Chad 'national dialogue' to begin after delays

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National consultations on Chad's future, which the governing junta claims will pave the way for elections, begin on Saturday, but the event has been marred by delays and boycotts.

More than 1,400 delegates from the military administration, civic society, opposition parties, labor unions, and rebel groups will convene in N'Djamena for a three-week "national dialogue". The talks are the brainchild of junta chief General Mahamat Idriss Deby.

At the age of 37, Deby took power in April 2021 after his father, who ruled for 30 years but was killed during a military operation against rebels.

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He has stated that the forum should pave the way for "free and democratic" elections following the junta's 18-month rule, a timetable that France, the African Union (AU), and others have urged him to meet. However, the "dialogue", which was supposed to begin in February, has been plagued by delays as Chad's various rebel groups squabbled about whether to attend a meeting in Qatar.

Finally, on August 8, approximately 40 parties agreed to a truce and guarantee of safe passage. On the agenda is peace, reforming state institutions, and a new constitution that will be put to a referendum. 

Junta chairman Deby signed a decree on Wednesday declaring that the forum's choices will be "legally binding".

A deputy president of the forum's organizing committee and a former opponent of the older Deby, Saleh Kebzabo, said Deby will speak at roughly 10:00 a.m. (0900 GMT). The dialogue would then begin on Sunday or Monday, Kebzabo told AFP. AU Commission chief and Chadian Moussa Faki Mahamat will also speak at the talks' opening.

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Timan Erdimi and Mahamat Nouri, two exiled rebel commanders, returned to Chad on Thursday to participate in the discussion. "We signed this agreement to rebuild Chad," Erdimi, the head of the Union of Resistance Forces (UFR), told AFP.

Since its independence in 1960, Chad, one of the world's poorest countries, has experienced periodic revolutions and instability. The talks are faced with major challenges, such as time and the absence of two major armed groups.