Darfur peace signing with LJM faction delayed one month

The negotiators at the Darfur peace talks in Doha have decided to postpone for another month the decision on signing an agreement. The Government of Sudan and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) would be the only two parties to the deal. They have negotiated extensively since signing a framework deal in February of this year and in large part have finalized the terms of the agreement.

The signing of the deal is expected before 19 December, according to a statement released Monday by the mediation team. The mediators had earlier set 19 October as the deadline for the completion of the negotiations.

Radio Dabanga has learnt that that there are still points of disagreement between the government and rebel delegations. Also possibly a factor in the postponement is that two major factions continue to boycott talks — the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Sudan Liberation Army faction of Abdel Wahid Al Nur.

According to highly placed sources, the mediation team is expected to undertake a foreign tour to rally support for the Doha agreement. The mediation team includes representatives of the United Nations, African Union and the Emirate of Qatar.

The Government of Sudan is keen to clinch a final peace deal before the end of the year. Presidential Advisor Ghazi Salah Al Din, speaking to press on Monday after a meeting with US envoy Scott Gration, emphasized the importance of this deadline. Such an achievement would likely boost the legitimacy and stability of the government ahead of the 9 January referendum in South Sudan.

In his remarks, the presidential advisor cited as positive signs the arrival of a JEM delegation in Qatar and the signing of a security arrangements deal with the SLA-Minawi faction. The Minawi faction first signed a deal with the regime in May 2006, but implementation subsequenty lagged. On the other hand, the JEM spokesman earlier explained that the presence of its delegation is not a sign of official participation in the negotiations.

Another effect of the delay is that it will allow LJM more time to consolidate support for the deal internally. The movement is only loosely united. According to LJM’s chief negotiator Tadjadine Beshir Niam, the postponement will allow the rebel movement extra time to consult with the people of Darfur, refugees, people in displaced camps, and civil society organizations. The mediation’s caution may therefore reflect lessons learned from the Abuja negotiations of 2006, when rebel delegations were presented a draft agreement and given a deadline of only two days to sign. The rebel leadership was divided, and the only important leader to sign — Minni Minawi — later faced defections from some of his field commanders.

LJM is headed by Tijani Sese, a former governor of Greater Darfur. In recent years he has worked for the United Nations in Addis Ababa. Sese belongs to Darfur’s largest tribe, the Fur. This has placed him in a position to challenge the dominant Fur leader of the insurrection, Abdel Wahid Al Nur. Nonetheless, Sese’s present political position and popularity in Darfur are untested, given that he has never fought in the field.