US State Department opposes ‘Peace Act’

The US State Department has opposed a provision in the ‘Sudan Peace Act’ regarding the activities of companies operating in the war-torn country, AFP reported on Thursday. The Act, passed with overwhelming support by the House of Representatives on Wednesday but awaiting presidential approval, seeks to prohibit companies from trading shares in the US unless they fully disclose the nature of their business in Sudan. US State Department Spokesman Philip Reeker said the State Department shared the concerns of the House of Representatives on the potential association of US-listed companies and oil-associated human rights abuses in Sudan, but thought the restriction on trading would interfere with the Securities and Exchange Commission which regulates US stock markets. “Some of those disclosure requirements would undermine the independence and prerogative of the Securities and Exchange Commission to determine the nature and definition of information that is material to the investors,” AFP quoted Reeker as saying.

Meanwhile, the Sudanese government condemned the bill as negative and called it a “deviation” from other peace efforts made by the international community. The official Sudanese news agency, SUNA, quoted a foreign ministry spokesman as saying that the US legislation “contains negative signs and does not help the peaceful efforts pursued by the Sudanese government for reaching a negotiated peaceful settlement.”