions. We can't start all over again and that is what JEM wants to do. Both SLM factions will be more able to sign but they cannot laugh at this deadline. They cannot repeat old positions.

"I have to present my report to the UN by the end of April. It is still just April, but it will be up to the Security Council to decide what should be done in terms of sanctions if there is no agreement.

"The rebels fight for more justice and equality but continuation of these talks leads to more injustice and more inequality. I hope the representatives of these groups will eventually be leaders in a peaceful Darfur but by prolonging this discussion, they are not serving the people they claim to represent."

[Link via Coalition for Darfur with thanks]

Darfur SLA/JEM joint statement on draft peace deal

SLA/JEM joint press release describes a proposed peace deal for Darfur as "an unfortunate offer by the African Union" and themselves as "in the course of a bold and noble struggle that has displaced millions of their people, thousands slaughtered and martyred and chaste ladies viciously raped."

[Noble? They started the war and refuse to end it! They are deluded and power crazy.]

Horror continues in Sudan's Darfur - BBC

BBC Correspondent Orla Guerin, who broke the news on the bombing of Joghana in southern Darfur, says the horror continues in Darfur:

"What we have found, touring through this area, is village after village burnt, destroyed or abandoned. By the end of March the count was 90 villages.

Two years after the international community woke up to the crisis in Darfur, the reality is that villages are still being torched and civilians are still being forced to flee.

Keeping watch is the AU's main role here. It came with a limited mandate, lacking both equipment and troops.

Baba Gana Kingibe, head of the AU mission, told the BBC the international community should have done a lot more for Darfur."

Zoellick travels to Darfur peace talks

The BBC's Alex Last, reporting from the peace talks in Abuja, says so far [17:22 GMT 18:22 UK] there has been no breakthrough and the prospects do not look good. Excerpt:

Chief AU mediator Salim Ahmed Salim told the BBC the rebels had come to the talks in Abuja with their minds made up, and had simply been repeating their demands.

"They [the rebels] will have to be reasonable and they have to pay also a price for this peace," Sudan's Justice Minister Muhammad Ali al-Maradi told the BBC.

US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick will travel to Abuja [today] in a bid to hammer out an agreement before Tuesday's midnight deadline, AFP news agency reports.

The BBC's Africa Analyst Martin Plaut says the talks in Abuja are a last effort attempt to maintain the fading credibility of the AU, while preventing the flames of war from spreading beyond the borders of Sudan.

DARFUR DRAFT PEACE PLAN
Pro-government Janjaweed militia to be disarmed
Rebel fighters to be incorporated into army
One-off transfer of $300m to Darfur
$200m a year for the region thereafter

Note, Eugene at CfD links to Bloomberg report Zoellick Headed to Stalled Negotiations

SLA's game is up - Darfur rebels missed their big chance

Chances of a peace agreement for Sudan's Darfur region looked slim today despite a 48-hour extension to negotiations, observers said, citing rebel inflexibility, Estelle Shirbon (Reuters) tells us in her latest report. Excerpt:

AU mediators say the rebels insist certain demands, such as a vice president's post for a Darfurian and a new regional government, should be met in full which is just not possible.

"I think the chances are very slender. ... I don't think the movements realise they've missed their big chance. ... The only thing left is for Minni to realise that the game is up," said the diplomatic source.

Photo: Abdel Wahid Mohhamed al-Nur (L) and Minni Arcua Minnawi, leaders of one of the factions of the rebel Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) talk during negotiations with Sudan government representatives in Abuja, Nigeria May 1, 2006. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

Note, the above report says the leader of the other SLA faction, Abdel Wahed Mohammed al-Nur, is isolated, while diplomats say the smaller JEM has been the most inflexible of all.

Also, a diplomat who is closely involved in the talks said Sudanese Vice President Taha has left Abuja because his latest meetings with rebel leaders had given him the impression they were not open to substantial talks.

"His meetings with the (rebel) movements yesterday were so bad. They were, frankly, so insulting to the government," said the diplomat, who described his mood as "depressed".

Observers say the rebels have squandered enormous international sympathy while the government, widely portrayed as the villain in the Darfur conflict, has played its diplomatic cards just right.

