From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Sun Jun 28 2009 - 05:49:16 EDT
Sudan ex-rebels say no progress at peace conference
Sun Jun 28, 2009 9:42am GMT
* Former southern rebels say time running out to save accord
* South accuses north of stalling on a number of key issues
By Andrew Heavens
KHARTOUM, June 28 (Reuters) - Sudan's former southern rebels on Sunday said
there had been no concrete progress in talks over a faltering peace deal
with the north, and warned time was running out to save the accord.
Sudan's Muslim north and its mostly Christian south fought a two-decade
civil war that ended in the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).
Leaders from both sides met in Washington last week to discuss remaining
disputes over the deal that, analysts warn, may drag the country back to
conflict if left unresolved.
A senior official from the south's dominant Sudan People's Liberation
Movement (SPLM) accused the northern delegation of stalling on a number of
key issues, including the position of their shared border, preparations for
coming elections and a referendum on southern secession.
"The issues remain the same. There is no progress in resolving the issues
yet," SPLM delegation spokesman Yasir Arman told Reuters.
"We discovered again that the (north's dominant) National Congress Party has
no political will to resolve those issues ... We are running out of time."
Arman's comments clashed with more upbeat commentary on the Washington
conference from the northern delegation, and the event's organiser, the U.S.
envoy to Sudan Scott Gration.
Northern delegation head Ghazi Salaheddin told state media late on Saturday
the discussions had made solid progress, and chided the SPLM for playing
down the chance of success.
"The talks could reach a good outcome if the other party expressed a spirit
of optimism instead of depicting a bleak image," Salaheddin told the state
Suna agency, after flying back into Khartoum from the conference.
He said there had not been time to discuss all outstanding issues, but added
there would be a chance for more progress at a second meeting between the
two sides in Khartoum in July.
Both sides have accused each other of dragging their feet over implementing
the 2005 peace deal, which includes a number of looming deadlines, including
national elections scheduled for February 2010, and a referendum on southern
independence in January 2011.
The SPLM's Arman said both sides had repeated a previously agreed commitment
to abide by the decision of international arbitrators over the borders of
the contested central oil region of Abyei.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague is due next month to rule on
a dispute over the borders of Abyei, a region claimed by the north and the
south that includes oilfields and a key pipeline. Northern and southern
troops have clashed in the area since the 2005 agreement was signed.
Arman added that the Washington event had also succeeded in raising the
profile of the CPA which many in Sudan feel has been overshadowed by efforts
to solve the separate conflict in Sudan's western Darfur region.
Any return to civil war in Sudan would have a disastrous effect on the
country, its oil industry -- which involves France's Total, China's CNPC,
Malaysia's Petronas and other leading operators -- and surrounding states.
Two million people died and 4 million fled their homes between 1983 and 2005
as north and south Sudan battled out differences in ideology, ethnicity and
religion. (Editing by Louise Ireland)
C Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
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