CAR delegation leaves for peace talks
2013-01-08 14:38
Bangui - Officials from the Central African Republic on
Tuesday left for Gabon, where peace talks with a rebel coalition are to be held
this week.
The talks, mediated by the Economic Community of Central
African States (ECCAS), will focus on the recent crisis affecting the unstable
central African country since rebels launched an offensive on a number of towns
in December.
The rebels accuse President Francois Bozize of breaching a
past peace deal and want him to step down, and kept advancing on the capital
Bangui.
"This dialogue is the only opportunity to silence the
guns in the Central African Republic. Its failure could plunge the country in a
precarious state," a local government representative in Bangui told dpa.
Representatives of the Seleka rebel coalition arrived in the
Gabonese capital of Libreville on Monday.
"This is an opportunity [for Seleka] to present their
true motivation instead of asking the departure of Bozize who is democratically
elected," said Cyriaque Gonda, a former communications minister.
On Sunday, South Africa sent 400 troops to CAR to support
the already existing South African National Defence Force there. France, the
United States and ECCAS have earlier deployed soldiers in the country.
The United Nations estimates that about 316 000 people of
the population of more than 4.6 million live in the conflict-affected areas,
and at least 700 000 persons in Bangui are at risk should there be an
escalation in fighting.
- SAPA
