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Wade wants direct talks with Casamance separatists

    ABIDJAN
    Senegal’s President Abdoulaye Wade announced in Dakar on Saturday that he aimed to open direct talks with the rebel Mouvement des Forces democratiques de Casamance (MFDC) which has been fighting for a separate state in southern Senegal for 18 years, news media reported. “I prefer to engage in direct dialogue with heads of state in the sub-region and also to engage in as direct dialogue as possible with the MFDC leaders, even those in the underground forces,” AFP reported Wade as saying on returning home from visits to Guinea-Bissau and Gambia. Gambia and Guinea-Bissau are the main mediators in the Casamance conflict. However, Senegal has often charged that the rebels use Guinea-Bissau as a rear base. Casamance was one of the main issues Wade discussed with his Gambian and Guinea Bissau counterparts, according to news reports from Banjul as well as AFP.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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