Sudan pledges to solve refugee issue in Darfur

The head of the Sudanese Transitional Government pledged on Monday to solve the issue of refugees in Darfur, Anadolu has reported. Abdullah Hamdok told a group of refugees in Zamzam Refugee Camp in the north of Darfur that he would help them return to their homes or settle wherever they want.

Hamdok stressed that his government is interested in achieving peace. He said that all sides should take part in discussions related to this objective. The de facto prime minister claimed that the peace deal which was agreed by the former government failed because the discussions were carried out behind closed doors without the participation of those affected directly by the talks.

Moreover, Hamdok insisted that his government will solve the economic crisis which, he claimed, was a result of the incorrect policies of previous administrations. The Transitional Government, he added, is there to save the goals of the revolution and achieve justice, accountability and retribution.

According to Anadolu, peace talks are planned to start on 21 November. The intention is to agree a deal between Khartoum and the Revolutionary Front in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.

Meanwhile, the Mayor of Aboshouk and Al-Salam refugee camps, Mohammed Adam Bush, said that the refugees want the reconstruction of the war-torn area to be based on the standards adopted in Rwanda and South Africa. He also requested that the refugees should be compensated; the issue of their lands should be resolved; and the people who settled in these lands should be removed. In closing, the mayor said that humanitarian NGOs should be permitted to work in the refugee camps and all war criminals should be prosecuted.

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