SUDAN: Former Darfur rebel leader Minni Arcua Minawi, head of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), hopes to convince old allies to stop ressistance as he is appointed Sudan's vice president

The leader of the only Darfur rebel group that signed an agreement with the Sudanese government has promised to reach out to opponents of the African Union-sponsored and convince them to join the peace process. Minni Arcua Minawi, head of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), made the pledge at a news conference on Monday, shortly after he was sworn in as senior assistant president in line with the May 5 Darfur Peace Agreement. "Until now we hope to convince our brothers outside of the agreement to join the agreement in order that the peace may be complete," Minawi told reporters at the republican palace. Two other rebel groups that attended peace talks with the government in Abuja, Nigeria- a faction of the SLM and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) - rejected the deal, demanding more compensation for war victims and political posts. The SLM faction led by Abdul Wahid al-Nour and the JEM also demanded a more transparent mechanism for disarming pro-government Arab militias such as the Janjaweed, blamed for much of the rape and pillage in Darfur. Since the agreement, the rebel factions have split into many smaller groups and there have been reports of clashes, worsening security and humanitarian conditions in a region experiencing what the United Nations described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Many attempts to get the holdout rebel groups on board have so far died on the vine, with the exception of groups of individuals, including Abdul Rahman Mussa, who broke ranks with al-Nour and signed an annex to the agreement, committing them to the deal. Minnawi's triumph of peace was clouded by allegations that his troops tortured opponents and increased attacks on the other rebel groups who did not sign the accord. He has denied the claims but some attacks and torture have been confirmed by the African Union monitoring a shaky truce in the region. Minnawi arrived in Khartoum on Sunday, a day later than had been originally planned. He was welcomed at Khartoum airport by Majzoub al-Khalifa, the chief government negotiator during the talks that led up to the signing of the Darfur peace agreement. "The presence of the leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement with us here today sends a message to the whole world that the people of Sudan will seriously, honestly and continuously, work to build their country," he told a welcoming party. Hundreds of people, most of them students, had gathered at Khartoum's Green Square on Saturday to welcome Minnawi on his first visit to the capital since signing the peace agreement, but SLM officials scrapped his coming at the last minute. A spokesman said the arrival was postponed because the government had failed to honour a deal to name Minawi senior assistant to the president before his arrival, leading many to accuse the SLM of showing more interest in power than the plight of the Darfur people. Minawi rebuffed those accusations during his news conference. "We have to be here for two days ago, but unfortunately there were some of the miscoordination took place. "That's why we apologized yesterday in the media to all the people of Sudan. I think that that problem because of the miscoordinstion," he claimed.

ITN Source | August 10, 2006

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