20100920
UN News

A committee involving the United Nations has produced a preliminary draft peace document aimed at ending the bloody conflict in Sudan's Darfur region, in which some 300,000 have been killed and 2.7 million other driven from their homes in the past seven years.

The draft is based on peace agreements which the Government signed earlier this year by the Government and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), the positions of concerned parties, recommendations of two civil society conferences and consultations with the Joint Arab-African Ministerial Committee and International Partners.

It is drafted by a committee formed from the mediators to the Darfur conflict, which include the UN, the African Union and Qatar.

"This document is intended to serve as a unified basis for peace in Darfur to be presented to all parties without exception, and it shall be the basis for talks to reach an agreement on a comprehensive and final solution," AU-UN Joint Chief Mediator Djibril Bassolé and Sudanese Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Ahmed Bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud said in a joint statement after receiving the document from the committee. No details were released.

In July Mr. Bassolé lamented the fact that the main Darfurian rebel groups were not participating in the peace talks in Doha, Qatar, and last month Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called once again on all parties to the conflict to cease hostilities and take part in the Doha process.

Government forces have clashed with members of JEM in recent months, contributing to a deterioration in the overall security situation in Darfur where fighting erupted in 2003 between Government forces, allied Janjaweed militiamen and rebel groups. All three have been accused of grave human rights violations. JEM withdrew from the Doha talks as the fighting resumed and has yet to re-engage.

The Government and the LJM have agreed to resume their negotiations on 29 September in Doha, today's statement said.

"The mediation invited all armed movements to effectively join ongoing negotiations so as to reach a comprehensive and just solution on this issue and thus, meet the legitimate aspirations and demands of the people of Darfur," it added.

"The mediation also called upon all parties to make the necessary concessions and to create a conducive environment for building trust, ensuring security, stability and economic and social development with a view to attaining the desired final peace."

It called on the Government and JEM to abide by the Framework Agreement they signed in February in order to create an atmosphere conductive to the restoration of stability, development and reconstruction in all parts of Darfur.