Africa

The head of Gambia's army gives his backing to President Jammeh, who lost the December election.

British and Kenyan police join forces to fight the sexual abuse of children in Kenya.

Feyisa Lilesa says he has no regrets over his Rio protest, but has paid a price for his gesture.

Ethiopian Olympic marathon runner Feyisa Lilesa still hopes to compete for his country - despite being exiled since last summer's Games.

January 4, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The Political Secretary the Popular Congress Party (PCP), Kamal Omer, disclosed that his party would dissolve itself to unite with other the Islamic parties when peace and stability are achieved in Sudan.

Popular Congress Party (PCP) Political secretary Kamal Omer (Photo SUNA)

Omer was Asked whether it's time to reveal, ‘the succession system', a plan conceived by Hassan al-Turabi the late PCP leader to reunite the Islamist forces in one party to back the establishment of an Islamic state in a democratic regime.

"I can assure you that the moment to announce it is approaching and it is not too far," he said in an interview with the Al-Siha newspaper on Tuesday, pointing the succession system is designed to take place when peace and stability are established in the country.

The late Hassan al-Turabi was criticized by the opposition forces for his indefatigable support for the national dialogue process despite the government refusal to ensure freedoms and the continuation of war against the rebel groups.

The National Umma Party of Sadiq al-Mahdi and the Reform Now Movement of Ghazi Salah al-din Attabani suspended their participation in the dialogue process to protest the lack of freedoms in the country.

The new political alliance for an Islamic constitution should gather all the Islamic forces including the Sudanese Islamist, traditional parties and Sufi groups. The Democratic Unionist Party and the National Umma Party are among the forces targeted by this large coalition.

The idea, which is detailed in a paper prepared for the PCP's leadership in 2015, links the dissolution of the party with the creation of this alliance.

The PCP secretary general said his party was not supportive of calls for civil disobedience that aims to overthrow the regime without an agreement over the transitional period among the political forces.

Omer also ruled out that the party would not take punitive measures against the PCP youth who posted a memo hostile to any participation in the new government tasked with the implementation of the dialogue outcome.

He added that his party is keen to ensure freedom of expression and disclosed that the PCP leader Ibrahim al Sanousi met with the youth group and explained the party's positions.

Different sources say the PCP would not participate in the dialogue government but intends only to participate in the parliament to take part in the elaboration of the new constitution.

(ST)

January 4, 2017 (JUBA) - South Sudan President Salva Kiir has, in an unexpected move, sacked two governors and replaced two officials from two newly-created states.

President Salva Kiir adresses a joint press conference on 9 July 2016 (Reuters Photo)

Kiir, in a decree read on the state-owned South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation (SSBC) on Tuesday, sacked the Twic state governor, Bona Panek Biar and his Gogrial state counterpart, Abraham Gum.

The South Sudanese leader, in a separate decree, appointed former Twic state finance minister, Kon Manyiel Kuol as the new state governor, replacing Biar.

In Gogrial, Gregory Deng Kuach Aduol is the new governor.

The appointment of Aduol, an in law to the president, has drawn mixed reactions from supporters and political allies.

"I'm celebrating the most wanted appointment of Gen. Gregory Vasili with the people of Gogrial state. Congratulations to H. E. The president of the Republic of S. Sudan Gen. Kiir for his wise decision to respond to the people's thirty for change”, said Ariech Mayar Ariech, an ally of the new governor and close friend to president Kiir's family.

(ST)

January 3, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - In response to statements by the South Sudanese Foreign Minister Deng Alor, his Sudanese counterpart Ibrahim Ghandour said that the disputed Abyei area belongs to Sudan.

A man waves a South Sudanese flag as he celebrates the results of the referendum in Abyei on 31 October 2013 (Photo: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic)

Ghandour was responding to press statements by South Sudanese Foreign Minister Deng Alor who was in Khartoum during the week end.

During a visit to Khartoum during the week end Alor who is a son of Abyei told Al-Jareeda that Abyei belongs to South Sudan.

"Abyei is a Sudanese territory and the issue is resolved by the decisions of the Permanent Court of Arbitration and the African Union," Ghandour said in statements to the press at the National Assembly in Omdurman.

He further pointed to the protocol of Abyei in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) which paved the way for the South Sudan independence.

The CPA provides that the contested territory remains part of the north until the organization of a referendum determine its fate.

The difference over who will participate in the referendum prevents the two countries from holding the agreed referendum.

