Q2: Thank you Professor Gambari for saying that you will keep your commitment strong and that you will march on. I also thank you for your active role in the last meeting in Doha. Please let us know about your efforts; how to make Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and others to be more close to the peace process in Darfur. Thank you so much.

Q3: Professor Gambari, you have urged the leaders of JEM and the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) to join in the peace process, have you any other role to persuade those people to join rather than inviting them? We know that the Darfur movements have entered into a coalition last month with some SPLM leaders, how do you see this coalition affecting the peace process in Sudan?

JSR Gambari: First of all about the UNSC Resolution 2003, there have been all manner of characterization of it. What I want to tell you are the positive aspects of this resolution that have always been forgotten. First, it extended the mandate of UNAMID for an additional one year. Second, it made reference to supporting the Doha Darfur Peace Document (DDPD). And third, it continued to recognize the important role of Doha in the mediation process to bring this conflict to an end.

This resolution reconfirms the core mandate of UNAMID that is the protection of civilians, facilitation of delivery of humanitarian assistance to those in need, UNAMID to continue to be proactive in the peace process and supporting early recovery and reconstruction in conjunction with the UN Country Team.

And I want to take this opportunity to state categorically, and you can quote me, that nowhere in the resolution has there been a geographic extension of UNAMID mandate to cover the whole of Sudan. Nonetheless, we are very sensitive to some of the concerns expressed by the Government of Sudan and others. I have been involved in consultations with the leadership of Sudan, the African Union has done the same, and we are going to address the concerns of Sudan arising out of some interpretations of UNSC Resolution 2003.

And there will be another opportunity at very high level of the tripartite mechanism meeting between GoS, UN and AU, of course with UNAMID present, to discuss other specific areas of concern by the Government and some other issues that arise from the day to day activities of UNAMID. That will take place before the end of this month. But in any case, UNAMID will implement its mandate with full respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Sudan.

The second and third questions are actually related; that is what efforts as UNAMID are we making, and in my capacity as the new Joint Chief Mediator ad interim, to try and bring JEM and others to the political process, and in particular if I can combine the two, the new coalition that has been announced involving some armed movements, how UNAMID or the mediator is going to deal with it.

First, we must have a better understanding that although we talk about armed movements who are out of the negotiations, there is some difference. For example, JEM has never abandoned the Doha process. They have actually joined in negotiations. Last year, they signed a framework agreement with the Sudanese Government. They have been around for negotiations at the All Darfur Stakeholders Conference, and even they were around and on hand for consultations during the efforts that led to the signing of the DDPD on 14 July.

So the mediation is in constant contact with JEM because they have not walked away from Doha. My predecessor as Joint Chief Mediator Mr. Bassole is in contact with them in consultation with me. I have been in contact with the leadership of JEM and their chief negotiator both in Doha and elsewhere and on phone to continue to address their areas of concern, particularly to see how we can jumpstart the stalled negotiations between GoS and JEM after the signing of the DDPD.

With respect to SLA Minni Minawi, as you are all aware, it was part of the previous agreement, the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) which was signed in Abuja, and of course in the end he walked away from it. But he too has been part of the political process and we want to engage with him and his movement to reconsider going back to the political process. But the biggest nut to crack it seems to me is SLA Abdul Wahid because he has never joined any peace process at all, he has never signed an agreement of any kind, and so I think special measures are needed and I think the international community is considering ways to address that particular movement, and to persuade him in a very targeted way to join the peace process.

But I want to say that the both the UNSC resolution adopted on 29 July and in the meeting just concluded in Doha on 11 September, the international community position is very clear; that the DDPD is the basis for any further negotiation for peace in Darfur and UNAMID is mandated to support its implementation. I mentioned earlier that the Force Commander is in charge and has chaired two meetings of the Cease Fire Commission (CFC), and a third one is envisage. I have requested the Deputy Joint Special Representative (Political) to preside over the dissemination, working with others, of the DDPD. So these are concrete ways in which we are trying to encourage those who are outside the peace process to join.

And finally, with regard to coalitions of some movements,  I want to say clearly that UNAMID and I believe that the international community is not against the unity of movements, but they should be uniting for peace rather than uniting for more and more wars because the people of Darfur who are at the centre of our concern have suffered too much, too deeply and for too long that we have to put their concerns at the centre, and if we do, then we should  do everything possible not to have more wars but move in the direction of peace.

Q4: I am from El Fasher and the reality is that UNAMID existence is seen as big trucks, staff members and employees in markets but no substantial existence on the ground. I would like to know how you are going to convince the people of Darfur on the ground that UNAMID is there for them and is helping them. My second question is that there have been rumors that Khalil Ibrahim [leader of JEM] has just entered Darfur. Can you elaborate on that? What do you know about that and what are the efforts to make him not to be a threat and to bring him to the peace process?

Q5: Do you think the return of Khalil Ibrahim will jeopardize the peace process? Do you think by his return to Darfur, he is willing to join the peace process? Have you confirmed the return of Abdul Wahid?

