VZCZCXRO0299
RR RUEHROV RUEHTRO
DE RUEHKH #0129 0531655
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 221655Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0264
INFO IGAD COLLECTIVE
UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

C O N F I D E N T I A L KHARTOUM 000129 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
NSC FOR MGAVIN, LETIM 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/02/22 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM PBTS KDEM KPKO SU
SUBJECT: (U) Vice President Taha Tells Special Envoy Impasse on 
Census, Border Demarcation Broken 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Robert E. Whitehead, Charge d'Affaires; REASON: 
1.4(B), (D) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  In a February 21 meeting, Second Vice President 
Ali Osman Taha told Special Envoy Gration that the Comprehensive 
Peace Agreement (CPA) parties had resolved the dispute over the 
census, giving the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) 40 
additional seats, as well as an additional four in Southern 
Kordofan and two in Abyei, and had agreed on border demarcation. 
In Southern Kordofan, the census will be redone, and the state 
executive and legislative elections postponed until the new census 
is complete.  The Government of National Unity will nominate a 
liaison to work directly with the Government of Chad, and the Sudan 
Minister of Defense and chief of Security will work with their 
counterparts in Chad to implement the new agreement between the two 
countries.  End Summary. 
 
 
 
¶2. (C) Special Envoy Gration met February 21 with Second Vice 
President Ali Osman Taha.  Taha said that, following Presidential 
Advisor Ghazi Salahuddin's successful visit to Chad, the GNU would 
nominate a liaison to work directly with the Government of Chad 
(GOC) to implement the agreement between the two countries, and 
would send the Minister of Defense and the Chief of Security to 
Doha to work directly with their counterparts on security 
arrangements. 
 
 
 
¶3. (C) Asked his views as to how the various international actors, 
including the African Union (AU) High Level Panel headed by Thabo 
Mbeki, the UN and the UN-AU Joint Mediator Djibril Bassole, could 
work together, Taha responded that the parties need the support of 
the international partners in the economic development of Darfur, 
as well as in fostering the bilateral relationship between Sudan 
and Chad.  Taha said the he envisioned cross-border development 
activities with Eastern Chad, to cement the relationship and to 
prevent security problems from arising again. 
 
 
 
¶4. (C) Taha told Gration that in the census negotiation, the 
National Congress Party (NCP) offered the SPLM 40 additional seats 
in the National Assembly, as well as four in South Kordofan and two 
in Abyei.  In addition, the Border Demarcation Commission had been 
given a directive to start demarcation working on the ground, and 
to provide a report to the Presidency in order to resolve areas on 
which there is disagreement.  The parties want the border 
demarcation to be finished at least three months before the 
referendum. 
 
 
 
¶5. (C) The Vice President said he had been in meetings on February 
20 and 21 to discuss issues related to Southern Kordofan, where the 
SPLM threatened a boycott over the use of incomplete census 
figures.  The parties have agreed to go forward with elections for 
the national executive and legislative branches, but to postpone 
the state legislative and executive elections. 
 
 
 
¶6. (C) Taha said that the parties have directed their teams to 
start discussions on post-2011 arrangements.  They will begin to 
decide the issues on which to ask for international community 
support on a case-by-case basis rather than having the 
international community present throughout, if the NCP gets its 
way. 
 
 
 
¶7.  (U) The Special Envory's staff cleared this cable. 
WHITEHEAD