However, the Dinka Ngok organized a three-day unilateral referendum from 27-29 October 2013 to say they want to join the Republic of South Sudan.

Khartoum, Juba, the African Union and the international community refused to recognize the outcome of the vote.

During the electoral campaign for the presidential election in March 2015, the candidate of the ruling National Congress Party (President Omer al-Bashir told a rally in Al-Foula, capital of West Kordofan State that Abyei area belongs to Sudan and will remain a Sudanese territory.

(ST)

January 3, 2017 (BOR) - The Governor of South Sudan's Jonglei state has appealed to the army and police to ensure the safe return nearly 12,000 herds of cattle stolen from the Jalle community during a raid conducted last year.

SPLA soldiers standing near the cattle near Bor, Jonglei, South Sudan, September 26, 2012 (ST)

Speaking during a rally held in the capital, Bor, Philip Aguer, said his government agreed with the central government on how to bring back the stolen of heads of cattle from suspected Murle raiders who attacked and killed 17 people.

The government is planning to use the army and the organized forces to bring back all the stolen heads of cattle.

“We have reported all heads of cattle we lost in December 2016 to the central government and the government has agreed to return all these heads of cattle,” said Aguer.

He added, “And the government that will bring them is the police and the army, if you are a registered police or army officer, you must be ready 100 per cent”.

Boma and Jonglei state had signed a peace deal that was meant to curve down criminal activities between Dinka and Murle ethnic tribes in earlier in December last year.

But this seemed not holding as Jonglei state experienced a lot of attacks just few days after the accord was signed.

Despite all these, the governor was still hopeful that this New Year will be a year of peace in the world's youngest nation.

“2017 will be a year of peace. With peace, you cannot leave your rights to someone, so we will bring back anything that was taken away from us. Criminals in Boma state must be searched for, this year. There is nobody who is a criminal when we know where he lives”, explained Aguer.

“I hope the bad things we faced last year will not be experienced this year, we hope for good things,” he added.

The state government, the governor admitted, faced several challenges in relations to limited services delivery to, but stressed that they managed to develop plans and polices, although not much was actually implemented.

“As the government, we did not do much last year. We managed to develop our master plan and policies and objectives of what to be done in every ministry, but we did not go far in implementation,” stressed Aguer.

He added, “You see the hospital is very weak, all roads are not good, and we have not managed security either”.

On his part, the Bishop of Bor, Rubben Akurdit, blamed the people of South Sudan for creating insecurity to themselves.

(ST)

January 3, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - The Egyptian government has proposed to hold a meeting among Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt Foreign Ministers to complete discussions on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) ahead of the African Union summit this month.

Egyptian president Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi (L), Sudanese president Omer al-Bashir (C) and Ethiopian prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn shake hands during a meeting in Khartoum on 23 March 2015 on the planned Grand Renaissance dam (Photo: Ashraf Shazly/AFP)

The 28th African summit will be held in Addis Ababa from 22 to 31 January.

According to the Turkish news agency Anadolu, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry made the proposal during a telephone conversation with his Ethiopian counterpart Tedros Adhanom on Tuesday.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said the meeting is intended to provide the necessary political support for the technical talks pertaining to the GERD.

In March 2015, Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia signed a declaration of principles on the dam project that tacitly approves the dam construction but calls for technical studies aimed at safeguarding the water quotas of the three riparian states.

On September 22, 2014, a tripartite committee from the three countries proposed the conduction of two additional studies on the dam project, the first one on the effect of the dam on the water quota of Sudan and Egypt and the second one to examine the dam's ecological, economic and social impacts of the dam on Sudan and Egypt.

The French engineering consultancy Artelia and BRL groups have been selected to undertake the dam impact studies. The U.K.-based law firm Corbett & Co was selected to manage the legal affairs of the tripartite committee.

Last Septmebr, the three countries signed the final contracts for the consultation offices appointed to conduct technical studies.

The multi-billion dollar dam is being constructed on the Blue Nile, about 20 kilometres from the Sudanese border, and has a capacity of 74 billion cubic meters, and is expected to generate electrical power of up to 6,000 megawatts.

Egypt is concerned that the dam could reduce its quota of 55.5 billion cubic meters of the Nile water, while the Ethiopian side maintains that the dam is primarily built to produce electricity and will not harm Sudan and Egypt.

Last May, Ethiopia's Minister of Information and Communication Getachew Reda said the GERD is almost 70% complete.

