MINISTER FOR Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin will travel to Khartoum today for meetings with Sudanese government officials as efforts continue to secure the release of an Irish aid worker who was kidnapped, along with a Ugandan colleague, in Darfur two months ago.
Up to eight armed men seized Sharon Commins (32) – from Clontarf, Dublin – and Hilda Kawuki (42) from their compound in Kutum, a town in north Darfur, on July 3rd. The two women work for Irish aid agency Goal.
Mr Martin is expected to arrive in Khartoum tonight. He is due to meet officials including Sudan’s foreign minister; President Omar al-Bashirs main adviser on Darfur; and Abdul Bagi al-Jailani, the Sudanese humanitarian affairs minister who has been overseeing negotiations to secure the women’s release.
“We will be briefing the Irish Minister on our efforts, and we will provide him with the latest information, Mr al-Jailani told The Irish Times last night. The Sudanese minister is in regular phone contact with Mr Martin and other Irish officials, and has spoken several times with the Commins family.
Mr al-Jailani has described the eight kidnappers as members of a nomadic tribe in north Darfur seeking a ransom. He said last night that Sudanese authorities were continuing to liaise with tribal elders to free the women. Officials stopped talking directly to the kidnappers some time ago.
Last month Mr al-Jailani said Khartoum was considering offering legal immunity to the men if they handed over the two aid workers.
Sudanese officials hope there may be some developments before the holy month of Ramadan ends, on or around September 19th.
“Ramadan is a very special month, a month of forgiveness . . .” said Mr al-Jailani. “We are hopeful that this game will come to an end soon but, as I have said to the Irish officials, we are dealing with people who have no sense of time . . .”
The kidnapping has now become the longest-running abduction of foreign aid staff in the restive region. Between March and July, two groups of humanitarian workers were captured. One group was held for three days, the other for more than three weeks – before being released unharmed.