Security Briefing: Government Agrees Separate Peace Deal With the SRF

Overview

The latest developments in Sudan’s peace process reflect the magnitude of the task at hand for Sudan's transitional authorities, as different rebel groups have different agendas, and different appetites for negotiations.

Progress

On the behalf of the rebel groups, Sudanese Prime Minister Hamdok has requested that the UN and the African Union halt the planned June 2020 withdrawal of their Darfur peacekeeping mission. (Sudan Tribune, 19 October).

The UN's leading peacekeeper Jean-Pierre Lacroix said that two proposals will be made to the UN Security Council concerning the peacekeeping mission in Darfur. Either:

A) UNAMID reduces its presence to 5 locations from 13, mainly located where armed fighting is fiercest or B) that the UNAMID peacekeeping mission will withdraw completely from Darfur by June 2020 as previously planned.

The latter option would go against the wishes of the Sudan Revolutionary Front, who say that government-linked militias continue to attack civilians across Sudan.

SLM Al-Hilu signs peace talks roadmap (Multiple sources, 18 October)

A positive development has been that the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (Abdelaziz al-Hilu faction) has agreed to a roadmap to allow suspended peace talks to resume. The movements spokesman El Jak Mahmoud deemed the agreement “a factual break-through”, given their previous experiences with the former regime headed by ousted President Omar al Bashir.

The focus of negotiations will be political issues, followed by humanitarian concerns and security arrangements.

Government agrees separate deal with the SRF (Sudan Tribune, 20 October).

The Sudanese government and SRF (not including Sudan Liberation Movement factions led by Abdelaziz El-Hilu or Abdelwahid El-Nur) made a political agreement on peace which included a renewed ceasefire for humanitarian purposes and the negotiation of all issues relating to armed conflict and other national issues.

Most significantly, Sudan agreed to open humanitarian access to war-torn areas for the first time in 8 years. SRF deputy leader Yasir Arman said: “we believe we have a partner in Khartoum and there’s a new environment created by the revolution.” (Reuters, 21 October).

Challenges

Firstly, the Sudan Liberation Movement-North (Abdelwahid El-Nur faction) still refuses to join peace talks. Abdelwahid El-Nur is adamant that a referendum must be held on the legitimacy of the transitional government before he recognises it. As a result, UN’s leading peacekeeper Jean-Pierre Lacroix has called on the UN Security Council to exert more effort to bring the SLM-N (AW) to the peace negotiations table. (Sudan Tribune, 19 October).

Secondly, despite the SLM-N Al Hilu faction agreeing to peace talks roadmap, Abdelaziz al-Hilu re-iterated its threats to fight for self-determination in South Kordofan, unless Sudan becomes a secular state. (Multiple sources, 21 October). Al-Hilu’s calls reflect the lack of coordination and unity among Sudan’s various rebel groups. His calls for religion to play no part in Sudanese politics contrasts greatly from the Islamic-leaning position of the Justice and Equality Movement, which is a part of the SRF.

It is also worth noting that Abdelaziz al-Hilu's SPLM-N faction broke away from the one led by Malik Agar, because the latter is unwilling to fight for self-determination until Sudan repeals Islamic laws.

Proposed Solution (International Crisis Group, 21 October).

To resolve conflict amid competing rebel agendas, the International Crisis Group recommended that the transitional government negotiate inclusive peace deals, with the international community needed to offer technical support in the road towards sustainable peace.

The ICG also proposed that Abdelaziz al-Hilu and Abdul-Wahid al-Nur be offered positions in transitional institutions “lest they conclude that yet another betrayal is in the offing.”