U.S. diplomats have come up with a list of suggested compromise solutions and government delegation spokesman Amin Hassan Omar said substantial changes were still possible on the issue of integration of rebel fighters.



Photo: Darfur rebel Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) commmanders Mariam Abdallah (L) and Roda Mohamed Ahmed attend negotiations with Sudan government representatives in Abuja, Nigeria May 1, 2006. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

May 1 2006 Reuters FACTBOX- Contentious issues in Darfur draft peace agreement

Sudan's Darfur rebels scoff at deadline for peace Act

"The extension of the deadline does not have any meaning for us," said Saifaldin Haroun, spokesman of Darfur rebel group SLM - AFP report by Ade Obisesan May 01 2006:

"The AU peace proposal does not address our crucial demands," he told AFP. 'We know the Sudan government very well'

Ahmed Hussain of the JEM said the JEM was "more interested in the concessions the government of Sudan will or can grant us during the extension. This will be the basis on whether or not we would sign the agreement."

"We know the Sudan government very well," Hussain said Monday. "It does not respect agreements. So, we need very safe and firm guarantees from the government and the international community."

He added: "The Sudanese government should be held responsible for any failure at these Abuja talks."

Sudan's constitution permits only two vice presidents

Associated Press report - Darfur rebels, Sudan govt prepare to re-enter peace talks - quotes JEM spokesman Hahmed Hussein as saying today,

"We are not ready to sign until the Sudanese give concessions to our demands."

In rejecting the AU draft, he said he was speaking on behalf of both his JEM and the other main rebel group, the SLM. Excerpt:

The rebels, who went to war complaining that their impoverished region had been neglected by the national government, say the AU draft pact fails to meet their demands for autonomy or for what they see as adequate representation in the central government.

Mr Salim said his team tried to strike a compromise on autonomy, creating a transitional authority for the region that would include rebel representatives and proposing that the people of Darfur vote by 2010 on whether to create a single geographical entity out of the three current Darfur states. A unified Darfur would presumably have more political weight, and the rebels had demanded one be created by presidential decree.

The rebels had also demanded a third vice president, from Darfur, be added to the national government. The compromise draft called for the president to include a Darfur official, initially nominated by the rebels, among his top advisers.

Mr. Salim said the expert would have "all the attributes of a vice president, except the name," and noted Sudan's constitution, drafted under a treaty that ended an unrelated, 21-year north-south Sudan war last January, permitted only two vice presidents.

TEXT - AU Mediator describes draft, pushes rebels to conclude

Excerpt from Conclusion of an important and eloquent Statement by Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, AU Special Envoy and Chief Mediator, which he addressed last night (2240 GMT) to the warring parties at the talks:

The consequence of not signing this Agreement, first and foremost, will be a drastic and negative impact on the people of Darfur, whose suffering and death will continue for no reason.

By signing to this Agreement, you are not required to stop your political struggle, only to now pursue it by peaceful and democratic means. The opportunity is yours to gain through the ballot box what you cannot achieve at the negotiating table here in Abuja.

Let me finish by saying that, if we walk away from here without a peace deal, the world will not forgive us. There are no winners if this war continues. Everyone of us must share the blame and must live with the guilt of the lives that will be lost and the communities ruined because of the failure to make peace here.

[He deserves a medal]

May 1 2006 AP/ST GLANCE - A look at Sudan, its history and conflicts and draft peace deal.

Darfur enemies get extra 48 hours to make peace

Mediators from the African Union agreed in the early hours of Monday to give the warring parties from Darfur a 48 hour-extension to strike a peace deal after a midnight deadline expired. Full story by Estelle Shirbon, Reuters. Excerpt:

"To be frank, it has often been frustrating for all of us to deal with you," [chief AU mediator] Salim told the rebels during the plenary.

"The Abuja process has provided you with recognition and a platform ... Should you decide to walk away from Abuja without an agreement, you should not count on the same recognition and the same opportunities for political primacy," he said.

Note, the draft peace agreement requires the government to disarm the Janjaweed. The above report explains:

This provision is particularly problematic for the government because there are many tribal militias in Darfur that are considered legitimate by their communities, and Khartoum does not want to find itself having to disarm these. Also, there is some contention on how to verify Janjaweed disarmament.

