US embassy cable - 05CAIRO4681

UNCLAS CAIRO 004681 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, PREL, EAID, EG, SG 
SUBJECT: NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE AND GOVERNMENT OF 
SUDAN SIGN PEACE AGREEMENT 
 
REF: CAIRO 4360 
 
Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. 
 
 
1.  (U)  Summary:  Officials representing the Government of 
Sudan (GOS) and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) signed 
a peace agreement on June 18 in Cairo potentially paving the 
way for the NDA to participate in the Sudanese Unity 
Government, scheduled to be formed by July 9, 2005.  The 
"Cairo Agreement for National Reconciliation and 
Comprehensive Peace in Sudan" provides for the formation of a 
joint committee to supervise the implementation of the 
agreement.  Despite the signing, key issues remain 
unresolved.  End summary. 
 
2.  (U)  The joint committee will consist of legal, political 
and grievance subcommittees, which will consider how NDA 
views might be incorporated into the new government. The 
agreed-upon subcommittees will reportedly explore ways to 
strengthen the process of democratization in Sudan by means 
such as lifting the State of Emergency, canceling laws that 
limit freedom, and enacting new laws to enhance the 
independence of the judiciary.  Although the subcommittees' 
precise objectives and strategies remain to be defined, both 
NDA and GOS officials were publicly optimistic following the 
signing ceremony about the prospects for greater cooperation. 
 
3.  (SBU)  Nonetheless, key issues remain unresolved.  NDA 
vice chairman General Abdel Rahman Saeed told poloff on June 
20 that the parties had failed to resolve both the 
disposition of NDA-affiliated forces and the proportionate 
representation by NDA parties in interim government 
institutions.  The NDA seeks to have its forces merged with 
the Sudanese Army.  As for the proportionate share of power, 
Saeed said that the NDA would like the opposition to have at 
least 20 percent representation in government institutions. 
Saeed added that 14 percent should be reserved for the NDA 
parties alone.  According to the terms of the June 18 
agreement, unless the parties resolve these two matters, the 
overall agreement will not take effect. 
 
4.  (SBU)  However, according to Saeed, the two unresolved 
issues "would not keep (the NDA) from working with the 
government."  In that vein, the General noted that the 
parties had reached a "significant breakthrough" concerning 
NDA representation on the committee responsible for drafting 
the new constitution.  The GOS had initially offered the NDA 
only six seats (out of a total of 60) on the drafting 
committee, but later increased the number to nine, a number 
satisfactory to the NDA.  Saeed said that the NDA's team of 
nine delegates would leave for Khartoum on June 20 or 21 to 
join the constitutional drafting process. 
 
5.  (SBU)  The Government of Egypt (GOE) continues to be 
involved in supporting efforts to achieve peace in Sudan.  In 
addition to hosting this last round of GOS-NDA negotiations, 
the GOE, according to the Ministry of Defense, is planning to 
send 800 troops to join peace-keeping missions in Sudan by 
the end of June. 
 
6.  Khartoum minimize considered. 
 
 
Visit Embassy Cairo's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/cairo 
 
You can also access this site through the 
State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. 
 
GRAY