Wikileaks: Mbeki fiercely critical of Darfur mediator Bassole
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September 5, 2011 (WASHINGTON) – The former South African president
Thabo Mbeki who is also the chairman of the African Union High Level
Implementation Panel (AUHIP) expressed his deep frustration with the
approach taken by the Darfur joint chief mediator Dijibril Bassole,
reveals a leaked U.S. diplomatic cable.
JPEG - 31.8 kb
United Nations and African Union chief negotiator on Darfur, Djibril
Bassole (R) and Chairman of African Union High Level Implementation
Panel (AUHIP)
According to the cable Mbeki vented his anger during a meeting he held
on February 20, 2009 in Khartoum with U.S. special envoy to Sudan
Scott Gration.
The AUHIP chairman wanted to make Darfur peace file one of his key
tasks and to include it in his holistic approach to end Sudan’s
conflicts. He suggested to make Darfur civil society, tribal leaders
and displaced population the main actors in a parallel peace process.
Bassole on the other hand was working to bring the rebel groups to the
negotiating table in order to complement the Abuja peace agreement
signed in May 2006 by another inclusive deal between the government
and the armed movements.
Mbeki told Gration that the prospects for the peace talks in Doha led
by Bassole and Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Ahmed Bin
Abdullah Al-Mahmood "continue to proceed in a way that is not going to
produce results”.
The AUHIP chairman characterized their approach as continually
re-inventing the wheel and complained that he attempted to set up a
meeting with Bassole since October 2009 without success. Mbeki said
that he escalated the matter to the attention of AU and UN leadership
in order to force Bassole to change his approach to no avail.
Inspired by the Truth and Reconciliation method applied after the end
of Apartheid era in South Africa, Mbeki thought his idea of direct
dialogue between the farmers and nomads will resolve the problem
particularly in Darfur where the rebels are perceived as holders of
regime change strategy more than seeking to defend the demand of
victims.
For Bassolé who was facing difficulties to keep the government and
rebels engaged in the talks, the civilian component had to participate
in a parallel way in the process and to debate in the final stage with
the two parties.
The "stakeholders" also have to participate in the post-Doha process
by discussing and disseminating the main points of the agreement with
the ground and create suitable environment for the implementation of
the deal.
Mbeki said that that due to the Bassole and Al-Mahmood’s failure in
creating a credible civil society forum, numerous Darfuri civil
society leaders have approached the AUDP about the need to convene a
conference on the ground in Darfur.
The former South African president planned the forum for March 2010
saying it would be constructive, because it’s clear that there is
consensus on major issues for most Darfuris, including IDPs, civil
society, refugees, native administration, and others.
Agreement on a wide range of issues by a broad swath of Darfuris
should feed into the Doha process, but "due to Bassole’s approach this
seems impossible," he said, noting that the joint mediator is
apparently trying to bring a selection of Darfurian civil society
figures to Doha for additional consultations on March 28.
Khartoum signed a peace deal in Doha with small rebel group Liberation
and Justice Movement (LJM) last July.
The two major rebel groups of Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-Nur) as
well as Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) remain outside the deal
pushing analysts to attach little significance to the Qatar-brokered
deal .
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