Canadian oil company Talisman will not pull out of Sudan
Al-Ra'y al-Amm (Newspaper published in Khartoum, in Arabic), June 4
Jim W Buckee, the chairman and director of the Canadian company, Talisman, which operates in the field of oil in Sudan, ended yesterday afternoon a successful visit to Khartoum that lasted three days. During the visit, he carried out discussions with the minister of finance, as well as the minister of energy and mining, besides assessing the progress of Talisman's investment in the country.
While issuing press statements at Khartoum airport just before leaving the country, Jim Buckee expressed his belief that the withdrawal of Talisman's investments from the country was not the best solution for stopping what some quarters have repeatedly referred to as the government's use of oil revenues to stoke up the flames of war and violate human rights.
Buckee said: "We are going to remain in Sudan for we do not understand how the withdrawal would benefit anybody". He stressed it was better for Talisman to remain in Sudan so as to do whatever was within its ability to improve the situation.
"We are responsible for our actions but not the actions of others," he went on to say.
He said the minister of finance, Abd-al-Rahim Hamdi, had informed him that the government was using half of the oil revenues to repay Sudan's foreign debts and the other half on salaries and development projects...
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Sudan: Government stepping up efforts to "isolate" rebels
Khartoum, SUNA - 7 June: Foreign Minister Dr Mustafa Uthman Isma'il said the coming period would witness a wider campaign to explain the government position towards the question of southern Sudan and to expose the practices of the rebellion movement and its procrastination during the various rounds of peace talks. |
