JUBA, South Sudan
A top security official at the U.S aid arm (USAID) has urged South Sudan’s principal leaders to engage in dialogue, saying it attracts external support, builds trust and confidence required in the peace implementation process.
Colin Thomas-Jensen, the
national security director at USAID told reporters in the capital, Juba on Friday
that a direct dialogue among principal leaders, starting with President
Salva Kiir, First Vice President Riek Machar and all members of the presidency
will send a positive signal of commitment and seriousness to implement the
agreement and assurance for genuine and peaceful elections.
Accompanied by the acting
assistant administrator of USAID, Mark Billera, the senior security official
was on a visit to the East African nation from 21-24 May.
“I came to Juba May 21-24
with my colleagues Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Enrique Roig and USAID
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator Mark Billera. “The purpose of our trip is
to call for urgent action to create the conditions necessary for genuine and
peaceful elections”, explained Thomas-Jensen.
This dialogue, according to
the US official, should be inclusive of all stakeholders without exception but
must be led by the key principal leaders in the peace process, specifically
citing President Kiir and the country’s First Vice President.
“These include addressing the
lack of political and civic space, politically neutral and unified forces, and
full funding and operationalization of necessary electoral institutions.
To achieve this, we urge the launch of direct dialogue among transitional
government leaders, including President Kiir, First Vice President Machar, and
all members of the presidency, to make genuine and peaceful elections
possible,” stated Thomas-Jensen.
Such a dialogue, he
said, would send an important signal to the South Sudanese people and to
donor countries that South Sudan’s leaders are committed to peace and the
rejection of violence as a tool for political competition.
The official appealed to
the Juba government
to ensure the full and immediate implementation of tax exemptions for the
United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), UN agencies, humanitarian
organizations and diplomatic missions.
“Those who seek to impose
taxes, fees, and other inappropriate costs on humanitarian assistance are
diverting aid away from South Sudanese people in need,” stressed Thomas-Jensen.
“U.S. engagement in South
Sudan began decades ago. Its endurance is based on values including
peace, human rights, democracy and people’s right to choose leaders who respond
to needs of the South Sudanese people,” he added.
South Sudan is due to hold its
first general elections in December 2024 in compliance with the provisions
under the 2018 revitalized peace agreement, but observers and political
opposition leaders have pointed out a need to implement key provisions in the
agreement, including full implementation of the security arrangements, among
other issues to create an enabling environment for the conduct of elections.
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