Q6: Khalil Ibrahim has announced he is going to launch a comprehensive war to overthrow the Government, which means there are already arrangements in place, what measures are you taking against this? Secondly, Uganda is hosting the armed forces of the coalition. They have already signed agreements against the Government. What is your position on this?

JSR Gambari: First of all, the gentleman from El Fasher. I also live in El Fasher, so do all of us here on the podium, and we know that we are doing for the people of Darfur, not just in El Fasher but in Nyala and El Genina.
 
I want to categorize this in three. First, what we have been able to prevent. It is not always easy to prove what we have been able to prevent, by our presence. Now we have more than 18,000 military, which is 92% of our deployment, almost 3,000 police advisors which is 74% of our deployment and civilian component which is about 85% of the deployment. The fact that we are there is a deterrence to those who are willing to violate our key mandate which is the protection of civilian population. Our military has increased its patrol throughout Darfur from 90 patrols a day to 170 patrols a day, and by the end of the year, it will increase to 200 patrols a day. So by being there, by being seen, by being robust in the implementation of our protection strategy, that is how we are serving the people of Darfur.
 
Secondly, we are building roads, we are digging wells, we are providing municipal services… Not only in El Fasher, in Foro Baranga, the Burkina Faso battalion is cleaning up the city and building roads. In El Genina we are responsible for building the terminal, in fact we have a mobile control tower there. Not to mention the number of houses we are building for our staff. When we leave, UNAMID will be remembered for the physical infrastructure we have put in place.
 
There is a third dimension, humanitarian assistance. We have opened up areas that were previously not accessible over the years, like Jebel Mara. When you look at the faces of women and children that receive humanitarian assistance that didn’t have it previously, you see that they appreciate the presence of UNAMID.

Finally, UNAMID’s presence leads to the injection of over 600 million US dollars annually into the economy, not to mention the fact that we employ thousands of national staff, there is a multiplier effect on the economy.

With regard to police, we have trained over 50,000 Sudanese police, including during the last elections in April 2010. We have established four training schools for police in Nyala, El Fasher, Genina and Zalingei. And yesterday we handed over 25 vehicles to police to be share among the three states of Darfur to enhance their crime prevention and crime reaction capacity. So what we are saying is that we are not just known for our cars and vehicles, but also for the type of work we do.
Moreover, we have over 200 Quick Impact Projects where we duplicate our efforts with the community to repair schools, hospitals and clinics. We are even trying to establish some training centers for midwives so that access will be available. Then we have the medical campaigns for the treatment of diseases in which about 2,400 people have benefitted. I have asked the Force Commander to approach some troop contributing countries to see if we can develop and bring to Darfur veterinary medicine so that nomadic communities can benefit from the work of UNAMID.

Finally, we had a very successful International Water Conference right here in Khartoum from 27 to 28 June, where we had 65 projects approved for which almost one billion US dollars was pledged with over 200 million US dollars from the GoS. We feel that lack of water or poor management of it has been the root cause of conflicts in Darfur, and addressing it will be a lasting legacy of UNAMID and will contribute to lasting peace in Darfur.  

Regarding the news of the return or entry to Darfur of Khalil Ibrahim, I don’t have any confirmation. And whether his return will jeopardize the peace process, my answer is simple; I hope not. Because for the reasons I mentioned, I sincerely hope that Khalil Ibrahim and JEM as a whole will opt for peace rather than a return to war for the sake of the people of Darfur. We will certainly do what we can as UNAMID and with the support of the international community try to encourage and put pressure on all the movements including JEM under Ibrahim Khalil to opt for peace rather than return to war.

With regard to Abdul Wahid, what I can say is that I have met him in Kampala a few months ago and I had the same message for him and his collaborators, that this is the time to join the peace process. To be fair to him, I must say I also told him that UNAMID intended to launch Operation Spring Basket, which was intended to open up humanitarian space in Jebel Marra including areas under his control, and that he should send an appropriate message to his field commanders to facilitate that. I can say that it was done. We went to Jebel Mara with the military, the police, the political, the humanitarian units and UN Country Team and began the process of opening up humanitarian space for the delivery of much needed humanitarian assistance.

So my hope, my plea, my desperate plea to Ibrahim Khalil and to Abdul Wahid is to really give peace a chance and take the political option rather than the military option.

With regard to the reported announcement by Ibrahim Khalil that the objective is to overthrow the Government of Khartoum, I think some of the key partners in the international community have made statements that at least for the sake of peace in Darfur that should not be the objective of the armed movement. And for us in UNAMID who are concerned about Darfur, we really want partners for peace. And the international community has blessed the DDPD and all efforts should be directed at implementing that, involving the internally displaced persons (IDPs), civil society, women groups and youth groups, in understanding what is the content, how this is an improvement over the previous peace agreement and why it is in the best interest of the people of Darfur who are outside the peace process to join in.

