Jonglei state hold peace conference ahead of referendum

By Richard Ruati

December 7, 2010 (BOR) – The second Jonglei All- County Peace Conference on peaceful coexistence opened in Bor, the state capital, with a call for all participants to reject tribal related violence and uphold the rule of law.

Opening the three-day conference, which is being held under the theme “peace before during and after the referendum” Jonglei’s Deputy Governor Hussein Mar, stressed the importance of peaceful coexistence if stability and development are to be enhanced.

“This is an important conference and I hope that some of our commissioners who are not in will make it time. Only seven (out of 11) are present. This conference is crucial and timely. And the timing for the
conference is right. The presence of various leaderships such as commissioners, paramount chiefs, youth and others is a good gesture.”

Mar added “the state government is supportive of the conference and is committed to implementing the outcome of the conference. The security situation in Jonglei has this year changed compared to last year. From 2008 to 2009, was the peak of insecurity with 1,400 killed. This is a conservative figure. This year, the figure has declined”.

He said that the number of children abducted in the state has gone down to 44 from 380 claiming that this shows “people are beginning to coming to their senses that abduction, killing, cattle raiding etc is not right.

“However, we need more improvement and with this conference, a concrete way forward should improve the situation.”

Mar asked participants to find practical ways and means to implement the conference’s resolutions and help to lay a solid foundation for a full-fledged community, which he said is the ultimate objective of
Jonglei state government.

At the opening ceremony the head of the Bor office of the United Nation Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Richard Ewila, said “this conference is in response to various violent incidents in 2009 which killed and displaced many. Thus this conference brings various partners to address the issues and to encourage peaceful co-existence.”

UNHCR was one of the first organizations to establish itself in Jonglei state after the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended decades of civil war between north and south Sudan,

Since 2006 UNHCR has repatriated Southern Sudanese from Kenya and Uganda and facilitated their re-integration into the community. In 2010, their aim has been to focus is now on rehabilitation and trying to ensure that the state does not return to the inter-communal violence that scarred 2008 and 2009 that especially affected women and children.

“We are committed in supporting the peace process so as to prevent recurrence,” Ewila added, concluding the UN would support the southern government in Jonglei in the run up to and after the south referendum on secession in January.

The peace conference is seen as a follow up to the state first Commissioners Forum, which was held in Jonglei state on September 11, 2009, bringing together 11 representatives from each of the state’s 11 counties.

During the 2009 forum, many of the commissioners raised the issue of insecurity and inter-communal violence as a critical governance concern in Jonglei state before and after the referendum. These issues were discussed further at the ongoing peace conference.

The United Nations Development Programs’s Oliver Obonyo said he appreciated UNHCR and the steering committees efforts in organizing the conference.

He said: “This has been the first peace conference held and the message is that we should borrow experience from this forum and extend this to other states beyond Jonglei. We should also look forward towards the sustainability of this conference and ensure that it becomes an annual event,” Obonyo said at the conference.

“We are grateful to the peace commission for this initiative and the ministry of peace should try and extend this beyond Jonglei. Other states such as are looking forward to having this kind of conference.”

Felicita Kieru from the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) acknowledged that the peace conference comes at a critical with the south’s self determination referendum, the “final milestone of the peace agreement” just one month away.

Ensuring that there was “peace, before during and after, the referendum”, which will “have a crucial result of either separation or unity,” Kieru said.

The UNMIS representative went on to say “the referendum will have a crucial result of either separation or unity. Whose responsibility is it to keep peace? We hope that at the end of this forum, the commissioners who are at the local level of government should come up with strategies of keeping peace at the local level. Peace is not the responsibility of the government alone but also the responsibility of the people to keep peace.”

This week’s conference was arranged under the leadership of the Jonglei State Peace Commission, the Organizing Committee was formed with the support of UNCHR, UNMIS (United Nations Mission in Sudan) Civil Affairs and UN Resident Coordinator Support Office.

Chairperson of Jonglei State Peace Commission, James Apay Ochalla MP told the participants that registered voters for the forthcoming referendum should ensure that use their voting cards.

“We have only one option of voting. The people of south Sudan will have an option for unity or
separation.” He said that if unity had been made attractive by Sudan’s ruling National Congress Party then southern Sudanese should vote for unity but if they did not they should chose separation.

The local MP went on to say that that the southern government was “ready to support everyone in south Sudan and that is why many IDPs are coming back, we must welcome them and help settle them.”

But he called upon the people of Jonglei “to stop these internal conflicts such as child abduction and cattle raiding so that we can move forward.”

As the conference continues discussions are expected to address strengthening the reduction of tribal fighting, cattle rustling, cattle theft, child abduction, competition over grazing land and water, clan feuds, dowry-related violence, marriage related disputes and criminal activities including banditry.

Conference delegates were drawn from key ministries and institutions of governance, commissioners, youth, paramount chief, women and church leaders from each county.

(ST)