Sudan patience wearing thin
2005-10-04 14:10
Abuja - Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende of the Netherlands urged the Sudanese government and rebels from the Darfur region to reach a quick peace accord on Tuesday and warned them that international goodwill was running out.
The Dutch leader said: "Constructing peace is the responsibility of all of you towards your great country, to the land where you were born and to your own people.
"But, not only is that your responsibility towards Sudan, it is also your responsibility towards the international community - a community that has invested so heavily in past years in assisting to bring a ceasefire to Darfur, in trying to alleviate the plight of so many displaced families."
The Netherlands was one of a group European and north American powers which had leant logistical support to the African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur, which was in the grip of a 30-month-old civil war that had left about 300 000 civilians dead.
'Sudan should make tough decisions'
Balkenende warned: "The international community wants to see results, it cannot go on spending resources on problems which should already have been resolved.
"It is therefore that I plead to you to make tough decisions that lead to peace."
For the past year, negotiating teams from the Khartoum government and two rebel movements fighting on behalf of the minority tribes living in the arid western region of Darfur had been meeting off-and-on in the Nigerian capital, under the auspices of the AU.
On Monday, the two sides entered the first full plenary session of the latest round of talks, with both sides expressing optimism that they would be able to negotiate a broad political settlement.