UNION AFRICAINE
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PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL 927™ MEETING 21 MAY 2020
ADDIS ABABA
PSC/PR/COMM.(CMXXVII)
COMMUNIQUE
Adopted by the Peace and Security Council at its 927th meeting held on 21 May 2020, on the situation in Darfur and the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) Transition,
The Peace and Security Council,
Noting the statement made by the Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Lesotho to the African Union, H.E. Ambassador Professor Mafa Mosothoane Sejanamane, in his capacity as the Chairperson of the PSC for the month of May 2020, the introductory statement made by the Commissioner for Peace and Security, Ambassador Smail Chergui and the briefing made by the UNAMID Joint Special Representative, Ambassador Kingsley Mamabolo on the activities of the UNAMID and the situation in Darfur; also noting the statements made by the representative of Sudan, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sudan, Dr. Al-Sideeg Abdul Aziz;
Recalling all its previous communiques and press statements on the situation in Darfur and the activities of UNAMID, in particular, Communiques [PSC/PR/COMM.(DCCCLXXXIV)], [PSC/PR/COMM.(DCCCXXIX)] and [PSC/PR/COMM.(CMXIII)] adopted at its 829th, 884th and 913th meetings held on 26 February 2019, 10 October 2019 and 3 March 2020 respectively, as well as UN Security Council resolutions 2517 (2020), 2495 (2020) ,2429 (2018), 2363 (2017), 2296 (2016) and 2033 (2012);
Reajfirming, in line with the United Nations Charter and the AU Constitutive Act, its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and national unity of Sudan, as well as the importance of upholding the principles of non-interference and good neighbourliness;
Also reajfirming the solidarity of the African Union (AU) with the people and the Government of Sudan in their aspirations to restore durable peace, stability and development in their country;
Acting under Article 7 of its Protocol, the Peace and Security Council:
Commends the Transitional Government of Sudan for their continuous efforts to ensure that the transition in the country is inclusive of all relevant stakeholders with a view to their participation in the various political processes within the transition, including the peace process taking place in Juba, South Sudan, and also commends the spirit of cooperation and perseverance dialogue demonstrated by the Sudanese transitional authorities and other Sudanese relevant stakeholders in their effective implementation of the constitutional declaration and managing the transition in a peaceful and inclusive manner;
Stresses the paramount importance of the preservation of peace, security and stability in Sudan for the full and effective implementation of the transitional process and the fulfillment of the aspirations of the Sudanese people in peaceful, democratic and prosperous Sudan, and commends the robust efforts by the transitional authorities in this regard;
Welcomes the improvement in the security situation in Darfur, which creates a conducive environment for focusing on peacebuilding and socio-economic development activities in the region; commends the efforts deployed by the UNAMID in supporting Sudan in accordance with its authorization mandate and including its most recent effort to support the ongoing peace process between the Government of Sudan and the Sudanese armed movements;
Condemns, in the strongest terms, the attempt on the life of H.E. Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok of the Republic of Sudan in March 2020 in Khartoum, Sudan; appeals to the Sudanese stakeholders to exercise their civil and political rights through peaceful means, and to refrain from any actions that may derail the ongoing political transition; in this regard, encourages all Sudanese stakeholders to commit to a peaceful, inclusive, democratic and transparent transitional process through committed political dialogue which is guided by their collective endeavor towards peace and development in Sudan;
Welcomes the progress made in the Sudan peace process taking place in Juba, South Sudan and expresses appreciation for South Sudan's continuing hosting and mediation of these talks under the auspacies of H.E. President Salva Kiir Mayardit; encourages the Sudanese stakeholders to demonstrate genuine commitment to the search for lasting peace, particularly in Darfur, and the two areas; South Kordofan and Blue Nile States with a view to an expeditious and successful conclusion of these talks; expresses its condolences over the death of General Jamal al-Din Omar, Sudanese Defence Minister, who was leading the Government's negotiations on security arrangements in the context of these talks and welcomes the appointment ofthe new Defence Minister, Retired Major General Yassin Ibrahim Yassin, from Northern Kordofan;
Commends the continued engagement of the AU Commission including at the level of Chairperson H.E Moussa Faki Mahamat and the Commissioner for Peace and Security, Ambassador Smail Chergui, as well as the AU Head of Mission in Khartoum, Ambassador Mohamad Belaich in assisting the Sudanese stakeholders in their efforts to realize durable peace; calls upon the AU Commission to urgently intensify its support to the peace process in Juba, South Sudan and ensure that adequate political support is provided, where required, to the overall Sudanese political process, including amongst others, playing a pivotal role in the Friends of Sudan Forum and the upcoming Sudan Partner Forum on 25 June 2020;
Notes with appreciation the role played by women in the Sudanese revolution and calls on the Transitional Government and the other Sudanese stakeholders to ensure women's rights and equal participation in the decision making processes related to transitional institutions as outlined in the Constitutional Declaration of Sudan (2019), as well as with regard to the ongoing peace process; further encourages the Transitional Government to ensure youth engagement in transitional and peace processes, with a view to strengthening the foundation for sustained peace in Sudan;