The rebels want some of their fighters to be integrated into the Sudanese armed forces and they have complained that the AU draft does not meet this demand to their satisfaction.

See Apr 28 2006 Darfur's SLM/A rebels refuse to disarm until after end of six-year transition period

Darfur rebels demand changes to peace deal at 11th hour

The African Union set midnight (2300 GMT) April 30 as a deadline to conclude the talks and said it would not reopen substantial negotiations on the proposed text. It is now 23:18. The deadline has passed.

Reuters report just in by Estelle Shirbon, says the two Darfur rebel groups said they would refuse to sign a peace agreement in its current form. Excerpt:

The Sudanese government said it had decided to sign the Darfur peace deal despite "reservations", and diplomats said the biggest of those centred on disarmament arrangements.

"What this (agreement) means, in effect, is that the government has to disarm the Janjaweed at a time when the rebels will still have their forces fully deployed, albeit in defensive positions," said a diplomat closely involved in the talks.

Observers said a trade-off was still possible whereby the government would grant the rebels a few concessions in exchange for a watering down of the Janjaweed disarmament provision.

[Perhaps tomorrow morning we'll awaken to more hopeful news. Whatever, agreements are worth no more than the paper they are written on if there is no real commitment. The rebels have proved insincere and not interested in peace. God help the women and children of Darfur.]

Darfur rebels SLM & JEM reject peace deal, talks continue

The rebel SLM and the JEM have issued statements of a "joint position" not to sign the AU-brokered peace accord.

"This document is not acceptable to us, and we are not going to go by it or sign it," JEM spokesman Ahmed Hussain said.

AU spokesman Noureddine Mezni warned the mediators' assignment "is over at 12:00 midnight."

"A couple of hours' slip is no problem, of course, you can stop the clock and continue," Pronk said after the afternoon meeting.

"But the AU has set the deadline. I think the moment of truth is now. We have reached more or less the end of possibilities. (The rebels) have to sign tomorrow," he added.

"As mediators, the AU deadline and document will not change," the AU spokesman said earlier in reaction to the rebel statements.

"Our position is supported by the UN Security Council and if the agreement is not signed they know what to do," he added.

"I did remind the parties this afternoon on the need to sign the agreement, but you cannot continue day after day repeating the old positions. It is not a serious representation of the people who you claim to fight for," Pronk said.

"If the government of Sudan is willing to accept the pressure of the international community to sign, and the parties are not ready to do so, then they have to bear the brunt," he said.

"And these are political consequences which the UN Security Council will decide."

Pronk praised the behaviour in the talks of the Sudanese government. "They have taken a decision that they can sign the document though they said they did not like the document a hundred percent," he said.

Full report Sudan Tribune Apr 30, 2006.

Sudan rebels JEM refuse to sign Darfur peace deal

Sudan Darfur rebel group JEM said on Sunday it would refuse to sign a proposed peace agreement in its current form.

"We are not going to accept this document for signature unless there are fundamental changes made to the document," Ahmed Tugod, JEM chief negotiator, told Reuters.

The African Union set midnight (2300 GMT) on Sunday as a deadline to conclude the talks and said it would not reopen substantial negotiations on the proposed text.

Darfur rebels stall Peace deal Sudanese gov't willing to sign

Just in from Reuters via Times of Oman: The Sudanese government accepted Darfur peace deal today and said any outstanding disagreements on issues such as security and power-sharing could be negotiated later. On security, diplomats say the rebels want more favourable terms for a planned integration of some of their forces into the Sudanese army. Apart from security, their main problem with the document is that it does not meet their demands for Darfur to get a new post of Sudanese vice president and a new regional government. They have other objections on issues such as compensation.

Also, the following news reports just in, mid afternoon here in England, UK, Sunday April 30:

Voice of America: The rebels say the proposed deal fails to give Darfur a vice presidential position in the Sudanese government. Rebel leaders also want better terms for integrating their forces into the Sudanese army, and for disarming pro-government Janjaweed militias. The Sudanese government has said it is willing to sign the draft agreement. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, says the successful completion of the Abuja talks would improve the situation of Darfur's two million refugees. Arbour is in Khartoum ahead of a visit to Darfur beginning Monday.

