A series of wars have been raging in Sudan for years if not decades but a final peace agreement next month is expected to bring a definitive end to the country’s multiple conflicts, if indications from mediators are anything to go by.
According to a team of mediators involved in initial peace talks held in the South Sudanese capital Juba in August, the main protagonists to the conflicts are on course for a landmark deal that would finally render all forms of hostility a thing of the past.
South Sudanese deputy Defense Minister Ruben Malek who is one of the mediators shared this optimism with journalists.
He suggested that October 3rd would be a watershed moment for Sudan, given the expected signing of a landmark agreement that would end all wars and usher in complete peace.
Already the authorities in Juba have been drawing the attention of leaders in the region to this approaching date, extending invitation to them to attend the occasion which would finalise the deal.
Since the transitional government took control of Sudan, it has been reaching out to disparate rebel factions scattered in all parts of the vast country with a view to reaching “the mother of all agreements” that would finally bring an end to decades of conflict.
According to Malek, something unusual has been happening in the course of realizing what a few months ago appeared unachievable.
“The uniqueness of this mediation is that the Sudanese are the ones resolving their problem by themselves. Our role is just to assert, advice and give experience but they negotiated their agreement,” Mr Malek said.
His native South Sudan has been mired in these conflicts while still a part of Sudan until July 2011.
The war for independence lasted for the better part of twenty years before South Sudan became the world’s newest nation.
But other forms of conflicts for the most part intertwined had persisted in Sudan most notably in Western Darfur including wars of a tribal nature.
While all other armed militias are jumping on the peace bandwagon, perhaps the only blot in this happy prospect is the Sudan Liberation Movement of Abdu Al Wahid Mohamed Al Nuor, who have so far refused to be convinced to sign up to the spirit of the long and sometimes arduous quest for everlasting peace.
Only by convincing them to be on board the “peace train” will the Sudanese talks to end its conflicts be an all-inclusive affair, Malek warned.
Sudan’s army of displaced people can’t wait.
WN/as/APA