A rare three-day tour of Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir in
Sudan's Darfur highlighted the importance of economic and social
development in the region in a bid to solve Darfur crisis, the
official SUNA news agency reported on Tuesday.
The government gives top priority to development in Darfur,
calling on all the region's citizens to unite for their own
development and to protect security and stability in the region,
SUNA said when commenting on the president's addresses in Darfur's
three states.
The president's three-day tour in Darfur affirmed that security
and stability had prevailed in most parts of the region,
strengthening the confidence of the Sudanese people in the peace
process, it noted.
"The visit which has been given top concern from media on the
international and regional levels, is considered as great support
to the peace process in the region and warmly welcomed by Darfur
citizens," SUNA said.
During the tour from Saturday to Monday, the Sudanese resident,
accompanied by Mini Arkou Minawi, the chairman of the Transitional
Darfur Regional Authority (TDRA), and a large group of senior
officials, visited the three states in the region and inaugurated a
number of building projects including airports, hospitals,
universities and roads.
Al-Bashir also held meetings with representatives of the
displaced people and other personalities to discuss the ways of
getting rid of their sufferings by achieving peace, stability and
development.
On Saturday, the Sudanese president called on the Darfurians to
unite for the development of their homelands when addressing a mass
rally in Nyala, the capital city of South Darfur State which has
the biggest population among the three Darfur states.
"The citizens just want a comprehensive peace followed by
development," al-Bashir said, adding "that is why I call on the
armed rebels to join the political process so that we can
reconstruct Darfur together."
"If you (rebels) preserve the current peace and security ... we
will shoulder the responsibility of development and see to it that
you get compensation," he announced.
"We want the displaced persons to return to their home areas and
cultivate the land," al-Bashir underlined.
In Fashir, the capital city of North Darfur State, al-Bashir
chaired a meeting of the Council of Ministers, the first such one
in Darfur, to listen to reports on the situations in the
region.
He said during Sunday's meeting that most of the people of
Darfur were enjoying security and peace and leading natural life,
underlining that the Darfur issue is on the way to be resolved.
Efforts of the Sudanese government during the coming period
would focus on three points, namely the implementation of security
arrangements of the DPA, supporting the return of the displaced
people to their villages and providing them with basic services,
and bring the non-signatory rebel movements back to the negotiation
table, the president declared.
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Addressing a mass rally later on Sunday, al-Bashir announced the
year 2007 a year for peace in Darfur and called on the rebel
movements to join the peace process.
Warning that western forces were attempting to split the people
of Darfur in a way that was similar to what was happening in Iraq,
the Sudanese president urged the Darfurians not to give a chance to
them.
On Monday's tour to Genaina, the capital city of West Darfur
State, al-Bashir affirmed that the Sudanese government would focus
on voluntary repatriation of the displaced people to their home
villages after securing these areas and providing them with
services.
He urged the local citizens to participate in securing their
state in a view that security was necessary for development and
provision of services.
(Xinhua News Agency July 25, 2007)
