Sustainable peace for Darfur in sight, but long way to go, says UN-African
envoy
24 July 2012 -
A sustainable peace for the people of Darfur is in sight but the challenges
still facing the Sudanese region are many, the joint African Union-United
Nations envoy there said today, stressing the need for all parties to remain
focused and committed to making further progress.
"There remains a long way to go. What progress has been made remains fragile
and is easily reversible should we lose focus," the Joint Special
Representative and head of the UN-AU peacekeeping mission in Darfur (
<
http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/unamid/> UNAMID), Ibrahim
Gambari, told the Security Council in a briefing.
"The people of Darfur have suffered too long and too deeply for us to allow
any set backs or regression. We must instead remain focused, determined and
committed to making progress along the path to peace and reconciliation in
Darfur," he added.
He noted that the signatories to the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur
(DDPD), an agreement signed in Qatar last year between the Sudanese
Government and the rebel Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), have made
notable progress towards its implementation.
However, this has so far been focused mainly on establishing the
institutions provided for in the agreement and associated political
appointments, he added. "In this connection, the parties recognized that
many provisions of the DDPD remained unimplemented several months after
their stipulated deadlines."
The UN has previously said that agreement can form the basis for a permanent
ceasefire and a comprehensive peace accord to end the fighting that began
more than eight years ago in Darfur.
Mr. Gambari also noted that the Darfur Regional Authority, which was
inaugurated in February, has initiated the Darfur Joint Assessment Mission
provided for in the Doha Document.
"This Mission, which is intended to identify and assess needs for economic
recovery, development and poverty eradication in Darfur, is projected to be
completed by the end of the year and form the basis for resource
mobilization. Its initiation is a positive step that deserves our
commendation," said the envoy.
In his capacity as the acting Joint Chief Mediator for Darfur, Mr. Gambari
is continuing to work with the Deputy Prime Minister of Qatar, Ahmed bin
Abdullah Al Mahmoud, towards the resumption of negotiations between Sudan
and non-signatory armed movements.
He said that several armed movements and factions have approached him to
express interest in holding talks with the Government using the Doha
Document as a basis for discussions.
"In my recent discussions with Deputy Prime Minister Al Mahmoud, we agreed
that the environment was suitable for a re-launch of the mediation process
through preliminary consultations with all interested opposition movements,"
said Mr. Gambari.
"The intention would be to consolidate the gains being made through DDPD
implementation and apply pressure on the hold-out movements to join the
process."
The envoy added that it is time for the task of peacekeeping to be
complemented by initiatives that advance peacebuilding in Darfur.
"We must redouble our commitment to restore basic services to more
communities and facilitate early recovery and reconstruction. This is the
key to consolidating our gains in the region and to persuading communities
ambivalent about the peace process to join it," he stated.
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Received on Wed Jul 25 2012 - 15:20:53 EDT