Lebanese Al-Manar TV: On deadline day, Sudan agrees to sign a Darfur peace deal but rebels threaten to pullout - A spokesman for one of the Darfur rebel groups, JEM, told reporters his side wanted prior guarantees from the international community that the peace deal would be enforced.

China Broadcast/Reuters: Sudan Accepts Darfur Peace Deal - "The [Sudanese] government ... wishes to confirm its decision to formally accept this document and its readiness to sign it," said a statement from Majzoub al-Khalifa, head of the government's negotiating team at peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria.

UK ITV.com: Darfur peace proposal accepted - The rebels have yet to respond officially to the 85-page document but several of their leaders complain that it does not meet their key demands, in particular on power sharing.

Associated Press: Sudan says it's ready to sign Darfur deal -

The Sudanese government formally confirmed Sunday that it is ready to sign a draft agreement with rebels from its Darfur region, but the rebels said they still have reservations about the deal. "We have some reservations about the draft peace agreement," said Ahmed Hussein, a spokesman for one of the two rebel factions, the JEM. "We are going to forward our reservations to the mediation after our meeting." Another rebel faction, the SLM, has asked for an extension to the Sunday deadline.

As of Wednesday, when an initial draft of the agreement was first circulated, the proposed agreement addressed complaints from Darfur rebel groups that they had been neglected by the national government. It called for the president to include a Darfur expert, initially nominated by the rebels, among his top advisers.

The draft, noting that Darfur was "historically deprived" and suffered severely from the war, also called for the establishment of a rehabilitation fund to which international donors would be asked to contribute, suspension of school fees at all levels for students from Darfur for five years, and the adoption of a national anti-poverty plan. In the draft, mediators also proposed that the people of Darfur vote by 2010 on whether to create a single geographical entity out of the three current Darfur states, which would presumably have more political weight. The draft agreement calls for the disarmament of the Janjaweed. It also calls for some rebels to be integrated into the national army and security forces and others to be disarmed.

Reuters (Estelle Shirbon): Darfur rebels say they are talking amongst themselves to seek a consensus on whether to sign a peace deal -

Decision-making is an arduous process for them as they are split into two movements and three factions with a history of infighting. The AU started meeting with one of the SLA factions on Sunday to hear their reaction to the document.

Minni Arcua Minnawi, the leader of the other SLA faction, said his group would give its position to the AU later in the day and was not ready yet to say what that was.

The other group, the JEM, was expected to give a separate submission. JEM's chief negotiator, Ahmed Tugon, said the government's statement "is an attempt to increase pressure on the movements and it clearly indicates that this document favours the position of the government."

The [no-frills] Chida International Hotel at the epicentre of the negotiations was packed with diplomats and Sudanese representatives. The atmosphere in the hotel was charged as pressure built to reach a deal.

Meetings involving all the parties continued through the night and into the day. Sudanese and diplomatic sources said SLA rebels and the government had held direct talks.

Sudan Tribune: Darfur rebels may reject peace agreement -

"I don't think we are going to accept the AU proposal. We have not got enough time to go through the document," said Saisaledin Haroun, a spokesman for the main faction of the SLM. He said the SLM had received the Arabic version of the draft accord only on Saturday. "We are not satisfied with the AU document," Haroun added, adding that the SLM would coordinate with another rebel outfit, the JEM, to forge a "common position" by the end of the day. JEM chief negotiator Ahmed Tugod said his group had "resolved not to sign the AU peace agreement", although he said this could change after its talks with the SLM.

AU spokesman Noureddine Mezni said that the bloc's mediation team "has not received any reply to the peace proposal either from JEM or from SLM".

"Our position on the issue is very clear. We are sticking to the deadline we set, which has the support of the United Nations," he said.

"We in the AU are mediators. The parties to the conflict are going to be the implementors of the peace accord. We have done our job and we are still maintaining contacts with them on the matter," he said.

The UN secretary general's special representative for Sudan, Jan Pronk, and his AU counterpart Baba Gana Kingibe are expected to hold "intensive consultations" Sunday with the parties with a view to pressurising them to sign the peace deal, a member of the mediation team said.