(ST)

January 3, 2017 (JUBA) – Several of seals and stamps were found at the premises of Click Technologies Ltd by the security personnel from the General Intelligence Bureau (GIB) during searches conducted as part of inquiries into the alleged theft of huge sums of money from the office of the South Sudanese President, Salva Kiir, new details have emerged.

South Sudanese president Salva Kiir (AFP)

The contentious case involved the $500 million allegedly stolen from the president's office and transferred to the account of John Agou in Nairobi, Kenya in favor of Mayen Wol Jong, the Chief Administrator and Executive Director Yel Luol Koor.

According to the report released by Legal Watch Associates South Sudan, Koor and Agou were tasked by the investigations committee to explain how seals and stamps from government institutions ended up at Click Technologies Ltd, owned by the latter.

“This particular seal was requested by the Executive Director in the Office of the President, Yel Luol from Click Technologies Ltd. The seal was made bearing writing for the “Office of the President''. When the seal was delivered to the Executive Director, the Executive Director rejected it because they only need the seal with writing ‘'The President'' and not the one for the “Office of the President”, said Agou in his statement before the High Court.

He further added, “The Company made the correct seal and delivered it to the Office of the President and took back the incorrect seal with intention to destroy it. That's how the seal ended up being found in the premises of Click Technologies Ltd”.

However, when asked to also explain how the seal for the army chief of general staff ended up at his Click Technologies Ltd, Agou, who owns the company, claimed the seal was requested by the personal assistant of the chief of general staff, identified as Captain Dut Yai.

“The seal was produced by Click Technologies Ltd with the writings “The Republic of South Sudan – Office of the Chief of General Staff-SPLA/SPLM” and also bearing the “Coat of Arms for the Republic of South Sudan”. When the seal was ready, the company called Capt. Dut Yai to pick it and he picked it up. A few days later, he came back and said that the seal has some errors and that he need a new seal bearing “Coat of Arms of SPLA” and writings, “The Republic of South Sudan - Chief of General staff-SPLA”, Agou told the court.

“The correct seal was made and delivered to him and the company took back the incorrect seal with intention of destroying it. This is how the security personnel ended up impounded it at the premises of Click Technologies Ltd,” he added.

Testimonies contained in court documents Sudan Tribune obtained further showed that the scanned signature of the president that was found in one of the computers impounded at the premises of Click Technologies Ltd by GIB security personnel was only used for the process of producing executive portraits of the South Sudan leader.

“The sample of the signature was provided by the Executive Director in the Office of the President and its usage on the portrait photos of H.E. the President was approved in 2012 by a committee composed of former Legal Advisor to the President, Telar Ring Deng, former Minister in the Office of the President, Emmanuel Lowilla and former Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Barnaba Marial Benjamin,” partly reads a section of testimonies contained in court documents.

“The above mentioned Seals and the Signature of the President were NOT used on any financial documents requesting for payments from the Ministry of Finance and Economic planning or the Central Bank of South Sudan, neither were they used by the anybody for any official or unofficial purpose,” it adds.

Meanwhile, auditors and investigators denied that the seals and signatures found were used for any illegal activities when asked by the defense lawyers during the trial into the alleged corruption case.

An aide to the president, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the South Sudanese leader's signature is only used for specific functions, citing appointment of government officials, dismissal of the same government officials, correspondence with other heads of state, confirmed death sentences and grant pardons to people convicted, promote army and other organized forces officers and retired them also according to the law, among other official matters.

“But no such function was done without the knowledge of the president that was shown to the court as evidence, despite the high propaganda that was said by security personnel that the signature of the president was used to request money from the central bank by John Agou,” the official told Sudan Tribune on Tuesday.

He added, “The president does not sign cheques, and neither does he have sample signatures in any bank to use his signature to withdraw money,”

A report released by Legal Watch Associates South Sudan on the alleged corruption in the office of the South Sudanese President's office poked holes in the process of administration of justice starting from the time of arrests detention, investigation, trial, and sentencing up to conviction.

The case involved 16 people from different institutions including the President's office, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Bank of South Sudan and staff of Click Technologies Ltd.

(ST)

Expressing concern at escalating tensions and threat of renewed conflict following developments in central Libya, the United Nations envoy for the country urged all parties to work together on reconciliation and to refrain from any rhetoric that could inflame the situation.

January 3, 2017 (JUBA) - The South Sudan's First Vice President, Taban Deng Gai has urged citizens, particularly those with grievances towards each other and government to forgive, forget and open new chapters in life for the sake of peace.

