Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General in Sudan, Volker Perthes affirmed on Friday that the overall situation in the country will continue to worsen unless a political solution is found to restore a credible, fully functioning civilian-led government.
In a statement, the UN envoy saw many “signs of hope in reaching a solution in Sudan.”
“The multiplicity of national initiatives - with many points of convergence between them - evidence this,” he said.
Perthes then considered that Sudan should address major issues that go beyond the current debate about transitional constitutional arrangements.
He said some of these issues have been present since the independence of the country in 1956 and have been root causes of instability in Sudan.
“Much of this is about resource and wealth sharing, including land. But much of this is about inclusion and exclusion of regions, people, and communities, not least in Darfur, the East, the Kordofans and the Blue Nile,” he stressed.
Also, the UN envoy said that other short-term questions relate to the structure and the nature of the state the Sudanese want, and the needed transitional path to reach it.
According to Perthes, the transitional path in Sudan requires clear agreement on the tasks of the transition and a clear distribution of roles and responsibilities between the different actors.
Also, he said, it requires a clear plan for healing the wounds of the past.
“Accountability and transitional justice are key for the future of stability in Sudan. The need for equality in its broader sense, the rejection of any sort of discrimination between the Sudanese, is crucial,” the envoy affirmed.
Perthes then welcomed the repeated commitments of Lt. General Abdulfattah Al Burhan’s and Lt. General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo’s about the withdrawal of the military from politics. He said that Sudan needs a strong, united and professional army.
He assured that the UN will continue to work with its partners and the rest of the international community in the Trilateral Mechanism to reach a political agreement that is acceptable to most.
He also stressed that the Trilateral Mechanism does not need to mediate between civilians, but is fully prepared to play the role that so many civilian and military leaders are expecting.
Perthes then said, “We look forward to seeing Sudan reach a political solution that will allow us to bring back economic assistance and aid to Sudan and mobilize more resources for this objective.”
The UN envoy stressed that any unilateral action by any actor will be seen as working against the aspirations of all the Sudanese to see a return to the transitional path towards democracy.
Perthes then called on all Sudanese people to take advantage of the great historical opportunity offered by the December 2018 revolution, which was able to bring the weight of broad grassroot groups to bear on the political elite.
“We in the UN can bring technical expertise and other support to proposals on how to address these questions,” he affirmed.
