Sudan
Downplays
Khartoum
Protests, S.
Sudan on
Toyota &
Jonglei
Killings
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
June 28 --
Sudan and
South Sudan
have of late formed an
explosive item
on the UN
Security
Council's
agenda,
but Thursday
it was
not. After low
key
consultations,
Inner City
Press asked
Sudan's
Ambassador Daffa-Alla
Elhag Ali
Osman if
it is true the
talks in Addis
Ababa are
stalled.
No,
he replied,
the
talks are
productive and
will start
again on July
5.
Inner
City Press
asked about
the protests
in Khartoum
and elsewhere
against
austerity.
Sudan's
Ambassador
said his
country
respects
peaceful
protest but
not
destruction of
buildings.
Because
a member
of Thabo
Mbeki's panel
said in closed
door
consultations,
as
exclusively
reported by
Inner City
Press, that
South Sudan's
plan was
to deny
Khartoum oil
transfer fees
until Bashir
is overthrown,
Inner
City Press
asked Sudan's
Ambassador
about this
linkage.
He
said there are
problems and
protests
everywhere.
And then he
left.
South
Sudan's
Ambassador
Francis
Nazario
followed with
a prepared
statement.
Then Inner
City Press,
the only
reporter at
the stakeout,
asked him if
Sudan is
still engaged
in aerial
bombing. Yes,
he said, along
the border.
Inner
City Press
asked if its
Toyota that
will build the
new pipeline
bypassing
Sudan. It's
not confirmed
yet, he said,
but yes we
will build a
pipeline.
After
the
belatedly
release of the
UN's report
about killings
in Jonglei
State,
Inner City
Press asked
Nazario for
his
government's
response. He
said the
government has
deployed
police and is
protecting
people.
We'll see.
Watch this
site.
, 
