Chief mediator meets Darfuri civil society leaders in Nyala

UN diplomat Djibril Bassolé yesterday attended a meeting of Darfuri civil society as part of consultations for the Doha peace process. Bassolé, who is the UN-African Union Joint Chief Mediator, was accompanied by Ibrahim Gambari, the civilian leader of the UN-African Union Peacekeeping Mission in Darfur. The meeting was attended by 56 Darfuri civil society representatives, 15 from each of the three states of Darfur and 11 from Khartoum.Fatima Abdelrahman Saleh, civil society coordinator for South Darfur State, said that the representatives yesterday discussed with Bassolé and Gambari the importance of including rebel chiefs Khalil Ibrahim and Abdel Wahid Al Nur in the peace process. Another participant, Da’a Hamid Daifallah from West Darfur, said the people of Darfur need to unite and pressure the government, which he said is not serious about achieving peace in Darfur.

Meanwhile, the mediation announced yesterday plans for a special meeting between IDP representatives and the Liberation and Justice Movement. Mohamed Suleiman Khater, advisor to the Joint Chief Mediator, told Radio Dabanga that the upcoming consultation in Doha will include 300 representatives and will be held during the first two weeks of the month of July. The agenda will include issues relevant to the displaced populations of Darfur including compensation and conditions on the ground. The meeting will be the second major consultation held under the auspices of the mediation team, following the first one in November 2009.

(Photo by US Air Force Tech. Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock: Djibril Bassolé in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, July 1, 2008)