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Abuja meeting adopts four-point agenda
on Darfur
By Tony Eluemunor
and Onyekachi Eze (Abuja)
A crucial agreement was reached at
an 8 p.m. meeting on Monday between the Sudanese Government and the rebel
groups, thus allowing Tuesday�s deliberations to take place.
The parties to the Darfur conflict had
spent Monday�s deliberations bickering over peripheral issues: For instance,
whether the war is merely a matter of security in the region or apolitical one.
Weighty ones, such as whether to allow in troops or not, were left unattended.
At the resumed sitting of the
mediation team spearheaded by the African Union (AU), an agenda agreeable to
all the disputants was adopted.They include humanitarian and security issues,
the political question and economic as well as social affairs.
The breakthrough removed the
deadlock that reigned on Monday and made Justice and Equity Movement (JEM),
which had threatened to pull out ,to remain at the parley. The rebels got what
they wanted � defining the crisis
a �political problem requiring a political solution� rather than a localised
security problem involving Darfurians.
Yet, it appears some details have
not been resolved, which probably delayed Obasanjo�s triumphant statement to
the press by almost one hour.
By 1.45 p.m. his spokesperson Remi
Oyo summoned newsmen to a press conference with the rallying cry that �the President
is waiting foryou�. Microphones where set in positions. But the address was not
heardfor an hour.
When Obasanjo eventually emerged, he
said: �All theevents in Darfur are based on politics. If the politics have been
right theissue of security would not have come up, the issue of
humanitarianrequirements would not have come up. And of course if politics have
been rightmaybe economic problems we shall address would also have been right.
�When the parties come back, an
arrangement on these issues on the agenda will be taken one by one. We believe
that if the first two issues are well dealt with � the humanitarian and
security issues �then it will be easier to move on to the political question�.
He described what has transpired in
the last 24 hours as commendable, noting that in some talks like this the
parties would not even agree on the agenda.
�I believed that we have made
progress. Within the last 24 hours we have had a wonderful opening; we have
heard statements from the parties concerned. Some of the statements were
emotion laden, which isunderstandable; but all in all the statements were frank
and instructive�.
On the time frame for the mediators,
Obasanjo stated: �Well we will be talking. This is not the type of programme in
which you will say you are limited for one week or two weeks; one day or two
days. When we think that we should have a break we will have a break; when we
think that there should be an adjournment we will have an adjournment; when we
think that it is necessary to go on for 24 hours we will go on for 24 hours�.
Reacting to the threat credited to the
leader of the government, Obasanjo warned that there would be �a real disaster
for the international community to feel absolutely dissatisfied in the handling
of events by the government of Sudan to the extent that they have to unleash
something that is more than what we are trying to do. That will be a great
disaster for Sudan, the government, the people and the East Africa. I believe
we can handle it�.
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