Sudan children will want to know why they're living in Chad

Emily Wax is the Nairobi bureau chief for The Washington Post. She has travelled to Sudan more than 12 times since the Darfur conflict began. Excerpt from her report Loss of hope in Darfur refugee camps published April 30, 2006:

The Darfur crisis is getting wide and more complicated. The mayhem has spread into Chad, where 60,000 Chadians have been forced from their homes by incursions by the Janjaweed, and by a dozen different Chadian rebel groups backed by Sudan, as well as by various bandits and mercenaries.

In another, lesser-known example of the conflict's spillover, thousands of people in the Central African Republic are being displaced by violence as the various militias backed by the Sudanese government use the lawless area to transport weapons.

The Darfur rebel groups, who once fought the government, are now fighting each other and appear less willing to compromise at peace talks underway in Nigeria.

In an audiotape broadcast last week, Osama bin Laden urged Muslims to rise up in protest of any U.N. or NATO intervention.

My e-mail in-box immediately was filled with outraged messages from Darfurians who had kept in touch and lived in cities around Sudan.

"I believe -- as many of my fellow Darfurians do -- bin Laden is very mistaken by calling for Jihad in Darfur," Ahmad Shugar, a Darfur leader, wrote in an e-mail. ". . . We are all Muslims here. It is really humiliating when a fellow Muslim looks down on you and calls for jihad against you."

Note, in the report, Emily Wax says no Western reporter had yet been let into government-controlled Darfur. To avoid misunderstandings President Bashir could do himself, his colleagues and fellow citizens a favour by opening up to the BBC to help the world learn about the culture and mindset of Sudanese folk and their politics (not religion which ought to be separate from government - there are thousands of different religions!)
- - -

UN helps collapsing states to get back on their feet

"The situation in Chad, Sudan's neighbour, is getting out of control" writes Jan Pronk, the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Sudan, in his blog entry Apr 18, 2006 - excerpt:

"... like with regard to so many countries of Africa, the international community will have to apply wisdom, determination and a concerted approach in order to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe and to help a collapsing state to get back on its feet. Thereafter the Chadians themselves, like the Sudanese, will have to decide how they together can turn a nearly failing state into a surviving nation and a sustainable society."

Photo: A collection of weapons, including surface-to-air missiles and heavy machine guns, with various other supplies are displayed in the Chad capital N'Djemena, Friday, April 14, 2006. Chad's president broke off relations with Sudan and threatened to expel 200,000 refugees from the neighboring Darfur region after parading more than 250 captured rebels through the streets of the capital following a violent attempt to overthrow him. (AP Photo/Abakar Saleh)

Death toll in Darfur war now exceeds 450,000 - Reeves

Eric Reeves says current data strongly suggest that total excess mortality in Darfur, over the course of more than three years of deadly conflict, now significantly exceeds 450,000. Full report Sudan Tribune April 28, 2006.

Now or never for Darfur as peace talks enter twilight zone

A lot is riding on the April 30 deadline. Jan Pronk, chief UN envoy in Sudan, said the mediators might be willing to extend the talks a few days at most.

"It's now or never," he said.

Full report by Ian Mather Diplomatic Correspondent Scotsman April 30, 2006.

Darfur conflict is political and tribal says Pronk: Sudan will take decades to install culture of peace and trust

Next to the political conflict in Darfur there are many tribal conflicts. They require diligent reconciliation efforts. Traditional leaders and practices can play an important role. Still, many reconciliation efforts fail. There is a culture of mistrust and manipulation.

Read more by UN SGSR Jan Pronk in his blog entry April 28, 2006.

Protestors at Sudanese Embassy, Washington - Massive rallying across the USA in protest of killings in Darfur

Probably the largest anti-genocide rally in history is taking place April 30 in Washington, DC writes Dr Jim Moore in one of several great picture posts at Passion of the Present:

Pressure on White House builds in advance of the rally.



President Bush supports the rally, and met with its organisers April 28.

For a video of the President's remarks, click here.



Photo: President GW Bush meeting at White House with leading advocates for Darfur, including Simon Deng, Dave Rubenstein, Elisa Massimo, Faith McDonnell, Gloria White-Hammond, Jerry Fowler, David Saperstein, Keith Roderick.



