News Analysis: AU's absence from Sudan dialogue conference prompts questions

The African Union's (AU) absence from the opening session of the Sudanese national dialogue conference, which kicked off Saturday, has raised many questions, particularly that the AU is entrusted with all Sudan's peace and negotiations files.

Mohamed Hassan Saeed, a Sudanese political analyst, told Xinhua on Sunday that the absence is very influential because the AU is the mediator in all the Sudanese issues.

The AU is involved in negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan, talks between Khartoum and Darfur armed groups, negotiations between Khartoum and the rebels of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM)/northern sector and the national dialogue, he said.

It is apparent that there is likely a mutual discontent between Sudan and the AU.

On Aug. 25, the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) issued a resolution calling "for an urgent pre-national dialogue meeting of all relevant parties at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa to discuss and agree on procedural matters relating to the dialogue."

But, Khartoum rejected the AU call and insisted that the dialogue should be in Sudan.

"The AU, with its recent decision, wanted to be holding on the issue of the national dialogue and controlling its procedural steps via the preparatory meeting, which Khartoum rejected," he said.

"Definitely the absence of the AU officials from the dialogue conference was a message to Khartoum, indicating the AU dissatisfaction," he explained.

Saeed further stressed the importance for the Sudanese government to exert intensive efforts to reassure the AU that the outcome of the dialogue conference would be consistent with the directives embodied in the AUPSC resolution which stressed the necessity of conducting a transparent dialogue that leads to applicable results.

Nevertheless, other analysts believe the AU absence would not constitute any barrier that might prevent the national dialogue from reaching its aspired ends if the participants agreed on decisive solutions to the current political issues.

"I do not see the African absence would have any big effect on the dialogue, because we saw that the AU has been involved in many files of Sudanese issues without achieving tangible results," Abdul-Rahim Al-Sunni, another Sudanese political analyst, told Xinhua.

"If the AU wants to involve in the national dialogue without achieving any positive breakthrough, then Khartoum did well when it insisted that the dialogue should be convened inside Sudan," he added.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on Saturday opened the sessions of the national dialogue conference in Khartoum with the participation of 92 Sudanese political parties and representatives of regional organizations besides Chadian President Idriss Deby.

Three Darfur armed movements are participating in the conference.

The conference is scheduled to discuss six major issues including peace, identity, rights and freedoms, economy, external relations and rule and management.

Major political parties and armed movements have rejected to participate in the conference, including the Revolutionary Front Alliance, which brings together the SPLM/northern sector and the major Darfur armed movements.

In January 2014, President al-Bashir declared an initiative calling on the opposition parties and the armed groups to join a national dialogue to end the country's crises. Endit