NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 13 – The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi has urged political parties in South Sudan to hasten the formation of an inclusive national unity government in order to achieve permanent peace.
Grandi made the remarks shortly after the US Department of State declared visa restrictions targeting South Sudan leaders undermining peace efforts and delaying an Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) initiative for the formation of a unity government between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar.
The UN High Commissioner said despite the signing of the peace agreement last year, the situation in South Sudan remains critical, with millions of its Citizens displaced and in need of safety and humanitarian assistance.
“South Sudanese people long for lasting peace, only a political solution can end the crisis and bring relief to those who have been displaced over and over again,” he said.
Grandi said the world’s youngest country in Africa has been plunged into a humanitarian and refugee crisis with over two million of its people seeking safety in neighboring countries and an equal number displaced inside the country.
Over 400,000 people have died since war broke out in 2013 after Kiir and Machar fell out following an attempted coup.
He also said the current climate changes the world is facing has also compounded the refugee crisis.
South Sudan tops the list has one of the most dangerous countries for humanitarians to deliver aid.
Commissioner Grandi urged all the parties to continue to include South Sudanese refugees and IDPs in discussions on the implementation of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) under IGAD.
“The momentum towards the implementation of the peace agreement must be sustained in order to ensure the safety of civilians and guarantee solutions for those affected. It is their only ray of hope,” said Grandi.
Machar and Kiir failed to beat the November 12 deadline for the formation of a unity government after the latter failed to return to the capital Juba citing unresolved security arrangements.
The IGAD council of ministers comprising Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, the Sudan and Uganda had in May given Kiir and Machar a six-month extension to kickstart a pre-transitional period for a unity government in South Sudan.
R-ARCSS was signed in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on September 12, 2018.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Thursday said the United States would deny visas to individuals who “undermine or impede the peace process in South Sudan.”
“The people of South Sudan have suffered enough while their leaders delay the implementation of a sustainable peace,” Pompeo said in a statement.
“The South Sudanese deserve leaders who are committed to building consensus and willing to compromise for the greater good,” he said without listing individuals.
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