February 20, 2018 (JUBA) - The coalition of nine opposition groups said a peace agreement could have been reached during the first round of the second phase of the revitalization forum if the government did not make impossible demands.
- According to the release, the government made a host of demands to distract attention from discussing the root causes of the conflict.
The opposition groups pointed to the attacks on the rebel positions in Equatoria, Bahr el Ghazal and Jonglei regions saying the purpose of the military operations was to portray the SPLM-Io as not interested in peace. Further, they said the government’s refusal to ink the declaration of principles was another indicator of the lack of interest.
“The government delegation also made a host of demands, including rejecting demilitarizing Juba and the major towns, dissolution of the sector in order to allow reconstitution of the army in a way reflective of different faces and ethnicities in the country”, the statement stressed.
On 16 February, the mediators suspended the talks to revitalize the South Sudan peace agreement after 11 days of discussions on the security and constitutional and governance matters without tangible progress.
Nyaba blamed the government delegation for insisting on maintaining the status quo, clearly undermining efforts aimed at advancing in institutional reforms and coming out with the system of governance.
The suspension was followed by a vigorous statement from the Troika countries who are engaged in the process besides the IGAD mediators.
The facilitators pressed the parties to do more on the outstanding security and governance arrangements in order to reach a meaningful agreement. Also, they called on the IGAD and African Union to identify those who violate the cessation of hostilities agreement expressing their readiness to back sanctions at the UN Security Council.
After the suspension of the talks, South Sudanese government officials sought to explain their positions and made several statements in this respect, stressing that the peace agreement is difficult to implement.
In a separate but related view, by Peter Adwok Nyaba former higher education minister and a leading member of SPLM-IO led by Riek Machar expressed doubt on the possibility to hold credible elections after the end of the transitional period by the end of May 2018.
" Even if it was possible to conduct elections during the rainy season, it would be a futile exercise as there are more than four million South Sudanese living in refugee camps in Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, the Central African Republic and DR Congo. It would not be possible to bring them back to partake in elections in such a short time," he said.
So in the case that the high-level revitalization forum ends in an agreement, he proposed to establish a new transitional period focusing on reconciliation and repatriation and resettlement of refugees before to hold elections.
(ST)
Newer articles:
- Govt warns Kenyans against unnecessary travel to South Sudan - 21/02/2018 07:15
- South Sudan still crippled one year into famine crisis - 21/02/2018 06:46
- Sudan: Seeking Russian Protection From Americans - 21/02/2018 03:31
- South Sudan warring parties should be given more time to talk: experts - 20/02/2018 14:23
- One year on from famine declaration, more South Sudanese are going hungry - 20/02/2018 12:52
Older news items
- Call for day of prayer for South Sudan reinforces message of peace - 20/02/2018 09:21
- Tears of joy as Kenyan pilots return from South Sudan - 20/02/2018 06:58
- South Sudan: The stark choices facing displaced people in Aburoc - 20/02/2018 01:14
- South Sudan Clans Agree to End Deadly Grazing Land Dispute - 19/02/2018 14:11
- South Sudan Rebels Release Kenyan Pilots After Compensation Paid-Rebel Spokesman - 19/02/2018 07:24
Latest news items (all categories):
- South Sudan’s ‘Game Of Thrones’ Continues – Analysis - 01/12/2024 17:47
- South Sudan secured over 282 150 doses of oral cholera vaccine to contain the cholera outbreak - 01/12/2024 17:43
- The idea of one nation and one people is a distortion of our reality!!! - 29/11/2024 12:54
- In South Sudan with aid boss John Rynne: 'The maps drawn in colonial times are starting to erode' - 29/11/2024 12:47
- 'They have nothing': Aid workers struggle to save lives at edge of war-torn Sudan - 29/11/2024 12:36
Random articles (all categories):
- Oil Industry Revival in South Sudan Hinges on Fragile Peace Pact - 24/10/2019 22:34
- S. Sudan President Seeks Meeting with Sudan’s Leader - 15/09/2014 01:32
- Sudan's military has ousted its President Omar al-Bashir. How did it come to this? And what's next? - 11/04/2019 16:39
- South Sudan Ebola preparedness - 17/07/2019 03:12
- UN to take up S.Sudan arms embargo - 10/07/2018 21:24
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 58287 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 22212 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 21350 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 18861 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 17966 times