Young South Sudanese commit to working with communities to prevent conflict

JACOB RUAI

Young people who have fled violence and sought sanctuary at the United Nations protection site in Bentiu have expressed their commitment to ending the conflict and building durable peace in South Sudan.

The civil affairs team from the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) held a three-day training session in how to manage conflict and achieve reconciliation for 23 young people from the Protection of Civilians site in Bentiu, located in the Unity region of South Sudan.

The session follows a series of clashes between different communities living at the site, which is the largest in South Sudan with more than 115,000 internally displaced residents.

Participant Peter Par said he was eager to share his newly learned skills on mitigating conflict with his community.

“I will be a messenger for peace. I will give them (my community) a clear message of peace and clear message of conflict management and conflict resolution. I will go and change the attitude of my community,” he said. “I am going to use it as a tool to bring up this community together.

Another female participant, Nyayiena Regan Tut, said she would meet with her community and explain how it is possible to solve disagreements through dialogue rather than conflict.

UNMISS civil affairs officer, William Sunday Jail, said the session would help give young people the skills to become trainers in conflict management themselves. This will enable them to share their knowledge with other members of the community to prevent, manage and resolve intercommunal disputes.

“Participants are also expected to serve as peace ambassadors to promote social cohesion and reconciliation in the community,” he said.