SUDAN: Government still seeking military solution in Darfur, Pronk says

SUDAN: Government still seeking military solution in Darfur, Pronk says

NEW YORK, 30 Oct 2006 (IRIN) - In his briefing to the United Nations Security Council on Friday, the UN’s top official in Sudan, Jan Pronk, highlighted the government’s gross violations of the Darfur Peace Agreement and stressed that Sudan was still looking for a military solution to the deepening crisis. Pronk added that his ongoing criticism of the Sudanese government’s decision to seek a military solution, having signed a ceasefire agreement, had prompted his expulsion from his position of UN Special Representative for the Secretary-General in Sudan. "The government is mobilising more and more forces in the region, amongst others, those coming from the south. Security Council resolutions forbidding offensive air operations are being neglected," he told council members in what he characterised as "probably" his last briefing to the council. To illustrate, Pronk cited a meeting he had held with rebel commanders in Birmaza, where he implored leaders to stop looting aid vehicles, and to stop attacking the African Union Mission (AMIS), which is in Darfur until the end of December. "Now that the UN is giving support to AMIS, I will consider any attack on AMIS an attack on the UN," he told the rebels. They immediately undertook not to attack government troops, but were bombed by the Sudanese government air force within 14 hours of his departure. "I consider this characteristic of the present attitude," he said.The 7,500-strong AMIS force had its mandate extended until December 2006 by the AU Peace and Security Commission, as the Sudanese government has continually refused to accept UN peacekeepers in the region, even after a council resolution was adopted calling for UN troop deployment.UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Jean-Marie Guehenno, also briefed the council and spoke to reporters on the continuing UN efforts to strengthen AMIS."There has to be a political process, and the United Nations stands ready to engage as it has done, to engage further to promote the political process in Darfur and support the efforts of the African Union," said Guehenno.During consultations, the council discussed the fear that the situation in Darfur would spill over to other parts of the region, including eastern Chad. Guehenno announced an upcoming UN mission to Chad and the Central African Republic to see what could be done to help more than 50,000 internally displaced people and 200,000 refugees in eastern Chad alone."We are looking at ways in which a peace operation could prevent the tragedy of Darfur from expanding further [to create] a bigger tragedy in Chad and the Central African Republic," said Guehenno.Pronk, who was also concerned about the possible regional impact of Darfur, had been asked to leave Sudan by the government on 22 October due to his web-blog comments, in which he characterised the Sudanese armed forces as having low morale and indicated that the forces had recently lost several battles.Addressing reporters after the council meeting, Pronk said he believed the government’s decision to expel him was due to his criticisms "of the fact that the government continued to fight, to seek a military solution, despite the fact a ceasefire agreement had been signed; despite the fact that the DPA [Darfur Peace Agreement] had been signed", adding that he was also critical of the ceasefire violations of the rebel movement. "My incessant criticism of this was the reason for them to silence me," he added. "I have one request for the council. Please stay alert and remain attuned. After all the sorrow in Sudan, in the south as well as in Darfur, the people over there, neglected and oppressed for decades, should not be forgotten in the turbulence of other world affairs. They are counting on you," he concluded.Stéphane Dujarric, UN spokesman, outlined plans for Pronk’s return. "Following ongoing consultations with the Sudanese authorities, it is expected that Mr Pronk will return to Khartoum during November to organise an orderly handover to the officer in charge of the UN mission before returning to New York for debriefings and the completion of his mission," he said. When asked whether the UN had received an official response from the Sudan government, Dujarric said, "We do not expect any problems with the scenario that has been laid out." No official date has been set yet for his trip.Sudanese Ambassador Abdalmahmood Abdalhaleem, however, denied this, saying: "This issue for us is over and we are not backtracking from our decision; no arrangement was worked out with us," he said. "People should really respect our sovereign position."