‘Sudanese govt. should prioritise dialogue to reach peace’: Darfur Authority

Dr El Tijani Sese, chairman of the Darfur Regional Authority, has expressed his hope that the new Sudanese government will consider dialogue as a priority, to reach peace in Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

After the launch of a Darfur-Darfur conference in El Geneina, capital of West Darfur, on Wednesday, Sese said in a Sudanese radio interview that efforts are being made to convince the Darfuri rebel movements to join the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD).

He said that he hopes that the new Sudanese government, to be formed after the general election that took place last April, will prioritise peace talks with the rebel movements.

The Liberation and Justice Movement, led by Sese, signed the peace document with the Sudanese government in Doha, Qatar, in July 2011. A split faction of the Justice and equality Movement, JEM-Sudan, led by the late Mohamed Bashar, joined the DDPD in April 2013.

The main Darfuri rebel movements, the Justice and Equality Movement and the two Sudan Liberation Movement factions, have rejected the contents of the Qatari deal. They insist on a regime-change, which they consider the only option to reach peace and democracy in the country.

On Wednesday, the Darfur-Darfur conference started at the Research Centre for Peace and Development of the University of El Geneina.

“The conference is part of an internal dialogue and consultation series held in the five states of Darfur aiming to realise a comprehensive peace in the region,” the director of the centre, Abdelrahman Imam Abdelrahman, told Radio Dabanga.

“All segments of the West Darfur communities are participating,” he explained, “to discuss the causes of the conflicts in the region, the development of a culture of peace and reconciliation, and the role of women in the Darfuri society.”