Troika urge South Sudan to ensure genuine elections
March 19, 2024 (WASHINGTON) – The United States, Britain and Norway have urged South Sudanese leaders to take urgent steps to ensure genuine and peaceful elections.
The call came days after the United States called for actions from South Sudan’s leader if the country is to get into the path for free and fair elections in December.
South Sudan is due to hold elections at the end of the country’s transitional period, necessitated by the September 2018 peace agreement that ended its civil war.
“Following recent senior-level visits from our capitals to Juba, the Governments of Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States reaffirm our call for South Sudan’s leaders urgently to take steps necessary to ensure genuine and peaceful elections in December,” the statement noted.
It, however, stated that the process should address 10 questions posed by the United Nations, African Union and Intergovernmental Authority on Development.
“Not taking these critical steps and so not allowing elections would be a collective failure on the part of South Sudan’s leaders,” it stressed.
As South Sudan prepares for elections slated to be held in December 2024, there is anxiety about whether the country is prepared for such an important democratic milestone. The country has not conducted a census that is crucial to determining the constituencies and representation in its parliament and locally.
(ST)