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| High-Level panel on Darfur to complete task in 4 months
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Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (PANA) -
The African Union Panel on Darfur
(AUPD) will complete its assignment in four months from now,
Mr. Thabo Mbeki, chairman of the panel and former president
of South Africa, told reporters here at the conclusion of a
two day meeting of the panel.
The AUDP will soon travel to the Sudan, including Darfur,
and other countries to meet with stakeholders in a bid to find
an end to the political standoff in Darfur.
“We will then advice the African Union on how to go about
the issues of peace, Justice and reconciliation,” said Mr. Mbeki
at the inaugural meeting of the committee here.
The Peace and Security Council of the African Union established
the AUDP on 21 July, 2008, with the mandate to examine the
situation in depth and submit recommendations on how best
the issues of accountability and combating impunity as well
reconciliation could be comprehensively addressed.
Members of the panel include Mr. Peirre Buyoya, former president
of Burundi; General Abdusalami Abubakar, former head of state
of Nigeria; Mr. Tieble Drame, former Malian Minister, and other
African high-level officials.
The panel’s inaugural meeting was attended by representatives of
the PSC, members of the United Nations Security Council, European
Union and African diplomats.
The meeting featured presentations on the origins and patterns of war
in the volatile region of Darfur, the search for peace, the UNAMID
activities, achievements today and challenges encountered, an official
who attended the meeting told PANA here.
The panel does not have the mandate to address the recent decision
by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to arrest President
Omar Al-Bashir of Sudan, said Mbeki.
Reports from Sudan, however, indicate that tensions have risen in
the western region of Sudan after the arrest warrant was issued by the ICC.
Sudan also has expelled more than 13 aid organizations considering them
spies with political motives.
The AU has been working on resolving the Darfur crisis since 2004,
both through the deployment of a peace-keeping operation and
mediation of political dialogue.
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| Addis Ababa - 19/03/2009 |
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