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Al-Ahram Weekly 22 - 28 July 1999 Issue No. 439 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 22 - 28 July 1999 Issue No. 439
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Profile Features Focus Interview Travel Living Sports Time Out Chronicles People Cartoons Letters Ripe for reconciliation
By Dina EzzatThis has not been the easiest week for Egyptian efforts to re-introduce national reconciliation in Sudan. While diplomatic activities were being intensified, especially after last week's meeting between President Hosni Mubarak and Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir, there is concern over certain "voices" which have been trying to sully the healthy atmosphere by suggesting that the time is not ripe either for Sudanese-Egyptian reconciliation or for a heavy Egyptian involvement in the inter-Sudanese reconciliation.
Still, Egyptian and Sudanese diplomatic sources tell Al-Ahram Weekly that these quarters will not have their way because it seems now that the political leaderships in Egypt and Sudan are clearly committed to work on realising the two-track reconciliation.
Speaking exclusively to the Weekly following his meeting with President Mubarak, Sudanese President Al-Bashir affirmed his belief that Cairo was "indeed qualified" to work on inter-Sudanese reconciliation, and that he expected Egyptian efforts on this front to be helped by the warmer Egypt-Sudan rapprochement that was established in the presidential meeting that took place in Algeria last week on the fringe of an African summit.
According to Al-Bashir, his government has communicated this message to Egypt through Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail who has been closely working with Foreign Minister Amr Moussa on this file.
Al-Bashir was even willing to recognise that these efforts have been useful. He said he is hopeful that the efforts to bring about the inter-Sudanese reconciliation will bear fruit soon.
"We certainly believe that the time is now ripe for this reconciliation to take place. There are full liberties that are currently granted to all Sudanese; Sudanese political figures [who oppose the government] can come back to Sudan now; there is room for them to oppose the regime from within Sudan -- actually from the heart of Khartoum; they can be involved in politics as much as they want; they can have their political parties and [try to join the government and parliament through the ballot box. This is something that would be clear to anyone who looks into the recently amended laws. This is also something that I have recently affirmed several times," said Al-Bashir.
Obviously, the issue of Sudanese national reconciliation was not exclusively orchestrated in Cairo. It involves other neighbours of Sudan -- some with conspicuous affiliation with certain anti-reconciliation Western states -- who have been hosting, and often militarily supporting, certain factions of the Sudanese opposition.
During last week's African summit in Algeria, Egyptian officials were careful to brief their counterparts from concerned countries about the development of its inter-Sudanese mediation efforts and to ask them to refrain from encouraging inter-Sudanese disputes.
This is a point that Al-Bahsir is keen to underline: "Generally speaking, internal conflicts in African states could be peacefully settled if the neighbours of the country that suffers from these conflicts decided to refrain from interference in the internal affairs of this country. If Sudan's neighbours refrained from supporting the rebels and decided instead to work on finding a solution to the Sudanese problem then this would make it easier for Sudan to find its national reconciliation."
Now, it seems that some of these countries are coming round to this idea. Last Sunday, following a meeting with Moussa, Eritrean Foreign Minister Haile Weldetnsae told reporters that his country has effectively cleared the headquarters of the Sudanese Embassy in Asmara from the representatives of the Sudanese opposition that once used this embassy building as a base for their activities.
This trend is something that Al-Bahsir is pleased about: "I believe that there is an increasing will to find a solution either on the side of the opposition or the countries that once supported them. I believe that the countries who used to host the Sudanese opposition are now keen to see this opposition going back home. But they want this to happen at the pace decided by the opposition figures themselves. On the other hand, the opposition figures may have some political obligations towards some of these countries and that may delay their return to some extent." The Sudanese president added that "sooner or later the opposition will come back to Sudan."
So, does this mean that Sudan is willing to sit at the negotiating table with the representatives of the Sudanese opposition and seriously negotiate terms of a settlement? The answer is "yes", said Al-Bashir.
As his foreign minister elaborated: "This will be possible once the opposition decide to agree exactly on what they want. We told Egypt that we are for a reconciliation conference that would be organised by Cairo."
Within this context, Moussa met last Sunday with the leading opposition figures Al-Sadeq Al-Mahdi and Osman Al-Merghani. At the meeting Moussa was briefed on the outcome of a Sudanese opposition meeting that was held last week in the Eritrean capital. He, in turn, briefed his Sudanese interlocutors on his recent contacts with the Sudanese government.
This meeting made it clear that there are still tangible differences on the terms of reconciliation, not only between the Sudanese government and opposition, but also among the different factions of the Sudanese opposition. Still, it was also made clear during this meeting that reconciliation is the only way ahead and that Egypt is not going to be involved in fuelling on the fire of the internal dispute in Sudan.
As part of their endeavours to induce national reconciliation in Sudan, Egyptian officials will also need to speak with yet another important Sudanese opposition figure: John Garang, the leader of the southern Sudanese armed rebels.
The Sudanese president says that his country is ready to meet and talk with its opposition because Sudan could be a "model" of a country where all citizens live "in harmony" despite their different backgrounds.
But will the Egyptian-organised reconciliation conference be held sometime soon? An Egyptian diplomatic source answered: "It is not a matter of sooner or later. It is a matter of holding the conference when there are almost zero chances for it to fail. This is still not the case."
Meanwhile, Sudanese officials say that they are counting on Egypt to help stabilise the situation in Sudan by talking to several Western countries, particularly the United States, about the need to maintain the territorial unity of Sudan. Egypt, the same sources say, is also encouraging Sudan to conduct talks with the United States.
"The Sudanese efforts to reform relations with the US will not stop. The US is a leading world power and Sudan is keen to see the US playing a role that supports peace in Sudan," Foreign Minister Ismail said.
In this respect, Ismail added that his government is talking to the US administration "directly and indirectly" to explain Sudanese dissatisfaction with a recent Congress recommendation to impose a no-fly zone on southern Sudan. "It will not serve the purpose of peace if the US administration decides to adopt this recommendation. Sudan is willing to receive a US delegation to investigate the situation in southern Sudan," Ismail said.
Asked about the outcome of the Egypt-US talks on Sudan, a senior Egyptian official said: "Our line is clear and is not going to change: details aside, it is time for Sudan to regain its unity and stability. This is what we are committed to despite any other plans that may be entertained by any other countries or powers."
