By Kitab Unango
South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit has brokered peace deal between the Interim Government of Sudan and Sudan Revolutionary Movements, following months of negotiation in capital, Juba.
Kiir offered to mediate the talks in September 2019 after several unsuccessful attempts by regional and international bodies during the regime of the ousted President Omar Bashir.
The comprehensive deal signed on Monday last week, aimed at ending the war in Sudan that claimed thousands of lives and displaced more than half a million people from western region of Darfur and other parts of the Sudan since 2003.
Though the agreement addresses all the key roots of the conflict including power and wealth sharing, transitional justice, security arrangements and issues of internally displaced persons and refugee, the holdout factions are still seen as a threat to the deal.
“While much has been achieved in our quest for peace in the Sudan, I must say we are still far from resolving this conflict once and for all,” said Kiir during the signing ceremony.
The event was attended by Abdel Fatah al Burhan, Chairperson of the Sovereign Council of Sudan, Abdallah Hamdok, Prime Minister of Sudan, and Jeremiah Mambolo, Joint Representative of African Union and United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur.
The armed movements of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) led by Abdallaziz Adam al-Hilu and Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) led by Abdallah Wahid Mohammed al Nur did not take part in the initialing of the pack.
However, Abdallah Hamdok, the Prime of Sudan said the government would continue holding talks with the holdouts to ensure complete peace is further achieved in Sudan, urging parties to open up opportunities for peaceful coexistence of the Sudanese people.
“On this great occasion as the greatness of the Sudanese revolution, and in periods of transformation as we are now, we need as a state and political elites to be free from the past failures and mistakes in order to protect the journey to the future Sudan by opening up opportunities for recovery, reconciliation and coexistence,” said Hamdok.
However, Dr. Elhadi Idris yahaya, Chairperson of the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) pointed out that lack of commitment to implement the deal will affect the peace, calling on all parties to ensure the deal should be fully implemented to prevent further suffering of the people in Sudan.
“Nonetheless, what we have achieved today, through arduous and long negotiations, will be fruitless if there are no guarantees for implementation,” Idris urged.