JUBA – The Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) has raised alarm over the rising development of political arrests and detentions in Juba, warning that it poses a critical risk to South Sudan’s fragile transition course of.
In an announcement on Friday, CEPO Executive Director Edmund Yakani described the wave of detentions as “disturbing,” saying it undermines the nation’s efforts towards a peaceable political transition.
He urged South Sudan’s leaders to have interaction sincerely with faith-based figures in addressing the disaster.
“Our political leaders have a high deficit in trust and confidence for working together to transition the country from violence to peace,” Yakani mentioned. “The culture of sorting political differences through violence instead of dialogue seems to be the dominating political culture.”
Yakani cited latest outbreaks of violence in Tombura, Nasir, and Jur River counties as alarming developments that might derail the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS).
“The failure of R-ARCSS is now possible, and this means the country will return to war,” he warned, including that mistrust among the many nation’s management is a significant impediment to a peaceable transition.
The warning from CEPO comes as preventing escalates in Nasir County between armed youth referred to as the White Army and authorities forces.
Earlier immediately, Major General David Majur Dak, the commander of the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) in Nasir, was killed whereas trying to board a United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) helicopter organized for his evacuation.
The assault occurred after the White Army took management of the city, additional complicating the already fragile safety scenario in Jonglei State.
President Salva Kiir, in a speech immediately, confirmed the killing of the final and his officers, saying their evacuation mission was met with heavy hearth regardless of prior assurances of protected passage. Kiir urged the nation to stay calm, emphasizing that his authorities stays dedicated to peace and stability.
“I have said time and again that our country will not go back to war. Let no one take the law into their hands,” Kiir mentioned.
He assured the general public that his authorities would deal with the disaster and expressed condolences to the households of these killed.
CEPO welcomed the swift intervention of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), which despatched its particular envoy to South Sudan in an effort to de-escalate rising tensions between the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Government (SPLM-IG) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO).
Yakani, nevertheless, warned in opposition to the rising development of political actors utilizing proxy wars to advance their pursuits, stressing that this tactic might plunge the nation additional into instability.
“The political game of proxy war will hold this country hostage to violence if it is not stopped,” he mentioned.
CEPO urged President Salva Kiir to make sure the quick launch of detained SPLM-IO officers and officers, emphasizing that their security and safety must be assured.
The civil society group additionally known as for pressing engagement from IGAD, the African Union (AU), and the United Nations (UN) to forestall additional political deterioration.
“African Union Peace and Security Council should hold an urgent meeting on South Sudan’s negative political situation before it is too late,” Yakani careworn.