IGAD’s silence on Khartoum agreement concerning – CEPO
The Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) has urged the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to break the silence and declare a stand on the recent political developments in South Sudan’s peace process.
IGAD is commended for facilitating South Sudan’s political transition process after mediating the revitalised peace agreement.
In a press statement seen by The City Review, Executive Director for Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), Edmund Yakani, said it would be much more prudent for the regional body to issue a statement on the recent Khartoum Peace Agreement signed by the SPLM-IG and SPLA-IO Kit Gwang faction. Yakani said this would give a clue on whether such a deal would affect the implementation of R-ARCSS.
He said CEPO is aware that IGAD is facing challenges due to the political situation in its member states of Sudan and Ethiopia.
“It is clear that the primary responsibility of making peace and stability prevail in South Sudan is at the hands of the South Sudanese, but IGAD being a regional body, has the primary responsibility to offer brotherly and sisterly direction to South Sudanese elites, not silence,” Yakani said.
He said IGAD Special Envoy to South Sudan and the IGAD Executive Secretary have an obligation to issue a statement on the recent political developments in South Sudan.
He revealed that the silence is demoralising and causes many people to offer conflicting interpretations of the R-ARCSS’ fate.
“It is time for IGAD to have a say in raising morale through the effective provision of position on the recent political developments in the face of R-ARCSS implementation,” “he said.
He urged IGAD to offer direction on the political development in relation to the spirit of implementing the R-ARCSS to avoid misinterpretations that may demoralise the citizens’ ownership of the R-ARCSS and the citizens’ spirit of holding the parties signatory to the R-ARCSS accountable.
On Sunday, the government and breakaway Kit-Gwang showed their commitment by signing agreements to all provisions of the R-ARCSS, including a provision regarding the Permanent Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements.
For instance, both the SPLM-IG and SPLM/IO Kit- Gwang factions agreed that, “Chollo areas’ boundaries should be resolved as they stood on the 1/1/1956 map and as provided for in the R-ARCiSS” and that “the two parties agreed that, there shall be a communities’ forum for peace and reconciliation between the Chollo, Dinka Apadang in Upper Nile State and Ruweng.” This is to promote peaceful coexistence among the communities.
On Thursday, the leader of Agwelek forces, Gen. Johnson Olony, sent an advance team to Juba, he is expected to arrive soon for the Khartoum Peace Agreement.
However, Olony’s deputy, Gen. Paul Achut Nyibek, who headed an advance team to Juba on Thursday, confirmed that his boss, who has never stepped foot in Juba since 2015, will soon come to actualise the peace agreement. IGAD has never said anything about the political development of the peace process.
