The Darfuri civil society consultations in Doha concluded Saturday with representatives finalizing the “Doha Declaration” and delivering it to African Union/United Nations chief mediator Djibril Bassolé and their Qatari host, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs H.E. Ahmed Bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud. The declaration reportedly urged the Sudanese government and the Darfuri rebels to commit to a ceasefire and begin negotiations as soon as possible. It also called upon all sides and the mediators to include civil society as part of the negotiations and to task it with assisting in the implementation of any agreement.
The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) is not at all enthusiastic about a coherent civil society voice. But unlike in May with Mandate Darfur, a civil society initiative sponsored by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, we have not heard of any reported incidents of Darfuri representatives being prevented by the Sudanese government from attending. This outcome is likely due to the combined and coordinated pressure of Bassolé, the Qataris, U.S. Special Envoy Scott Gration and other envoys. As for the overall representation of the 170 delegates, we are hearing good things as well. Rebel representatives in Doha, who themselves are leery of a strong civil society voice, had to concede that the NCP had not stacked the conference. While there are no hard numbers, many of the representatives and others at the consultations stated that overall they were satisfied with the attendance. Of course, there were some pro-NCP attendees, but these were nowhere near the majority.
And it seems apparent from the “Doha Declaration” itself that NCP representatives had limited influence on the outcome. In addition to a call for a ceasefire and negotiations, the civil society representatives also made strong demands about carrying out justice, ending impunity, and resolving land issues in Darfur. In fact, the document specifically calls for the return of all land of displaced persons and refugees to their original owners and the evacuation of those who have lived on the land during their absence. It also calls for the disarmament of all armed forces in Darfur, except for the constitutionally authorized regular forces, and the establishment of the necessary security mechanisms by UNAMID to allow displaced persons and refugees to return to their villages. As we have just received the text in Arabic, we will try to provide a summary translation later in the week.
Overall, it seems like the chief mediator Bassolé accomplished his goal: sending a strong message from civil society representatives to the Sudanese government and rebels that the conflict should be settled as soon as possible. According to The Sudan Tribune, he said that the peace process “concerns all the sons of Darfur” and that this meeting would be followed by others in Darfur. Henry Anyidoho, the acting Joint AU-UN Special Representative for Darfur, added:
The growing consensus that would emerge in the civil society consultations here in Doha will certainly have a positive impact on the next round of talks between the Government and the armed movements, and I am hopeful that this will reinvigorate the entire peace process.
He issued a challenge to the gathered representatives:
You have been persistently asking for this opportunity and you now have it. Please make full use of it and do not let it slip away.
In addition to Bassolé and Anyidoho, the Darfuri representatives were welcomed to the meetings by Qatari prime minister, the African Union’s Chairperson Jean Ping and representatives from the Arab League, United States, United Kingdom, France, Chad, Libya, Egypt, China, Russia, Senegal, Syria, Organization of Islamic Conferences, and European Union. Their attendance showed the interest of the world in the meetings, but Anyidoho had a strong message to the international community as well:
Only when all stakeholders, including the international community, speak with one voice on how best to resolve the conflict in Darfur, will the improvements that we can already see on the ground in Darfur become sustainable and encompassing…Let us redouble our efforts towards this one objective: peace and stability in Darfur.
To that end, we know that only consistent, coordinated pressure on the Sudanese government and Darfuri rebels will compel them to engage seriously in future talks. So let us hope these consultations really represent a “breakthrough” in the negotiations and that this declaration from so many unheard voices will help push all sides to the table to address the critical issues of protection, peace and justice for millions of Darfuris.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Save Darfur Coalition.
Tags: civil society, Darfur, Doha, Peace Process
