By Philip Buda Ladu
Tumaini peace talks resumed in Nairobi, Kenya, after a nearly five-month hiatus, with both government and opposition groups expressing readiness to fast-track the process and potentially reach an agreement before the end of the year.
While the sustained negotiations are expected to officially begin today, Thursday, the relaunching held yesterday saw heads of delegations so much energized to engage in meaningful discussions.
Senior Presidential Advisor Kuol Manyang Juuk, head of the restructured government delegation, emphasized the need to build upon the existing Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS).
He stressed that the focus should be on implementing the agreed-upon protocols and addressing any shortcomings, rather than starting negotiations from scratch.
“We are not here to start the talks from scratch,” Juuk said. “We are here to build on what has been accomplished by improving and adjusting certain protocols.”
“There has to be consensus in decision-making. However, the review we intend to make will be done within the spirit of reconstruction, reconciliation and peace and should not cause alarm. We have reviewed the Tumaini Initiative protocols and recognized its potential to address gaps in the Agreement on the resolution of Conflict in South Sudan (ARCSS). Therefore, we must avoid duplication and fragmentation,” he said.
He said integrating Tumaini into the ARCSS, will ensure a unified approach to peace and governance.
“To me, it must not be treated as a stand-alone agreement, but rather a complementary to the ACRSS. This alignment will ensure coherence, streamline implementation, and avoid unnecessary bureaucratic structures that undermine all the existing ones,” he added.
For his part, Pagan Amum, head of the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOMA) holdout groups, who spoke on behalf of the hold groups expressed concern over the government’s approach.
He urged the new government delegation to adhere to the Tumaini Consensus, a set of protocols previously agreed upon by both sides and emphasizing the need to finalize the remaining protocol on responsibility sharing.
“I would like to appeal to all delegates to recommit ourselves to a genuine search for peace and approach this resumption starting from today of the Tumaini initiative with an open heart and sincerity. This resumption is to finalize and conclude the Tumaini consensus between the two heads of state,” he said.
“This is not a time to reopen or renegotiate what has already been agreed upon. It is important to remember that this is probably the last chance to rescue our country from total disintegration and collapse into chaos and disorder. As the fate of South Sudan now is in our hands,” he added.
“We urge the new government delegation to commit to the Tumaini Consensus negotiated and agreed, that the previous delegation of the government had, so as to finalize the remaining protocol on responsibility sharing so that we can collectively give our people of South Sudan a Christmas gift,” he stated.
He assured that the opposition is committed to peace but will not tolerate any attempts to renegotiate or undermine the existing agreements.
“We will not allow any attempts to drill the process with more concerns, revisions, and changes.”
The lead negotiator of the opposition holdout groups stressed that the opposition is committed to peace but will not tolerate any attempts to undermine the progress made so far.
Both sides expressed their dedication to achieving lasting peace and fostering economic development in South Sudan.
As the talks resume, the international community will be closely watching to see if the parties can bridge their differences and move forward with the implementation of the agreed-upon protocols.
The success of the Tumaini Initiative could be a significant step towards achieving lasting peace and stability in South Sudan.