March 30, 2010 (PARIS) — The two major rebel groups fighting in Sudan’s Western region of Darfur have warned against holding the general elections set to start in less than two weeks saying that it will complicate the situation in the country.

The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) and its junior partner in the government Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM) are deadlocked over whether the elections should be postponed as opposition parties have demanded in a memo they submitted to the presidency this month.

The Sudanese president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir, First Vice president Salva Kiir and 2nd Vice President Ali Osman Taha have been unable to convene a meeting which was scheduled to discuss the issue. The presidency summit has twice been rescheduled.

Opposition parties have threatened to boycott the elections should they not get a positive response on the postponement which they say is necessary to reform a number of laws and establish a mechanism to monitor the work of the National Election Commission (NEC) which they accuse of breaching the electoral law in favor of the NCP.

The Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) led by Abdel-Wahid Al-Nur and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) today joined the calls for delaying the vote.

"Any elections held now under these circumstances will deem them meaningless and will not achieve the desired outcome of stabilizing country and transforming it to a democratic one," Al-Nur told Sudan Tribune today.

"The government firm control over media, security and financial resources obviously gives it an unfair advantage and it is very clear that the NEC is not conducting its work in a fair and transparent manner. The insecurity in Darfur also makes it impossible to hold elections there" he added.

The SLM chief called for forming an interim government "to prepare the country for elections and work on resolving the conflict in Darfur by enforcing security, removing the new settlers and return the land to its rightful owners and work on a political solution, implement all clauses contained in the CPA [Comprehensive Peace Agreement] particularly the rights of Southerners to have a referendum".

Bashir on Monday warned the SPLM that if it boycotted the election there would be no southern referendum on secession in 2011, heightening tensions in Africa’s largest country.

JEM, which is currently engaged in peace talks with Khartoum, echoed Al-Nur’s call saying that the "bare minimum standards" for holding them should exist stressing that the bulk of Darfuri population has not been registered in the census or the voter registration process.

"Excluding [Darfuris] from participation in shaping the future of their country through the ballot box at this critical juncture of the history of the country would weaken their sense of belonging, and works to amplify the voice of the advocates of self-determination for Darfur" according to a statement signed by JEM spokesperson Ahmed Hussein Adam.

JEM slammed the "arrogance" of the NCP in dealing with other political powers saying it does not help building the "national consensus".

"Holding elections in April places obstacles before the peace talks process, and in particular the power sharing portion. Prioritizing the conducting of elections over achieving peace offers conclusive evidence that the NCP does give much care to peace, and unable to depart from the selfish interests of party loyalty to the supreme national interest".

JEM leader Khalil Ibrahim during meeting with Sudanese presidential adviser Ghazi Salah Al-Deen in Ndjamena refused to finalize a ceasefire agreement unless he reaches an agreement on the power sharing with the government. Khartoum rejects to give his group a vice-presidency and to postpone elections.

Sudan is set to stage its first multi-party elections in 24 years from April 11 to 13 as part of the 2005 peace agreement that ended a decades-old civil war between north and south.

(ST)