UK Ambassador pushes for November National Conference

By Sheila Ponnie
The United Kingdom (UK) is pushing for the National Conference slated for November 3rd after its initial March schedule was postponed due to the incomplete formation of the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity.
Christopher Trott, the UK Ambassador to South Sudan met the Co-Chair of the National Dialogue Steering Committee Angelo Beda last week to discuss the possibility of saving the upcoming conference from another postponement.
In a closed-door meeting in Juba last week, the duo agreed to hold the conference tentatively rescheduled to the first week of November 3 this year with strict observation of COVID-19 safety guidelines.
Beda said the National Conference was to be held after the formation of the Revitalized Transitional Government of the National Unity but this did not happen as the peace process stalled.
“The conference was delayed because of two reasons; we wanted the conference to be held after the formation of the new government but you can see what happened to the new government. It was not formed although somebody told me not to say that.
“It was not formed even up to now it is still being delayed because the Governor of Upper Nile is not yet appointed and it is for this reason that we are still waiting. If the government was formed, then we would have held the conference which would have been on the 22nd of March.
He added that COVID-19 also interrupted the process of organizing the conference as many institutions were shut and movements restricted.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Trott emphasized the importance of holding the conference and assured the country strict COVID-19 control measures will be imposed to avoid a spike in the number of infections.
“We have talked about the importance of making sure that any event that is held does not risk an increase or spike an increase of COVID cases in the country,” Trott said.
“We have talked about the importance of political dialogue, the ability of civil society, and for the media to hold accountable the political leadership of this country for implementing the peace agreement and for engaging in the national dialogue,” Trott said.
The UK diplomat said the national dialogue has always been seen as a welcoming discussion from the grassroots amongst different constituencies in South Sudan but at the same time, it has never been a substitute for the peace agreement that was signed in September 2018.
“I hope that the discussion that has been amorally led by the Co-Chair can help the leadership of South Sudan to make some discussions based on an understanding of what the people who have been involved in this process have talked about,” Trott explained.
The National Dialogue aims at ending armed conflicts with a sense of urgency and creating an on-going process aimed at engendering and sustaining a culture of Dialogue that conforms with the traditional African method of preventing, managing, and resolving conflicts and fostering reconciliation in the country.