I have been to Kampala, and the same message I mentioned to Abdul Wahid when I met him is the one I am sending to Uganda and the new Government of South Sudan; to avoid going in the direction of supporting the unity of armed movements for war. They should rather support the armed movements whether in Juba or Kampala to encourage them to give peace a chance for the sake of the people of Darfur.

Q7: You mentioned that the international community may attempt to persuade Abdul Wahid to join the peace process, can you elaborate on that. What kind of measures would the international community take to do so?

Q8 (Hilda Tsukumavudze, Ambassador of Zimbabwe): Professor, thank you very much for the presentation. I would like to say that we thank you for the work you are doing in Darfur. Just to begin with your mandate of protection of civilians. I would like to say that we have realized the voluntary return of IDPS to their homes to build their lives. And I would just want to get an opportunity to say that we in Africa, we are really looking for peace. We are dying for peace and it is really encouraging to see us Africans stand firm and saying to others, this is what we have to do to make a difference, to make peace prevail in Africa.

I would want to further say we have to concentrate on the positive and not on the negative. We are seeing a ray of light in Darfur. Having people returning to their homes actually means a lot and insisting on that, concentrating on the positives and having us getting as far as coming with mechanisms to hear that peace prevails, just sustainable peace.

Looking at the people of Darfur, they have really suffered. Those who have not come to the negotiating table are those who are really out there, not happy with what is happening in Darfur. I think you have covered three quarters of the work that needs to be done on the ground. It is good that you blow your own trumpet. You should have left it for us to blow it for you.

JSR Gambari: Thank you very much for those questions. With the issue of Abdul Wahid, I made a distinction between the three armed movements that are not part of the political process and to say that there are differences among them.

The fact is that JEM has actually signed an agreement in Doha, I believe in February last year. They have been around negotiating with the Government. They want to open all issues for discussion. The Government position is that there is a Doha Document which has been blessed by the international community as the basis for peace. I think the mediation has a role to play in trying to bridge that gap. And they are still in touch. We are still in touch with JEM.

Minni Minawi has been part of an arrangement arising from the DPA. So how to bring him back I believe requires a different strategy because he was here in Khartoum. He was part of the unity Government. So what happened, why it happened, how he can be persuaded to return…

But of all the movements that are not fully in the political process, it is Abdul Wahid the only one who has never been part of any peace process at all. So the international community is getting a bit frustrated and I believe that part of that frustration was conveyed to France where he was residing. And I think they decided to revoke his visa. Whatever the case, he is no longer in Paris.

It is very important for the international community to consider what need to bring to this movement that has never joined any political process at all. And if that rejection is continuous, then the international community will have to decide what to do with it. I believe and I cannot speak for the UN Security Council that discussion is already taking place and that discussion as to what specific targeted measures might be necessary to persuade the only movement which has never joined the peace process related to Darfur.

On the second question, first of all I would like to thank H.E. the Ambassador of Zimbabwe for her comments and compliments. This will only encourage UNAMID to do even more in the implementation of our mandate.

But it is a fact that deaths resulting from armed clashes between the Government and armed movements have decreased drastically. For example between January and July, we had only 600 deaths. We do not want to compare ourselves with what is happening in South Sudan, in Abyei, in South Kordofan or in Blue Nile, but it seems as at now, the number of fatalities from direct clashes between the Government and armed movements have declined significantly by about 70 percent compared to the same period in the last three years.

Second, although sill in small numbers, IDPs are leaving South Darfur to return to their place of origin in West Darfur. They will not go there unless they feel that the security situation has improved. Nonetheless we have to do a lot more because there are three things that will facilitate greater number of returns: first, security which is our duty as UNAMID and GoS of course; second, some physical and social structures like schools, hospitals; and third, the means of livelihood when they get there. So all these efforts are very important. UNAMID cannot do it alone; the UN Country Team has to be in the lead, along with the Government.

We are working with the League of Arab States and others international donors to assist in providing these and other elements that will facilitate the greater return of IDPs to their homes. We are encouraged by one statistic on this. At the height of the conflict in Darfur 2.7 million people were internally displaced. As we speak, according to OCHA estimates, it is now down to 1.7 million. Frankly speaking this is a huge change and we should support even more so that we can reduce it significantly.

I have been there. I have been to at least eight or nine IDP camps.  When you see people, women, children who have been there for the last six or eight years, that is not the way to live. That is abnormal. I have always said and repeat that we must never see as normal an abnormal situation. For people living under those conditions with no hope, this will be a source of more problems in the future.

So thanks you for those comments. We are not going to relax. We will continue to implement our mandate. We have to remind you that the war is not yet over. We still have intermittent clashes in some parts of Darfur. We do not have a comprehensive ceasefire. I am sure the Force Commander would be glad to have a comprehensive ceasefire which he can implement. We do not have an all inclusive peace agreement as we speak. So the challenge remains.

But what I promise is that UNAMID and the international community will continue to emphasize what we need to do in the positive implementation of our mandate in order to deliver the necessary dividends for peace for the people of Darfur.

Thank you very much.