Lead negotiators in S. Sudan’s peace talks to meet in Ethiopia

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

June 8, 2015 (ADDIS ABABA) –Lead negotiators of South Sudan warring factions are due to meet Monday in thecEthiopian capital, Addis Ababa, a rebel official told Sudan Tribune.

IGAD chief mediator Seyoum Mesfin (L) and the SPLM In Opposition’s lead negotiator, Taban Deng Gai, attend the resumption of South Sudan talks in Addis Ababa on 11 February 2014 (Photo: Reuters/Tiksa Negeri)

The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the regional bloc mediating South Sudan’s peace talks have brought the two chief negotiators, Nhial Deng Nhial of the government and Taban Deng of the rebel side for face-to-face consultations.

David Dang, deputy representative of the SPLM/SPLA-IO mission office to Ethiopia and to the African Union (AU) told IGAD will set a time table for resumptions of the next round of talks based on outcomes of the consultations between the chief negotiators.

According to Dang, if an agreement is reached between both sides, the next round of talks will directly be between President Salva Kiir and armed opposition leader, Riek Machar.

Meanwhile Machar returned to Addis Ababa on Sunday from Pagak, South Sudan after thorough consultations with the rebel’s political and military officials ahead of the talks.

Despite rumors over his health conditions, rebel officials said Machar was in good health.

An IGAD-led peace negotiation, which started in January 2014 in the Ethiopian capital, is yet to bring lasting solution to the political crises in the world’ youngest nation.

The last round of peace negotiations collapsed on 6 March after the country’ two rival leaders failed to agree on almost all outstanding political and military-related issues.

The regional bloc is due to resume the peace talks under a new draft proposal in which i initiated an IGAD-Plus involving along the five African nations, the African Union, United Nations, China and Troika trio of Norway, the United Kingdom and United States (USA).

IGAD has threatened both sides with sanctions if they failed to reach in any agreement during the next round of talks, believed to be the last chance for the conflicting parties.

Civil war in South Sudan erupted in mid-December 2013 and since then, tens of thousands of people have been killed and nearly two million reportedly displaced.

Last week, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said over 100,000 people have been displaced over the last two months due to heavy fighting in South Sudan’s Unity and Upper Nile states.

The UN refugee agency said heavy fighting has also blocked humanitarian aid deliveries for some 650,000 people as aid organisations were forced to withdraw from war zones.

Source: Sudan tribune