Massyiria-Dinka agreement to boost peace process

A local peace accord intended to help end decades of tribal conflicts between the Dinka Ngok people and the Arab Massyiria tribes of Abyei and Muglad, Southern Kordofan, south-central Sudan, can help boost efforts to end the country's 19 year civil war, according to diplomatic sources in Khartoum.

In the agreement, signed by leaders of the two tribes on 31 January after the support in negotiations of the Netherlands embassy in Khartoum, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the European Union, the two sides vowed to put aside their differences and ensure justice among them, the Sudanese Arabic Al-Rai Al-Amm newspaper reported on 14 February.

The agreement, dubbed The Abyei Declaration, was signed by 14 tribal leaders. It stated: "We the Dinka tribe Ngok and the tribes of Massyria, Ajabira and Plata, in the areas of Abyei and Muglad, hereby... agree that we will co-exist and work to restore the historic relationship which we have inherited from our forefathers. We undertake to jointly work to develop our area and... are committed to putting aside our differences and ensure order and justice among us."

Nomadic communities in Southern Kordofan have historically waged tribal conflicts but their scale has, over the years, been aggravated by the Sudanese civil war, according to humanitarian sources.

The Abyei peace deal, which followed talks undertaken at the initiative of the two tribes, "adds value" to the Nuba Mountains ceasefire agreement [signed between the Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army in January], according to Fahima Hashim, development programme adviser at the Dutch embassy in Khartoum.

The Dinka-Massyiria accord indicated that the people of Sudan were in "a mood for peace" and could contribute "a great deal" to the overall Sudanese peace process, said Hashim, whose embassy was one of the main supporters of the initiative.

"People are optimistic towards it [the peace agreement]. The people needed the possibility of moving freely in their own land," she told IRIN, urging also that the international community should seize the opportunity and support similar initiatives.

"When smaller conflicts like this are resolved, it adds a lot to the efforts to resolve the larger conflict. It also means that the Sudanese themselves are contributing to the peace process," Hashim stated.

Zefier Marshal, chief delegate of the European Commission in Sudan, who witnessed the signing, told IRIN that the pledge by the leaders of the two communities indicated a willingness of the Sudanese people to achieve peace.

"It is important, because it is a message from the people saying "we don't need the government to make peace for us. We can do it on our own," he added.

Human rights and religious organisations have criticised Khartoum for allegedly allowing pro-government Arab militias, particularly from the Massyiria and neighbouring Baggara tribes, to abduct women and children, especially Dinka from the south, to be sold in the north as slaves.

The Zurich-based Christian Solidarity International (CSI) alleged in January that, since 1995, it had "liberated" over 78,000 "black Sudanese slaves", through a programme in which CSI offers to buy individuals described as such from their alleged owners in order to set them free.

"Many more slaves are still believed to be in bondage, but estimates vary greatly. The civil representatives of the enslaved people of northern Bahr al-Ghazal believe that over 200,000 are currently in bondage, while government-appointed 'chiefs' in Khartoum... give an estimate of approximately 14,000 'abductees' - the Sudanese government's euphemism for black slaves," CSI said in a statement released on 22 January.

The Khartoum government has repeatedly stated that no slavery is practised in Sudan, while admitting that there is a problem of some tribal militias abducting civilians.

The government-appointed Committee for the Eradication of Abduction of Women and Children (CEAWC) said in October 2001 that abductions among tribes in the west and south of Sudan had existed as long as the tribes have, and insisted that the government was "sincere" in tackling the matter, in line with its obligations as a signatory to all the international treaties condemning slavery.

"It [the practice of abductions] has its deep roots in various economic, social and cultural conditions, and its growth has been fostered by the geographic distance of and weakness of infrastructure in these regions, and lack of awareness, education and security among these tribes," CEAWC stated.

An end to slavery was one of four confidence-building measures proposed to the Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan people's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) by US peace envoy to Sudan, John Danforth, during a visit to the country in November.

The US was soon expected to appoint members to a special commission to look into the allegations of slavery in Sudan - the establishment of which had been welcomed by Sudanese President Umar Hassan al-Bashir - but Washington on Thursday suspended peace discussions with the government after forces loyal to it attacked a relief centre in southern Sudan, killing 17 people.

The long-term implications of this latest attack against civilians at or near humanitarian facilities remain to be seen.