Taban Deng Gai addresses delegates after he was sworn-in as South Sudan FVP inside the Presidential Palace in the capital of Juba, July 26, 2016 (Photo Reuters/ Jok Solomun)

Gai, who replaced rebel leader Riek Machar last year, made these remarks while speaking at a rally held in Yei River state on Tuesday.

“When two people do not talk to each other, God does not touch their files until they reconcile, though one must be on the right, they will not receive God's blessing if they do not compromise”, he said.

The official said he was in the state to assess the general situation as part of his peace plan and programs to sensitize the population and members of the armed opposition faction, who are yet to respond to calls for cessation of hostilities and move to the cantonment sites.

“This year, how do we want it to be? We want it to be the year of peace, reconciliation, forgiveness and unity,” Gai said in a statement, broadcast on the state-owned South Sudan television (SSBC).

He added, “If you have a problem within the family, reconcile, tell the person who offended you that I have forgiven you. If you have grievances you want to be addressed by the government, come out and tell the president and I am sure he will listen to you and the problem will be solved. This is what we should do and this is what the New Year should be. We need to forgive and reconcile”.

Yei state is one of the states in Equatoria region which have been experiencing insecurity for the last five months since the renewed violence that erupted in the national capital Juba in July last year.

Tens of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes following the insecurity in the area. Observers have, however, doubted the extent to which Gail controls the armed opposition fighters.

Also although Gai claims to control rebel fighters in the area, he has shown no authority to end atrocities in Yei and its neighboring areas.

A few hours after the First Vice-President's heavily guarded visit to Yei where he spent two nights and after he flew out of Yei, a bus was ambushed on Juba-Nimule road and civilians were killed.

Despite insecurity in the region, Gai is expected to visit Torit and Yambio in Equatoria region before touring Wau in Bahr el Ghazal region.

(ST)

January 3, 2017 (JUBA) - South Sudan rebel leader, currently in South Africa, ordered for the release of the Tanzanian pilot who landed in a rebel-controlled area within Unity state last week, an official said.

South Sudan's opposition leader Riek Machar speaks during a briefing in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa April 9, 2016 (Photo Reuters/ Tiksa Negeri)

The armed opposition's chairman of the national committee for information, Mabior Garang said Riek Machar, directed the pilot's release after he was contacted and the latter flown back to Juba.

The plane, a Cessna 208B-Caravan-Registration: 5H.MZA was operated by Mohammed Nassur Saleh. On board was the government-appointed commissioner of Panyinjiar county, Peter Gatkoi.

Carrying a 12-member crew, the plane landed at Ganyliel airstrip, an area controlled by the Machar-led armed opposition fighters sparking concerns and investigations behind the circumstances under which the plane could have landed in a rebel held territory.

Local officials in the area, Mabior said, contacted the higher leadership after the plane landed and spotted the presence of the county commissioner and his entourage after they disembarked.

“The movement's civil administration, the local authorities in Panyijiar county immediately alerted the top leadership of the movement. The Chairman and Commander in Chief of the SPLM/SPLA Dr. Riek Machar Teny then ordered for the release of the said pilot”, he said in a statement also extended to Sudan Tribune.

The Tanzanian pilot, according to Mabior, was allowed to fly away on humanitarian grounds and he has since returned to Juba.

“The movement has since decided to release both the pilot and the plane on humanitarian grounds and the Pilot have since safely left our liberated territories back to Juba. The innocent pilot, who carried no legal documents and had no access to any embassy in the country, blames Juba government for lying to him that Panyinjiar was under government control”, he stressed.

The armed opposition official, however, expressed regrets and surprise at how saying their opponents in Juba would send an innocent pilot into a rebel controlled area as a bait for propaganda.

“The SPLM/SPLA (IO) regrets that the regime in Juba would send an innocent pilot into our liberated territories without information and then fabricate a story alleging the pilot is being held by the “IO” in exchange for their spokesperson James Gadet; who was kidnapped with the help of Kenya authorities last year,” said Mabior.

He further added, “These allegations are pure propaganda”.

The rebels denied reports that they detained the pilot and demanded ransom.

“In reference to the above subject, the leadership of the SPLM/SPLA In Opposition would like to refute the negative propaganda fabricated by the Salva Kiir administration regarding a Tanzanian pilot, allegedly held for ransom by the SPLM/SPLA (IO) security personnel,” clarified Mabior.

