Sudanese Politicians’ Meeting in Addis Ababa Urges Interim Govt., End to War
(AWP) - The five-day preparatory meeting to launch a political dialogue in Sudan was concluded at the headquarters of the African Union (AU) in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Monday.
The final communique, signed by 14 Sudanese political blocs, expressed support for the state institutions, stressing that the top priority at present is for the immediate end to the war, easing delivery of humanitarian aid in urgent and unhindered manner and abiding by the Jeddah agreement signed on May 11, 2023.
The statement condemned “the flagrant violations committed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the foreign forces that support the rebellion and all atrocities and repercussions of the war.”
The conferees called for “forming an interim caretaker government whose tasks, line-up and timing will be subject to consultations among all sides concerned, taking into consideration the former transitional period experiences and without any partisan quota systems.”
During the meeting, Lawrence Korbandy, the special envoy of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to Sudan, renewed calls on the two sides of the conflict – the army and the RSF – to get into serious negotiations to bring an end to the war.
“We are reiterating the call on the two sides of the conflict to get engaged in negotiations without any preconditions. This conflict will not end except through negotiations,” he stressed.
Altom Hajo, the chairman of the central body of the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF), demanded that Sudan’s seat at the AU be restored so the sides that rule Sudan on the ground may take part in discussing the current crisis and reaching a solution to it.
“Basically, we demanded that Sudan must return to its previous status. The AU already has an attitude towards the rulers and the sovereignty [Transitional Sovereignty Council] in Sudan,” Hajo said in statements to the Arab World Press (AWP).
“Wisdom requires that a ban on the Sudanese government and political forces should be lifted. They actually exist on the ground and even the United Nations recognizes them [the government],” he added.
Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Chairperson of the African Union High-Level Panel of the Resolution of the Conflict in Sudan (HLP-Sudan), had said IGAD and the AU urged all Sudanese sides to place the country’s interests above all considerations and to work together to end the war between the army and the RSF.
“IGAD and the AU are committed to work with the parties concerned in Sudan in order to reach a reconciliatory solution to the current crisis,” he said, emphasizing that a solution to the crisis can never be military.
The HLP-Sudan chief indicated that the AU will continue working with all sides concerned in order to set up a committee planning for an all-encompassing Sudanese dialogue.
Chambas warned that further infighting could exacerbate the suffering of the Sudanese people.