Preliminary Agreement: Dialogue between the Ngok Dinka community and Misseriyya

• Country/entity

  South Sudan
  Sudan
  Southern Kordofan - Blue Nile - Abyei
  
• Region

  Africa (excl MENA)
  Africa (excl MENA)
  Africa (excl MENA)
  
• Agreement name

  Preliminary Agreement: Dialogue between the Ngok Dinka community and Misseriyya
• Date

  10 Aug 2012
• Agreement status

  Multiparty signed/agreed
• Interim arrangement

  Yes
• Agreement/conflict level

  Intrastate/local conflict ( Sudan Conflicts (1955 - ) )
• Stage

  Pre-negotiation/process
• Conflict nature

  Inter-group
• Peace process

  Kordofan - Blue Nile - Abyei process
• Parties

  Misseriyya, signed by Hamdi Al-Hodou Ismail;
  Ngok Dinka, signed by Afaj Dink Byunq;
• Third parties

  Abyei Joint Oversight Committee (AJOC). Hosted at the Headquarters of the United Nations Mission in Abyei, Sudan.
• Description

  Short agreement seeking to facilitate dialogue between the nomadic (Sunni) Baggara Arab Misseriya people and the nomadic (Christian/Animist) Ngok Dinka people to reconcile the two communities and implement agreed upon norms and 'practices of tolerance'.

• Agreement document

  SD_SS_120810_Pact on Core Principles for Peaceful Coexistence between Dinka Ngok and Misseriya-Abyei.pdf | Download PDF
• Agreement document (original language)

  SD_SS_120810_Pact on Core Principles for Peaceful Coexistence between Dinka Ngok and Misseriya-Abyei_AR.pdf | Download PDF

Local agreement properties

• Process type

  Formal structured process
  
• Rationale

  The signatories of this agreement met for two days under the initiative of the Abyei Joint Oversight Committee (AJOC) in the premises of the United Nations Mission's (UNISFA) headquarters, suggesting some level of structure and formality. It does not appear to be an isolated example of peacemaking between representatives of the groups signing the agreement (see, for example, agreement 'Misseriyya and Dinka Ngok Conference, Conference Agreement, Kadugli' of 13/01/2011).
• Is there a documented link to a national peace process?

  No
• Link to national process: articulated rationale

  Neither the agreement text nor limited background research suggests a link to the national-level peace process.
• Name of Locale

  Abyei Area
• Nature Of Locale

  Region
• GPS Lat/Long (DD)

  9.600000, 28.433333
• Participant type

  International or transnational actor
  Domestic religious organisation/leader or other elder
  
• Mediator, facilitator or similar

  Mediator or similar referred to
  Mediator (references)

  Initiator: Abyei Joint Oversight Committee (AJOC) initiated the dialogue that led to the signing of the agreement. Facilitator: United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) facilitated the meeting in its headquarters in Abyei.
  Type of mediator/facilitator/similar

  International or transnational actor

Local issues

The Abyei Joint Oversight Committee (AJOC)

Headquarters of the United Nations Mission – Abyei

8/10/2012

Preliminary Agreement Dialogue between the Ngok Dinka community and the Misseriyya

We, the leadership in the civil administration of the Ngok Dinka and the Misseriyya, under the kind initiative of the the Abyei Joint Oversight Committee (AJOC), held a meeting in the town of Abyei between 9-10/8/2012 to initiate a dialogue in the spirit of responsibility and commitment to create a new reality on the ground and to arrive at a bright future for the neighbouring people and communities on this land.

The exchange over the crucial issue of peaceful coexistence in the Abyei region led to the following announcement of agreed principles:

First:

Confirming the urgency of the dialogue and its continuation with mutual respect between the communities of Ngok Dinka and the Misseriyya despite current bitterness and past grievances, and to create a shared relationship as well as to return to a relationship of long-lasting tolerance.

Second:

Acknowledging the existence of common injustice among the Ngok Dinka and Misseriyya communities and the urgency of joint action to eliminate such injustice.

Third:

Confirming the suffering of the Ngok Dinka due to the disturbances and disruptions of security which affected the region.

Fourth:

The importance to illuminate rules on the basis of this announcement and through joint reconciliation between the Ngok Dinka and Misseriyya communities, while also acknowledging the aspirations and hopes of the Ngok Dinka.

Fifth:

Confirming the urgency to realize agreed-upon norms and practices of tolerance as well as the organisation of peaceful coexistence between the two communities.

Sixth:

The parties seek to accelerate the preparatory dialogues towards convening a conference of reconciliation and collective peaceful coexistence, seeking a return to tribal relations in a prosperous era.

The signatories:

“Hamdi Al-Hodou” Ismail for the leadership of the Misseriyya “Afaj Dink Byunq” for the leadership of the Ngok Dinka