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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

SUDAN: "No time for complacency" - Annan

NAIROBI, 12 September 2003 (IRIN) - There is an urgent need for increased donor support to save lives in Sudan, said UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Thursday.

"There is no time for complacency," said Annan in his latest report to the UN General Assembly on humanitarian assistance to Sudan. "The humanitarian imperative to save lives and reduce human suffering cannot await the completion of the peace process."

It was crucial that a transitional programme be planned and funded in advance of any final peace settlement, he said. The donor community and the UN must mobilise to ensure and maintain the security, safety and health of the Sudanese people "now that the foundations for genuine progress towards peace exist," he added.

Sudan has the highest number of displaced people in the world, estimated at over 3.5 million.

On Thursday, the government delegation at the peace talks, currently taking place in Naivasha, Kenya, reportedly requested a three-day break from negotiations with the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) to deliberate separately. The SPLM has reportedly put forward a paper to the government and mediators outlining its positions on the key issues to be thrashed out by both sides - namely security, and power- and wealth-sharing arrangements during the six-and-a-half-year interim period.

Security issues have been the focus of discussions in the make-or-break talks, and in particular arrangements governing the co-existence of the national army and the SPLA, as well as their partial integration.

The unprecedented talks between SPLM/A leader John Garang and Sudanese Vice President Ali Osman Taha have been taking place for over a week now, leading many to believe that a deal may be struck. Taha was joined on Wednesday by the Sudanese Minister of Defence, Maj Gen Bakri Hassan Salih and other army generals, and on Thursday by experts on wealth-sharing.

Theme(s): (IRIN) Conflict, (IRIN) Economy, (IRIN) Governance

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