He described the rebel faction as a mass popular movement with civil administration in its liberated territories and that the entire movement commends the leadership shown by the commissioner of Panyijiar Brig. General John Tap Puot and his entire staff, officers and all those who reacted quickly to resolve the situation.

In the past, he said, the rebel had previously released foreign planes which landed without their permissions in Pagak, Uror and Jiech as good gestures to encourage humanitarian services in their territories.

(ST)

January 3, 2017 (JUBA) – South Sudan's First Vice-President, Taban Deng Gai has advised rebel leader, Riek Machar to denounce armed rebellion and return to the young nation.

Riek Machar sits in his field office in a rebel controlled territory in Jonglei State February 1, 2014. (Photo/Reuters/Goran Tomasevic)

Speaking during a visit to Yei River state on Sunday, Gai said regional countries denied Machar safe entry into their territories and would be locked out for a foreseeable future.

“Riek Machar has been parked [in South Africa] like a car without wheels,” Gai told a crowd gathered in Yei town.

“Time for conflict in South Sudan had ended. Time for conflict in the region has ended in all regions,” he told the Juba Monitor newspaper adding, “This is time for peace”.

This was the First Vice-President's first visit to Yei River state since his controversial appointment to replace Machar.

“This year, for the sake of peace, [we] should talk to our relatives to join peace. Let them [rebels] know what happened to Riek Machar. Now Riek Machar is a trouble maker and he has been parked in South Africa. They will be parked like Machar,” said Gai.

“Riek Machar will not be seen again. He would be seen again in elections if there is peace. If there is no peace, Riek Machar will not be seen again,” he added.

Meanwhile, Agel Machar, a youthful member of armed opposition faction said Gai's peaceful approach to the South Sudanese ongoing conflict would work.

“I believe in the leadership of Gen Taban Deng Gai, because he is working for peace, not war. My leaders in the IO-Riek are for war, which I protest,” Agel told The Dawn newspaper in an interview published on Tuesday.

Agel, who hails from Bahr el-Ghazal region, initially backed the Machar-led rebel faction.

(ST)

A law that gives women in Zambia the right to take a day off work if they're on their period is finally being discussed openly.

By Elwathig Kameir

Since the launch of the "civil disobedience" initiative in November 2016, called for by several non-partisan Sudanese youth groups using cyber space, the leadership of the SPLM/A-N has not ceased its incessant chain of press statements in support of, and expressing solidarity with the peaceful youth movement, as a viable way, to reach its final aim of overthrowing Al-Bashir's ruling regime. There is no doubt, that the reader of these frequent pronouncements would not have second thoughts that the SPLM-North emanate from a political organization that favours the adoption of peaceful political means and civil action to achieve its legitimate political objectives. In a previous piece, I had strongly argued that the “civil disobedience” experience is a lesson, for the armed movements, to learn from, more specifically to review the feasibility of armed struggle in accomplishing the very same goals. The viability of armed resistance should be at the top of the SPLMN's agenda. (The Aftershocks of the Disobedience: What will the Government Do? Sudantribune.net (Arabic edition), 18 December, 2016). It is true that the armed movements have the right to support any peaceful movement for change, and to build ties with all political activists. However, it remains that the meaningful contribution, of an armed movement for exerting pressures on the ruling regime, rests on achieving military victories and occupying and/or liberating territories. Indeed, that was the "value added" of the SPLM/A, under the leadership of late Dr. John Garang, during the 1980s and 1990s. Tilting the balance of forces in favour of the “peaceful revolutionaries” in Khartoum eventually paved the way for toppling Nimeiri's regime.

However, in a statement issued on the first of January 2017 the SPLM-N transcended its earlier stance of lending mere moral support to the civil resistance, to advancing specific practical proposals in the arena of peaceful political struggle. Thus, in this press statement, the Secretary-General of the Movement called on “Sudanese nationals who hold foreign passports to organize a campaign for collective return to Sudan and challenge the regime, according to a specific agreed-upon program that aims at consolidating the escalation of popular activity. If the regime took any action against them, it would then face both internal, and external condemnation from countries, from which the returnees hold travel documents and passports (because these countries) are obliged to protect them according to their internal laws. This would cause dual pressures (on the regime)”. This sounds great.

