National, News

OBJECTION: US, Western diplomats decline to endorse transitional gov’t extension

By Yiep Joseph

 

The United States of America and some Western donors of the 2018 peace agreement have refrained from endorsing the recent two-year extension of the Transitional Government of National Unity.

Last week, the Presidency, led by President Salva Kiir and other Vice Presidents, announced the extension of the transitional period by two years, allowing them to stay in power until 2026.

While the extension received approval from the South Sudan Cabinet, it is facing a setback in securing backing from peace monitors and donors of the agreement.

Yesterday, the Revitalized Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC) held a third extraordinary meeting meant to approve the extension.

However, most of the peace donors and the church abstained from voting, while, the Islamic Council, civil society and the business community all voted to approve the extension.

Speaking at the meeting, Michael J. Adler, the U.S. Ambassador to South Sudan, expressed strong criticism of the leaders for their failure to implement existing peace agreements.

Ambassador Adler stated that the United States chose to abstain from endorsing the extension because it prioritizes the privileges of politicians over the welfare of the South Sudanese people.

“While we recognize elections cannot be held this year because of leadership failures, we cannot endorse this extension because we are not prepared to endorse the status quo that prioritizes the privileges of the elites over the welfare of the South Sudanese people, hence we abstain,” Adler said.

The US ambassador reiterated that another extension justified the unwillingness of South Sudanese leaders to achieve peace and go for election.

“Another extension of the transitional period marks the failure of South Sudan leaders to create the conditions necessary for a genuine, peaceful, and inclusive election,” he said.

“We are deeply disappointed by this failure because peace is our priority, and we are convinced the best way to secure peace in South Sudan is by creating the conditions to hold such an election,” he added.

Adler said that regardless of receiving support from the international community, the political leaders in South Sudan refuse to implement the pending tasks.

“Despite significant international support, including identification of ten key issues related to the election by the UN, the African Union, and IGAD, South Sudan political leaders have collectively failed to create the conditions necessary for such an election to take place,” he said.

In regard to funding, the Ambassador criticized the government for failing to provide necessary money to the electoral bodies.

“They (political leaders) have failed to make public revenue available for electoral institutions, the security, and civil service salaries,” he said.

Meanwhile, in a joint statement issued by the British Embassy, Norwegian Embassy, United States, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, Canada, and France, the Western nations expressed that the extension will lead to increased spending.

“A 24-month extension would mean 24 months more expenditure on the institutions that implement the peace process,” the statement read.

“This decision reflects the failure of the transitional government to implement the 2018 peace agreement despite the promises made with the release of the “roadmap” in 2022.

The Western countries blamed the political leader for making promises that they could not fulfil, adding that during the roadmap the leaders promised to hold elections this year.

“We wish to express our disappointment at this decision, as the timely holding of election is a key element in strengthening stability, democracy and sustainable development. They own this decision and are accountable to the people of South Sudan,” the statement added.

The Western Natons called on all stakeholders to create the conditions necessary for the holding of peaceful, transparent and inclusive elections as soon as possible.

Speaking also at the meeting, Bishop Moses Deng, South Sudan Council of Churches Peace Envoy, declared that the church abstained from endorsing the extension and requested to meet the Presidency.

However, Sheikh Dr. Abdallah Barac, the head of the South Sudan Islamic Council, endorsed the extension and called on the leaders to double efforts in the implementation processes.

Speaking at the same event, Minister of Cabinet Affairs Martin Elia Lomuro promised that the government would this time implement the pending task and conduct the elections.

Elia revealed that the government would channel most resources of the country to peace implementation, including adopting austerity measures to save more money for the planned elections.

The voting

The majority of members of the peace monitoring body R-JMEC voted to endorse the extension of the transition period by 24 months.

34 voted yes for the extension, and 7 voted no, including the TROIKA states and the European Union.

In his remarks, R-JMEC Chairperson Charles Tai Gituai emphasized the need to provide the necessary funds for the implementation, citing that any extension without funds cannot be successful.

Comments are closed.