Nairobi, July 29 (Darfur24)
The Sudanese Forces of the Declaration of Principles have declined to participate in a consultative meeting convened by the five-party international mechanism in Addis Ababa on Friday, saying the invitation fails to address key issues that must be resolved before any political process can begin.
The five-party mechanism—comprising the United Nations, the African Union (AU), the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the League of Arab States, and the European Union—is organising the meeting at the AU Commission headquarters to discuss the formation of a preparatory committee for a Sudanese political process.
In a statement, the Forces of the Declaration of Principles said they had received an invitation to attend what the mechanism described as an exploratory meeting but decided not to participate after internal consultations.
The group reiterated that any political process “must be Sudanese-owned and Sudanese-led,” arguing that Sudanese themselves should determine the participants, agenda, and direction of the dialogue.
The statement said the alliance had met with the five-party mechanism on June 3 and presented reservations about the design and procedures of the proposed political process. It said the group had requested a follow-up meeting to review the experience, address shortcomings, and place the process on what it described as the right track.
According to the alliance, those requests—including during the mechanism’s visit to Nairobi on July 20 and 21—have not received a response, making new consultations premature before addressing what it called fundamental flaws in the previous process.
The group argued that any credible political process should begin with a ceasefire and agreement on the framework, participants, and principles of negotiations, warning that the current approach risks entrenching the conflict rather than resolving it.
It stressed that sustainable peace cannot be achieved through procedural meetings that lack a broad Sudanese consensus and renewed its call for a direct meeting with the five-party mechanism to discuss its concerns before launching any new political arrangements.
The alliance said its decision not to attend should not be interpreted as a rejection of dialogue or international mediation, but rather as an effort to correct the course of the political process.
Meanwhile, Mubarak Ardol, leader of the Democratic Alliance for Social Justice, announced that he was travelling to Addis Ababa as part of the Democratic Bloc delegation to participate in the consultations.
In a Facebook post, Ardol said the delegation would represent “the aspirations of the Sudanese people” and the recent military gains made by the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Joint Force. He said any serious political process must respect Sudanese ownership of the dialogue and pave the way for negotiations to be held inside Sudan once the appropriate political environment is created.
Ardol also said the Democratic Bloc believes civilian members of the “Founding Alliance” should distance themselves from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), dissolve parallel governing structures, and condemn violations committed against civilians.