By Charles K Mark.
Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC) commended Kenyan government for commencing peace negotiations between the South Sudan government and holdout groups.
The South Sudan High Level Mediation Process in Nairobi is between the Reconstituted Transitional Government of National Unity (RTGoNU) and the South Sudan Opposition Movement Alliance (SSOMA).
President Salva Kiir Mayardit made a request for the Rome peace negotiations to be transferred to Nairobi.
But only the leadership of the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOMA) accepted and positively responded to the callR-JMEC’s Interim Chairperson, Gen. Charles Tai Gutai, said the move is a commendable demonstration of commitment by all parties.
According to him, it means that peace can only be achieved through sustained dialogue, inclusivity, and consensus-building, which is an intrinsically acceptable process rather than violence.
“In this regard, I commend His Excellency Dr. William Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya, for accepting to facilitate this dialogue,” Gituai said.
Gutai also lauded the government mediation team from the R-TGoNU, led by Ambassador Albino Mathem, for their commitment and continued search for an all-inclusive peace.
“These talks build on seven rounds of the Rome Peace Process, led by the Community of Sant ’Egidio and IGAD, held between January 2020 and March 2023, which yielded some positive outcomes, including the recommitment to the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement and Declaration of Principles,” the R-JMEC chair noted.
He expressed R-JMEC’s expectation for the talks to further the implementation of the R-ARCSS and usher the country into an inclusive, peaceful, and democratic end to the Transitional Period.
“These talks are therefore a positive step and an opportunity in which the outcome could lead towards the attainment of sustainable peace in South Sudan,” the monitoring body lamented.
RJMEC is the official oversight, monitoring, and evaluation body established under Chapter VII of the 2018 Reviatlized Peace Agreement.
The Commission hopes that the success of the South Sudan Mediation Process in Nairobi will come with a framework of inclusivity, address the differences, and bring a clear way forward that would enhance the peace process.
“I would like to underscore that the main expectation of the people of South Sudan is that your positive and constructive engagements here in Nairobi will galvanize and bolster the peace efforts already underway in South Sudan,” Gutai noted.
“A positive conclusion to this mediation process will no doubt empower the country’s reconciliation process, bring about an enabling environment for national development, and contribute to durable peace, justice, liberty, and prosperity for the people of South Sudan,” he added.
The talks between R-TGoNU and holdout groups were shifted from Rome, Italy, to Nairobi in January 2024.
The holdout groups led by Paul Malong Awan and Pagan Amum accepted President Ruto’s mediation efforts.
Meanwhile, the National Salvation Front (NAS) under Gen. Cirilo and the National Democratic Movement-Patriotic Front, allied to Emmanuel Ajwain, rejected the Nairobi initiative, citing that it’s not safe and they weren’t consulted either.