KHARTOUM - SUDANESE PRESIDENT Omar Hassan al-Bashir, facing a possible indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes in Darfur, announced a ceasefire in the region yesterday.
But an important Darfur rebel group, the Justice and Equality Movement (Jem), called the announcement a "PR exercise" and vowed to fight on until a proper ceasefire deal was reached.
The move by Mr Bashir, accused in July by the ICC chief prosecutor of masterminding a campaign of genocide in Darfur, marks the latest push by the Sudanese government to persuade the UN Security Council to suspend any ICC warrant.
"I hereby announce our immediate unconditional ceasefire between the armed forces and the warring factions, provided that an effective monitoring mechanism is put into action and observed by all involved parties," Mr Bashir said in a speech.
He also pledged to launch a campaign to disarm militias in the vast region in Sudan's west, where international experts estimate 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million have been displaced since the conflict between the government and mostly African rebels flared in 2003. Khartoum puts the death toll at 10,000.
In announcing the ceasefire, Mr Bashir was adopting the recommendation of the Sudan People's Initiative - a platform of government and opposition figures he launched last month. Rebel groups boycotted the event.
The president said he would agree to the forum's recommendations to step up development in Darfur and announced plans for new hospitals, schools, water projects and electricity supplies.
Mr Bashir said he was also ready to compensate individuals and organisations affected by the conflict, and had set aside 40 million Sudanese pounds (€14.42 million), with promises of more to come.
However, he did not promise to release political prisoners from Darfur, or to create a separate vice-presidential post for the region, both recommendations of the forum.
The US chargé d'affaires in Sudan, Alberto Fernandez, described the new initiative as "a step in the right direction".
"But the challenge is not what is written on the paper. The challenge is what happens on the ground," he added.
Ahmed Hussein, a spokesman for the Jem rebels, said Mr Bashir was trying "to fool everybody" with his ceasefire proposal.
Jem was not against a ceasefire, but a truce needed serious talks involving UN and African Union (AU) mediators. "If the AU and UN mediators want to engage the conflicting parties together for a ceasefire, we are ready to discuss it," he said.
The undermanned UN-AU peacekeeping force, Unamid, has not been able to secure the vast Darfur region. It has 11,000 people in Darfur, well short of its promised 26,000 personnel.
Suleiman Sandal, the deputy general commander of Jem, said a deal with Mr Bashir should also guarantee the rights of the people of Darfur to share power and wealth.
Several ceasefire initiatives have failed in Darfur, including a 2006 peace deal between the government and a faction of the rebel Sudan Liberation Army.
Amnesty International said the announcement opened up the chance for change in Darfur, but noted that past ceasefires had failed. - ( Reuters)