Dead Ends
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Peace negotiations in the Central African Republic ended this week without any concrete progress amid an ongoing civil war that has been raging since 2013, Agence France-Presse reported.
The talks are part of President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s pledge to push for national reconciliation following his controversial re-election in 2020.
Earlier this month, Touadéra announced that he would hold discussions with opposition and civil society groups on March 21. But on that day, no rebel groups were invited and the opposition boycotted the meetings.
Observers noted that the agenda of the talks was vague: The negotiations were marked by tense moments, including a proposed constitutional change – later withdrawn – that would allow the head of state to run for a third term. Currently, the post allows for two.
Even so, the chair of the talks, Richard Filkota, announced 600 recommendations had been made. Among these was the lifting of the UN-mandated arms embargo, which was enforced in 2013 after a coalition of armed groups ousted then-leader Francois Bozize and drove the nation into civil conflict.
However, analyst Thierry Vircoulon said that the recommendations will not be implemented, because the government “doesn’t have the time or the money.”
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