Tanzania Hosts S. Sudan Talks

Tanzania's ruling party on Monday is hosting talks aimed at reconciling rival factions within South Sudan's ruling Sudanese People's Liberation Movement (SPLM).



"These new talks are coming at the request of the leadership of the SPLM and will be bringing together various groups in the ruling party," Abdulrahaman Kinana, secretary-general of Tanzania's ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, told Anadolu Agency.



He said the meetings, held at Ngurdoto Mountain Lodge some 30km outside Arusha, would seek to reconcile both the SPLM leadership and the people of South Sudan.



"South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and his former vice-president, Riek Machar, are expected at the official launching [of the talks], which is expected to take place today," said Kinana, who will chair the discussions.



"Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, who is also CCM national chairman, is expected to officiate the talks, [which are] aimed at resolving the internal strife which has claimed thousands of lives [in South Sudan]," he added.



The official launch of the process follows a week-long intra-SPLM dialogue in Arusha that began on October 12 behind closed doors.



"During the week-long discussions, we agreed to establish a framework for the SPLM dialogue, including shared principles, objectives and an agenda," said Kinana.



"The initial phase of the dialogue was held in a frank, honest and cordial manner," he noted.



South Sudan, which became the world's newest nation after seceding from Sudan in 2011, descended into bloodshed late last year following an alleged coup attempt against Kiir by Machar.



Hundreds of thousands of people have since lost their lives while more than 1.7 million have been displaced by the conflict.



In recent months, South Sudan's warring camps have held on-again, off-again peace talks in Addis Ababa under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD), a Djibouti-based East African regional bloc.



The ongoing turmoil in South Sudan has dimmed its prospects for joining the Arusha-headquartered East African Community (EAC), which has urged the troubled country to first put its house in order.



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