Once again, strongly calls, on all parties to the conflict in Darfur, in particular, the Sudan Liberation Army-Abdul Wahid (SLA-AW), to welcome and unconditionally observe the ceasefire and to immediately engage with the ongoing peace process in Juba; underscores the need for Darfur stakeholders to immediately desist from engaging in communal violence that threatens ongoing efforts and to effectively address the root causes of this recurrent violence with a view to secure lasting peace in the region; reiterates its request for stern measures to be taken against all those who continue to obstruct the peace process; and in this context, appeals to Sudan's neighboring countries, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), African Union and the United Nations (UN) to continue supporting efforts aimed at ending the current conflict in Darfur;
Welcomes the ongoing consultations between the AU Commission and the UN Secretariat, together with the Government of Sudan on the UNAMID drawdown process and on the Follow-on Mechanism and, in this connection, looks forward to the conclusions of these discussions to be submitted for the consideration of the AU Peace and Security Council and UN Security Council;
Notes with concern of impact that the COVID-19 pandemic in Sudan; commends the Transitional Government of Sudan for the vigilant efforts deployed thus far to contain and curb the spread of the pandemic, including the resource mobilization efforts by H.E. Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok; also commends the UNAMID for developing a COVID-19 contingency and response plan, as well as a business continuity plan to ensure continued implementation of the Mission's mandate and respond to the needs of the Sudanese;
Requests the AU Commission, through the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa-CDC), to continue providing support to Sudan in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic; and appeals, once again, to the international community to continue providing assistance to meet the growing challenges, including the acute humanitarian situation in Darfur; commends AU Member States who have extended different forms of humanitarian and medical support to Sudan in addressing its current challenges and urges Member States to consider to do so;
Further requests the AU Centre on Post Conflict Reconstruction and Development (AUPCRD) in Cairo, in cooperation with the other relevant departments of the African Union Commission, taking into consideration the travel restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, to engage with the Sudanese authorities with regard to the deployment of a technical needs assessment mission with a view to identify the needs and priorities of Sudan in the area of Post Conflict Reconstruction and Development, and directs the Commission to report to the Peace and Security Council before 1 September 2020 on the progress achieved in this regard ;
Expresses its concern with the current economic situation in Sudan and its possible negative impact on the transitional process in the country, and thus reiterates its call for the international community, including the International Financial Institutions, to scale up and foster its financial and political support to the transitional process in Sudan and, in this regard, continues to call upon all those countries which have imposed sanctions and other forms of punitive unilateral coercive measures against Sudan to immediately lift them due to their adverse impact on the ongoing transition in the country. In the same context, Council also reiterates its call to the Government of the United States to de-list Sudan from State Sponsors of Terrorism (SST), in order to boost the current momentum in the transitional process and to create conducive conditions for economic recovery, growth and stability in the country;
Commends UNAMID for all efforts deployed to fulfil its overall mandate; further commends, Amb. Kingsley Mamabolo, the UN-AU Joint Special Representative, as well as all the men and women that have served in the Mission, for their unwavering commitment to the cause of peace in Darfur and Sudan as a whole; notes with appreciation the positive impact of State Liaison Offices established by the Government, which are contributing towards the stabilization of Darfur and facilitating smooth transition towards UNAMID's eventual exit;
Underscores the importance of a carefully sequenced UNAMID withdrawal process that is predictable and aligned to the priorities and timelines ofthe Government of Sudan, in order to preserve the gains made to date, and build on the current momentum in the Darfur peace process;
Appeals to the United Nations Security Council to consider the situation in Sudan separately from the mandate of UNAMID and to also ensure that any future mission to be deployed in Sudan should be under Chapter VI mandate of the UN Charter; In the same context stresses the importance of respecting the sovereignty of Sudan, its national ownership of the transition process, and the needs and priorities of the country as outlined by the Prime Minister of Sudan, in his letter to the UN Secretary General of TJ February 2020 while underlining the fundamental importance of productive coordination and complementarity between the AU and UN in relation to the upcoming peace building activities in Sudan;
Requests UNAMID to assist the Government of Sudan in its activities aimed to confidence building and enhancing resilience among local communities, as well as to support the capacities of the Government's in undertaking its full responsibility to protect the civilian population in the region, once UNAMID exits;
Resolves that the UNAMID mandate, as contained in UNSC Resolution 2495 (2019), should be extended up to 31 December 2020, in light ofthe impact ofthe COVID-19 pandemic on UNAMID s troop movement and guided by the Mission's obligation to provide protection to civilians under threat in Darfur, while continuing to implement the exit strategy for the termination ofthe Mission;
Requests the Chairperson of the Commission to Secretary-General for circulation to the members of document;
transmit this Communique to the UN
Decides to remain actively seized of the matter
the UN Security Council as working