South Sudan youth body condemns ceasefire violations

January 13, 2018 (KAMPALA) – A South Sudanese youth entity has condemned what it described as violation of the cessation of hostilities by South Sudan government allegedly with the intention of frustrating efforts to bring everlasting peace to the ordinary citizens.

The International Youth for Africa (IYA), in a statement, said a host of the nation’s citizens are dying every day and therefore continuing to attack the opposition is utter violation of ongoing peace processes.

IYA’s executive director, Ter Manyang Gatwech urged the warring parties to respect the cessation of hostilities signed in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia last year.

Strongly condemning the attack in the “strongest term”, Gatwech said those responsible for the ceasefire violation should be brought to book.

“We have incompetent politicians who cannot think about the suffering and the future of citizens. It will be useless to go to Addis Ababa and warms those seats for no reason. IYA therefore urges the international community, IGAD [Intergovernmental Authority on Development], AU [African Union], UN [United Nations] and the UNSC [United Nations Security Council] to mount pressure on both parties to end the ongoing crisis in the South Sudan,” said Gatwech.

He added, “The two main warring factions must sort out their differences through a peaceful political dialogue not through guns”.

On Friday, the AU, UN and the Troika countries also condemned the continuing violence in South Sudan in clear violation of a cessation of hostilities they worked together with the IGAD to achieve last December.

(ST)