July 19, 1999 (4:40 p.m. EDT) No. 162

CANADA WELCOMES SUDAN PEACE TALKS

Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy today welcomed the resumption of the peace talks on Sudan and urged the parties to come to a negotiated settlement. The Minister also announced that David Pratt, Member of Parliament, Nepean-Carleton, will attend the regionally mediated talks on July 20 to 23, in Nairobi, Kenya, on behalf of the Government of Canada.

"Civilians are the principal casualties of Sudan's civil war, and children in particular are the most vulnerable. The international community must increase its efforts to end this conflict," said Mr. Axworthy. "Canada urges the parties to show flexibility and to commit themselves to a timetable for ongoing negotiations."

The negotiations will be mediated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), which aims to promote peace and development in the Horn of Africa and whose members include Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda. Kenya chairs the IGAD committee, which is seeking a peaceful solution to the conflict between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Army. This peace process has been accepted by all parties to the conflict and represents the best opportunity to end the conflict.

Mr. Pratt represents Canada as an observer and as a member of the IGAD Partner Forum (IPF) in support of the talks. The IPF includes donor countries that are providing support for the IGAD's peace and development efforts. Mr. Pratt recently travelled to Sierra Leone as special envoy to assess the humanitarian and security situation.

Minister for International Co-operation and Minister responsible for la Francophonie Diane Marleau announced a contribution of $400 000 from the Peace Building Fund in June of this year to support the Sudan peace negotiations. The funds will be disbursed through a Canadian non-governmental organization, Project Ploughshares, which seeks to link humanitarian, development and security concerns in a multidimensional response to the conflict. The project also aims to engage members of Sudanese civil society in supporting the IGAD.

The civil war that has afflicted Sudan for most of the period since 1956 is one of the most intractable conflicts in the world today. Over 1.9 million people have died and more than 4 million people are displaced. Canada has provided over $100 million since 1990 in humanitarian aid to Sudan.

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