Fifth meeting of the Implementation Follow-up Commission

DOHA, Qatar, April 10, 2013/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- The fifth meeting of the Implementation Follow-up Commission (IFC) was held today in Doha, Qatar, to review the progress made so far in the implementation of the provisions of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), and to address issues of concern.

The meeting considered the report presented by the Head of the African Union - United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) and Joint Chief Mediator, Mr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, on the status of the implementation of the Doha Document. It acknowledged the continued cooperation between the Government of Sudan and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM), and reaffirmed the international community's support to the DDPD as the only framework for peace in Darfur.

“The DDPD has greatly contributed to the decline in levels of violence and to bringing security that large parts of Darfur are enjoying today. It is true there are some challenges and difficulties, but we think that any serious delay or major shortcomings in the implementation of the Doha Document could have a negative impact on Darfur, Sudan and the entire region. For this reason, it is crucial to preserve and build on the various accomplishments made so far to achieve a sustainable peace in the region,” said IFC Chairperson, Mr. Ahmed bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud, Deputy Prime Minister of the State of Qatar and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs.

Speaking to the media following the 5th IFC meeting, the Chairperson hailed the event as positive. He also expressed the IFC members' condemnation of the recent attacks by the non-signatories' armed groups, which impede peace and development efforts in Darfur.

Chairperson Al Mahmoud called on the hold-out movements to walk in the footsteps of the Justice and Equality Movement-Sudan (JEM-Sudan) and join the peace process on the basis of the DDPD. “We are on the right track and peace is the solution,” he concluded.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the Government of Sudan, LJM, JEM-Sudan, and the governments of Burkina Faso, Chad, China, Egypt, France, Japan, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, the United States, the African Union, the League of Arab States, the European Union, and UNAMID.

The sixth meeting of the Commission is scheduled to take place in Darfur, in four months.