African Solutions for African Problems: Ethiopia’s Mediation Role in (2018-2019) Sudan Political Crisis
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Date
2021-03
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Addis ababa university
Abstract
After the overthrew the 30- year old rule of Al Basher the political condition of Sudan had been in a state of swinging to the left and to the right.What Ethiopia did in this particular case was to avoid an all-out conflict and bring the contending parties to the negotiating table in a step-by-step process with a spirit of ‘’African solution for African problem’. The effort succeeded to have resulted ina power sharing deal between the TMC and the civilian opposition power. Itis believed to be the first step towards a democratic transition for the Sudan. This study therefore sought to assess the contribution of Ethiopia towards bringing the disputing Sudanese parties to reach an agreement in the spirit of solving African problems by African. The study utilized qualitative method and non-probability sampling technique to select informants. By conducting semi-structured interviews and extensively reviewingsecondary data sources the study has examined the role, approaches, achievements, and challenges of the Ethiopian-led mediation during the 2018-18 Sudan crisis. The study established that there were various actors in the mediation process in theSudan. Ethiopia’s mediation effort was successful.The successes of the process, has depended on the outcome, acceptability of the mediators by the warring parties, the neutrality of the mediators in the process, and the skill and knowledge of mediators on the causes of conflict, the parties and process. Nerveless, the mediation process was not smooth. There were major challenges including mistrust between the negotiating parties, internal friction among civilian groups, and pressure from various actors and skepticism towards Ethiopia’s initiative. Finally, the study recommended that, coordinated and timely application of specific political, diplomatic, and economic and/or security measures and activities in response to a situation threatening peace should be a responsibility of each member states. Also, to be effective conflict prevention must be planned and implemented with its contribution and transition to longer-term peace and security as a key consideration.Finally, critical post-conflict components should be addressed.
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African Solutions for African Problems ; Sudan Political Crisis