Al-Bashir says next presidential elections in Sudan for 2015

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Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir, President of Sudan and Salva Kiir Mayardit, President of the Republic of South Sudan; Photo: UN

PANA

Khartoum, Sudan – President Omar Al-Bashir announced here Monday that the next presidential elections in Sudan will take place in early 2015.

Addressing the Sudanese parliament, President Al-Bashir urged all political parties and organizations to “prepare early and properly” for the coming elections, pledging that the vote would be “fair and transparent”.

On the thorny issue of Abyei, Al-Bashir said he, along with his “brother president of South Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit”, would work towards reaching a lasting solution that is satisfactory to all parties, particularly the local communities.

He said the two leaders had agreed on the formation of a police force and an interim civil administration which he said would enable those communities to resume their normal ways of life.

Al-Bashir said he also agreed with President Mayardit, during a recent visit to Juba, the South Sudanese capital, on the continued implementation of the cooperation agreements between the two States.

Al-Bashir unveiled his plans to establish a national council for peace in the area, promising to consult widely on the duties of the council.

He renewed his call on rebels, still declining to join the peace process, to lay down their arms and sign the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD), pledging amnesty to them.

“We affirm our readiness to pardon these rebels and consult with them on arrangements to join the peace process,” he said.

Al-Bashir called on all sectors of the Sudanese people, including ex-rebels, to take part in writing the country’s new constitution.



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