Photo: Hollywood actor George Clooney (L) and US Senator Barack Obama at a press conference April 27 at the National Press Club in Washington to bring attention to the atrocities in Darfur and the rally. Click here for a video from CNN.

Many thousands of protestors are expected to rally in support of the people of Darfur at demonstrations across America Sunday, April 30.



Photo: From left to right, Marialanna Lee, Scott Schaeffer-Duffy, and Eve Fox, hold up signs and pictures during a demonstration outside the Sudanese Embassy in protest of the killing in Darfur, Friday, April 28, 2006 in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)



Photo: Five members of Congress were arrested at the Sudanese Embassy, Washington and led away in handcuffs Friday to protest the killings in Darfur.

Turn up your sound and view Protect Darfur Film.

Some voices in blog land

Ethan Blogs before the rally (USA)

Eugene blogs a Reminder (USA)

The Black Iris of Jordan blogs The Forgotten Voices of Darfur (Jordan)

American (I think) blogger Jorg in Europe commented here at Sudan Watch saying he can't attend a Darfur rally in the U.S. April 30 so he's organized an online rally for Darfur together with many other German Bloggers. (Germany)

Rosemary's blog highlights a 'Virtual Rally' for those who cannot go to DC (USA)

Steve at Coaliton for Darfur blogs some opinion pieces and articles On the Darfur rally in D.C. (USA)

Eugene of Coaltion for Darfur has posted links to Passion of the Present re Thousands Gather in D.C. at Rally [thanks - my efforts to get permalinks at PoTP are not working - newsfeed to PoTP is broken too]

May 1 2006 Jim Moore Thousands Rally Sunday to Save Darfur - links to several stories at Passion of the Present http://passionofthepresent.org

[More to be added here later, as and when I find links]

Apr 30 2006 Washington (ST) Protests in US cities seek to "Save Darfur"

May 1 2006 Reuters SA Thousands in US rally against Darfur killing

TEXT- Draft of Darfur Peace Agreement

Draft of Darfur Peace Agreement download (Word, 407 kb) available at end of opinion piece by John Akec, Sudan Tribune Apr 28, 2006.

Click here to see Highlights of Darfur Peace Agreement, last-minute modifications.

UPDATE: Declaration of Commitment to the Darfur Peace Agreement

SLM stalls Darfur Peace Agreement

Here's no surprise. Darfur rebel group SLM said yesterday it needed more time to consider the Draft Peace Agreement and asked for a deadline extension from Nigerian President Obasanjo, who they say pressured the warring sides to sign the proposed deal, Ireland Online reported today - excerpt:

"We requested of the president that by April 30 it is not possible for us to conclude on our position. I will not be able to say how long because it is a technical issue," said Waheed Al-Nur, one of the group's leaders. Obasanjo wasn't available for comment.

The other rebel group, JEM, said it had only received a copy of the deal written in English - a language it said 70% of its delegates can't read - and that it was waiting for the document in Arabic.

Obasanjo personally met with the heads of each delegation and rebels said he leaned on the groups to sign the deal.

"We met President Obasanjo. He was urging the parties to put initials on the documents," said Ahmed Tugod, a leader of the smaller and newer JEM faction.

Apr 29 2006 (WP/Reuters) Rebels Say Draft Peace Accord on Darfur Is Not Yet Acceptable - "The deadline of April 30 is impossible because we need time. ... Our rights must be in the document or else we will not accept it," said Abdel Wahed Mohammed al-Nur, who heads a faction in the Sudan Liberation Army.

April 29 2006 (Reuters) Darfur rebels undecided on peace deal - "We want to have consensus within the movement before giving our final position," said Abduljabbar Dosa, chief negotiator of the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) rebel group. Field commanders from Darfur have joined the negotiating teams in Abuja as the rebels seek to unite their positions. They have yet to officially respond to the AU, but several leaders have said they are dissatisfied with the draft.

Darfur's SLM/A rebels refuse to disarm until after end of six-year transition period

Yesterday, a spokesman for the rebel Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) said it viewed the draft peace agreement's stances on power-sharing and disarmament as too tailored to Khartoum's demands, claims an unsourced report from Khartoum published in the Sudan Tribune April 27, 2006 - excerpt:

"The peace plan is much closer to the government's plans as opposed to being balanced," Mahjoub Hussein said by phone from Libya on Thursday.

