The peace agreement brings the rebels to the transitional government. CHERITH NORMAN-CHALET (United States) welcomed the efforts of the Sudanese parties to reach an agreement that could mark the day of a new era in all of Sudan. They must now implement the agreement in a transparent and timely manner, she said, adding that it can bring peace, justice and long-term stability to those who have suffered cycles of widespread violence and have been victims of unpunished atrocities. Its delegation firmly believes that UNITAMS can fulfill its mandate to support the political transition and peace process, support peace-building, development and humanitarian efforts, and provide critical assistance to security sector reform, police training, the rule of law and civil governance. Local authorities and the transitional civilian government must do more to prevent further attacks by militias on civilians, including internally displaced persons, and to arrest those responsible for the appalling violence in Masteri and elsewhere. The representative of Sudan described the terms of the peace agreements reached after a year of honest negotiations and said: “This is a Sudanese peace that is concluded by our own hands and by our own means.” He stressed his government`s commitment to protecting the civilian population and listed a series of measures taken in response to recent inter-communal clashes and noted that the signing of the new peace agreements would undoubtedly be useful. Sudan has also set up a specific mechanism for cooperation with UNITAMS, he said, expressing the expectation of the UN delegation and his country`s transitional government on the terms of the mission. He stressed the urgent need to remove Sudan from the list of government sponsors of terrorism in the United States and said that its list was blocking key elements of economic aid to the country. She recalled that the government recently declared a state of economic emergency following a depreciation of the Sudanese pound. The announcement followed months of rising inflation, rising exchange rates and a shortage of basic foodstuffs. Meanwhile, economic frustration continues to grow, as evidenced by the upsurge in protests across the country, she said. Despite these challenges, the transitional government has advanced important reforms, including the abolition of fuel subsidies, as part of an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to reconcile the debt.
She called on the partners to respect their commitments and address any obstacles to Sudan`s full integration into the international economic community and welcomed recent progress in removing the country from the list of U.S.-managed government sponsorships of terrorism. The peace agreement covers a number of sensitive issues, ranging from land ownership, reparations and compensation to prosperity, power-sharing and the return of refugees and internally displaced persons. FSR chief Alhadi Idris said the agreement would allow refugees and internally displaced persons to return home. The agreement, reached after a year of talks in South Sudan, raises hopes of an end to more than 17 years of war. It offers power-sharing, integration into the security forces, land rights and the return of the exalted displaced from several years of conflict. The guarantors of the agreement of Chad, Qatar, Egypt, the African Union, the European Union and the United Nations also welcomed the agreement.