However, the call of the SPLM-N might not find a consensus or a broad-based response among the targeted population group. The Sudanese in the diaspora do not in any way represent a holistic mass, rather they profess heterogeneous doctrines and varied political beliefs. Therefore, why doesn't the SPLM-N develop its own initiative further? This could be approached by specifically addressing, during this first phase, the Movement's external constituency, members and close supporters. The SPLM-N has dozens of chapters and offices abroad, particularly in Europe and North America, which are supposed to be prepared to mobilize and organize on a large scale. Why doesn't the SPLM-N, as long as it is convinced of the viability and feasibility of peaceful means of struggle, take the lead in challenging the regime on this score, while seeking to expand the proposed campaign by reaching out progressively to the rest of the Sudanese in the diaspora? Perhaps, such an approach might prove rewarding on a number of counts. First, it would bestow credibility on the Movement by being able to translate political slogans into reality, a lacking attribute among Sudanese politicians. Second, it would furnish a test of the degree of people's embracing of, and popularity of the SPLM-N, following a long stagnation of engagement in civil political action, dating back to June 2011. Third, it would be an exercise in assessing the degree of effectiveness of this method of peaceful resistance. Fourth, it is an opportunity for providing practical training for the cadres of the Movement in the sphere of peaceful action and political networking. Above all, opting for the accomplishment of “change” through the mechanisms of peaceful political struggle, the SPLM-N would accumulate an appreciable political capital, which God Knows is desperately needed at this critical juncture.

Dr. Elwathig Kameir is a former university professor of Sociology and consultant with numerous regional and international organizations. He is also a former member of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) . He is reachable at kameir@yahoo.com

Just a few weeks ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) began distributing much-needed anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs to patients living with HIV in Libya, following the country’s collapse in medical services and inability to provide life-saving drugs.

Senegal MPs vote to allow expatriates to run for office, expanding the size of the national assembly.

Defending champions Ivory Coast are given extra financial support for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations finals.

Sudan Democracy First Group Nirtiti massacre in Central Darfur exposes the criminal nature of Bashir's regime

2 January 2017

On the first day of 2016, and only one day after President Bashir's announcement of a one-month cease fire in the three conflict zones, the Sudanese Army and its allied militias attacked the area of Nirtiti in Central Darfur state. Wearing the uniform of the Sudanese Army, the attackers took over the area for several hours, assaulting people in their homes and neighborhoods, killing and wounding tens of civilians with the death toll continuing to climb.

The raid on Nirtiti took place within the area of operation of United Nations/African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) forces: UNAMID did nothing to stop the attack or protect civilians as per their mandate.

The raid on Nirtiti is understood to be a reprisal by the army for the killing a solider whose body was found in the outskirts of the city the previous day.

This latest massacre confirms several important facts about the conflict in Darfur.

First, the war in Darfur is still ongoing. The government's discourse about the “end of conflict” in Darfur is a baseless assertion which the international community has swallowed, allowing a blind eye to be turned to the crimes and victims in Darfur.
Second, there is a complete lack of genuine political will on the part of the government to achieve peace. The attack on Niriti took place one day after the announcement of a cease fire by the Head of Sate. That announcement had no meaning for the Army and pro government militias which have had a constant license from the government to commit atrocities and crimes as part of the conflict strategy, regardless of the political situation.
Third, the event confirmed that despite the political rhetoric of the national dialogue, the real government policy is that declared by President Bashir in his speech to the army on 25 December in which he pledged to continue to pursue a military “solution” to the crisis in the three areas.
Fourth, this massacre exposed once again the infectiveness of UNAMID in exercising its mandate to protect civilians. Not only are bureaucratic procedures impeding its ability to act decisively, but it has repeatedly shown that it cannot act without the consent of Khartoum, most recently reflected in the Mission's cowardly response to the allegations of the use of chemical weapons in Jebel Mara.

The army's criminal offensive on the citizens of Nirtiti is not a standalone incident: it is part of the norm in Darfur. Similar raids took place on several cities last year and before. No political solution can be achieved in the conflict without addressing this practice of government sanctioned attacks on civilians and looting cities and villages. Sudanese citizens in the conflict zones deserve justice and protection. Accountability (both political and legal) for these crimes must be at the top of the agenda of any attempt to achieve a lasting peace in Darfur and the rest of Sudan.

International mediators and actors in the Sudanese crisis must not ignore the spilled blood of Sudanese citizens. It is insulting, cruel and inhumane to ignore the realities of such crimes while proposing Pro forma deals that ultimately help no one but the criminals to escape accountability and reap the benefits of the cycle of impunity.

Sudan Democracy First Group
2 January 2016