"The movement can absolutely not disarm until after the end of the six-year transition period proposed by the plan", he said. "This is a red line for the SLM."

[A six-year "transition" period? What does this mean - Darfurians to vote in six years time to break away from Sudan? Is that why the rebels are insisting on a Darfurian securing a Vice-Presidency position, to have the same sort of deal as South Sudan? Why is such a proposition not being discussed openly? Surely such a deal won't be signed by Sunday! This could go on for years. Hey George Clooney et al: you're wasting your time and playing (with fire) into the rebels' hands! - read important excerpt here below entitled "Darfur's JEM rebel group dismisses Darfur peace talks"]

UPDATE: In the draft peace agreement, mediators also proposed that the people of Darfur vote by 2010 on whether to create a single geographical entity out of the three current Darfur states.

Apr 28 2006 Sudan Tribune Darfur rebel SLM rejects integration of its forces in the army - Text of London based Al-Hayat interview over Internet with Mahjoub Hussein, spokesman for the SLM/A in western Sudan Darfur: "We will not lay down our arms and we will not decommission our elements before the end of the interim period and the formation of the new Sudanese army" ... "I will head soon to Ndjamena to congratulate President Deby on his victory over the brutal aggression and hand him fresh documents that prove the involvement of the Sudan government and Sudanese intelligence organs in (the attempt) to change the regime in Chad."



Photo: SLM's Abdelwahed Mohamed al-Nur (L) while SLM's Minni Minnawi on right at Darfur peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria November 29, 2005. In the centre Ahmed Tugod of the JEM. (Reuters)



Photo: Majzoub Al-Khalifa, head of the Sudanese government's delegation (C) together with other delegates, makes a speech at the Darfur peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria, Tuesday, April 25, 2006. African Union mediators presented a draft peace agreement to warring parties in Darfur, telling the Khartoum government and rebel groups that the world was watching as a deadline for a deal by April 30 looms. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Darfur's JEM rebel group dismisses Darfur peace talks

Excerpt from a report Apr 1 2006 Sudanese rebel group JEM dismisses peace talks and calls for Darfur's sovereignty:

The chair of Darfur rebels group JEM, Khalil Mohammed, on Wednesday dismissed Darfur peace talks as "a waste of time, energy and resources of stakeholders." He said the peace talks would not achieve any meaningful result as they were "merely going in circles."

Mohammed said that if the African Union's April deadline for peace in the region lapsed without success, "the people of Darfur will be left with no choice other than to ask for self-determination".

"If we do not get our own sovereignty, the only alternative is a forceful change of the government in Khartoum," Chairman of Darfur rebel group JEM threatened.

Photo: Khalil Ibrahim Muhammad, President JEM rebel group - click on image for more details. Note Apr 21 2006 report: Chad expels JEM rebel leader Khalil Ibrahim after occupation of Sudanese embassy. Also, see Sep 30 2004 BBC Who are Sudan's Darfur rebels?: JEM leader Khalil Ibrahim Muhammad published The Black Book: Imbalance of Power and Wealth in the Sudan, which accuses Arabs of having a disproportionate representation at the top levels of government and administration]

Darfur, a region mired in conflict

There was no armed political movement in Darfur until Feb 2003, when a Darfur Liberation Front emerged, splitting into the SLM and JEM, Sudan Tribune article Apr 28, 2006 explains -

The JEM is said to have up to 7,000 men while the armed branch of the SLM has 16,000 fighters. The rebels claim to control all the rural areas while the Sudanese army remains confined, they say, to the main cities in the region.

In Feb 2004 the SLM joined the ranks of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), a coalition which groups part of the northern opposition to Khartoum and the southern rebels.

