South Sudan Islamic Community Urge Political Leaders To Embrace Peace

El Tahir Bior Abdalla Ajak, Secretary General of South Sudan Islamic Council standing with the members while reading their statement. [Photo| Jok P. Mayom]

By Jok P Mayom

JUBA, 28 April 2016 [Gurtong] - Members of South Sudan Islamic Council (SSIC)on Thursday urged political leaders to embrace peace put the country’s interest first and respect human dignity of the people of South Sudan.

El Tahir Bior Abdalla Ajak, Secretary General of SSIC in their joint statement welcomed home Dr. Riek Machar after two years of conflict and called on all parties to work for peace and the implementation of the agreement.

 “His return signifies the beginning of the real implementation of the Agreement on the Resolution of conflict in South Sudan (ARCISS) and is true indication of the commitment and concerted efforts to put the country on the right track” said Tahir.

“…….We urge President Salva Kiir Mayardit, First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny and other parties to the agreement to put the country’s interest above all partisan differences and to embrace dialogue and consensus building in resolving many challenges in respect to human dignity” he said.

The SSIC hailed the concentrated effort of the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD) for mediating the peace talks which led to signing of the ARCISS in August last year.

“We further call upon the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) to double their efforts to overcome the remaining obstacles that may hinder the full implementation of the agreement” said Tahir.

He further expressed his appreciation to the international community, regional leaders and friends of South Sudan for the tireless efforts to support the peace process and wellbeing of South Sudanese.

“This peace agreement is a gift from the almighty God and we urge all the parties to have forgiveness and tolerance in their hearts and to commit themselves to this full implementation” he added.

The members of the Islamic council encouraged the citizens to adopt a culture of forgiveness, tolerance and reconciliation that will allow them to forget the past and look towards the future of rebuilding the country.

“We urge the government to urgently address many challenges facing our citizens so that peace, democracy, justice and human rights can be the foundation in which we rebuild our young nation.”