Djibrill Bassolé, Joint African Union/United Nations Mediator for Darfur
Mark Malloch Brown, UK Minister of State for Africa, Asia, and the United Nations
Torben Brylle, EU special representative for Sudan
J. Scott Gration, U.S. Presidential Special Envoy to Sudan
Abdoulie Janneh, Executive Secretary UN Economic Commission for Africa
Alain Le Roy, UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations
Louis Michel, EU Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid
Amre Moussa, Secretary General of the Arab League
All members of the Forum for former African Heads of State and Government and other African Leaders (Africa Forum). These include:
- Joaquim Chissano
- Abdou Diouf
- Boutros Boutros Ghali
- Kenneth Kaunda
- John Kufour
- Nelson Mandela
- Quett Masire
- Festus Mogae
- Thabo Mbeki
- Salim Ahmed Salim
The members of the advisory board of the Coalition for Dialogue on Africa:
- Festus Mogae (Botswana), former President of Botswna – Chairperson
- Cheick Modibo Diarra (Mali), Chairman, Microsoft Africa
- Frene Ginwala (South Africa), Former Speaker of the South African Parliament
- Martin Khor (Malaysia), Director, Third World Network
- Paul Martin (Canada), Former Prime Minister of Canada
- Wangari Maathai (Kenya), Founder of the Green Belt Movement and Nobel Peace Laureate
- Ismail Serageldin (Egypt), Director, Bibliotheca Alexandrina.
All members of the of The Elders:
- Desmond Tutu (Chair)
- Kofi Annan
- Ela Bhatt
- Lakhdar Brahimi
- Gro Harlem Brundtland
- Fernando Henrique Cardoso
- Jimmy Carter
- Graça Machel
- Mary Robinson
- Mohammed Yunus
The civil society initiative which you are supporting is one of several important initiatives which are dedicated to supporting the Darfur peace process. Taken together with these other initiatives, I do believe that the inclusive process which you are supporting can be of great assistance to the Mediation and the peace process overall in Darfur.
We wish you success with this endeavour... Therefore we welcome constructive efforts to allow a wide range of Darfuri leaders to interact with each other and other stakeholders, to share ideas, and to contribute their views to the ongoing political process.
With regard to Darfur, we have all along stressed the need for an inclusive approach which requires that the needs and interests of the broader population of Darfur must be taken into account for any solution to be sustainable. We, therefore, share the view that the Darfurian civil society should be an active player in a peace process and believe that your initiative can make an important contribution to that aim.
I believe strongly that solutions to the present conflict in Darfur must come from Darfurians themselves. Your efforts and the broad representation of civil society you plan to gather in Ethiopia will play an important role in adding more momentum to our mutual goal of peace and security in Darfur.
I am therefore delighted to endorse the Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s initiative to organise a conference for the Darfur civil society. This would be a significant accomplishment that would contribute immensely to reinforcing the current joint UN-AU mediation efforts in Darfur. THE ECA will be pleased to support your efforts in order to achieve their noble objectives.
Engagement with Darfurian civil society groups is central to our efforts to achieve sustainable peace in Darfur...I welcome your Foundation’s efforts to ensure a broad, fair and transparent inclusion of civil society in the peace process in the search for peace in Darfur...
I'm saddened that the organisers of the 'Mandate Darfur' conference have felt obliged to cancel this event due to travel restrictions imposed on certain delegates by the Sudanese authorities. This conference had the potential to be a valuable and promising contribution to the efforts made by the international community to bring lasting peace to the region. It is clear that the organisers, from the outset, have endeavoured to be neutral ensuring that all stakeholders were fairly represented.
It gives me great pleasure to welcome your important initiative in this regard, and would like to express the Arab League’s total readiness to cooperate with your Foundation, as well as with the concerned stakeholders, in order to ensure a positive role for the representatives and components of the Darfur civil society in the settlement of the crisis and mending the social texture in Darfur.
It is crucial that Darfuris themselves take the lead in seeking a resolution to the devastating conflict that has caused so much suffering and loss of life in Darfur and that the views and aspirations of civil society are properly taken into account in future peace negotiations. We congratulate the Mo Ibrahim Foundation on its facilitation of this civil society meeting which brings together so many of the voices who have struggled to be heard, particularly the voices of women.