Further reading

Mar 3 2006 Give peace a chance - Sending UN into Darfur is no solution - Janjaweed will be very tough to stop by force alone

Mar 5 2006 All-inclusive Darfur Conference - UN force in Darfur only upon AU request - Pronk

Mar 15 2006 Warlordism on the increase - More troops in Darfur not much of a solution - Sudan's tribal: Janjaweed and major tribes have to be part of peace talks

Mar 21 2006 UN Security Council Report on Darfur: Power, Wealth Sharing Agreement; All-Inclusive Dialogue; New Ceasefire; Robust peace force with broad mandate

Mar 24 2006 Sharia row hits South Sudan peace deal - Sudan's SPLM pull out of team drafting Khartoum constitution

Mar 30 2006 Darfur-Darfur dialogue (DDDC) to be organised after signing of Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA)

Apr 10 2006 Why a more robust force in Darfur needs to be a UN force

Apr 15 2006 Don't Intervene in Darfur: Let the African Union do it

Finally, for a change, here's some wonderful news: click into Building Bridges for Peace among Tribes in Southern Sudan.

SLM/A rebels attacking UN and NGO aid workers in N Darfur

Unless rebel attacks against UN and other relief operations in a northern sector of Darfur stop immediately, the UN will be forced to suspend all assistance to 450,000 vulnerable people living in the area until safety can be assured, a top UN official warned today. Snippets from UN News Centre report:

SGSR Jan Pronk called on the rebel SLA to stop attacks on aid workers in Darfur. The UN will hold responsible the armed groups, including those related to the SLA, and their leaders for the failure to assist the extremely vulnerable populations under their control, the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) said in a statement.

Over the past few weeks, aid workers operating for UN agencies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have come under continuous attacks and harassment by armed groups in the Shangil Tobayi, Tawilla and Kutum areas of North Darfur, with several reports indicating that many of the attacks were waged by SLA factions.

Self serving SLM/A don't care for their people or peace

IRIN report just in, tells us:

Abdulwaheed Al-Nur, leader of the Sudanese Liberation Movement, said after a meeting with Nigerian president and AU mediator Olusegun Obasanjo on Friday that the key demands of his rebel group are not contained in the deal tabled by the AU, and that it is "almost impossible" that his group will sign it.

Al-Nur said the failure to allocate the Vice President slot to a Darfurian is one of the biggest sticking points for his group. The deal proposed by the AU includes an extensive section on power sharing, but the highest position allocated to a Darfurian is "senior presidential adviser", the fourth highest position in government.

What a cheek. They are not even fit to govern! After two years of following almost every news report on these guys, it's becoming impossible to see why they think they are better than the regime they're trying to remove by force. They make me sick. Bah. Puke. Crawl back into the hole where you came from, you greedy fat flea brained gorilla faced self serving moronic lowlifes.

Take a look at an example of their "presidential decrees" and obsession with power while 400,000 of their people perished and 2 million became homeless:

Apr 13 2006 Sudan Liberation Movement/Army The office of the Chairman Presidential Decree No. (6) For the Year 2006 Darfur SLM/A leader appoints 2nd Vice-President, Advisors

Apr 20 2006 Sudan Liberation Movement/Army The office Presidential Decree No. (8) For the Year 2006 Darfur SLM/A leader appoints Executive, Regional Secretaries



Photo: Teenage Sudan Liberation Army fighters (Alarab)

12 killed, 2 injured in rebel clashes in Darfur

According to a report at Alarab today, up to 12 died and 2 were injured in clashes among Darfur rebels in the area of Tawela in northern Darfur.

UN threatens to suspend aid in Darfur blaming rebels and SLA attacks in North Darfur

The UN threatened today to suspend relief operations in parts of Darfur because of continued attacks against aid workers by rebel fighters, Mail & Guardian reported - excerpt:

The UN blames the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA), the armed wing of the Sudan Liberation Movement, the main rebel group in the region, for a spate of attacks in north Darfur. "Several reports indicate that many of these attacks have been waged by SLA factions. Armed robbery and hijackings have endangered humanitarian workers assisting over 450,000 vulnerable people living in the area," it said in a statement.

It added that the UN has "credible information" that armed groups have also commandeered vehicles for military purposes, something it said is "unacceptable and contrary to international humanitarian law".

"Unless these attacks and harassment stop immediately, the UN and its partners will be obliged to suspend all relief assistance to this particular area till effective safety for humanitarian personnel and assets are guaranteed."

The organisation said it will hold armed groups and their leaders responsible "for the failure to assist the extremely vulnerable populations under their control".