AU receives JMEC chairperson for South Sudan peace agreement
November 23, 2015 (ADDIS ABABA) – The African Union (AU) has for the first time received the recently appointed chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan.
Mogae is mandated to oversee the implementation of the peace agreement signed in August between president Salva Kiir’s government and the armed opposition faction of SPLM (IO) led by former vice-president, Riek Machar.
During the reception, the AU commission’s chairperson commended former president of Botswana for having accepted “this challenging assignment”, stressing that his acceptance was a further illustration of his commitment to the promotion of peace, security and stability on the continent.
Zuma reiterated the AU’s full support in the discharge of Mogae’s mandate, declaring that the AU, including through the High Representative for South Sudan, former president Alpha Oumar Konare of Mali and the High-Level ad hoc Committee on South Sudan, would spare no efforts in supporting the work of the JMEC and the full implementation of the agreement.
She called on all parties to the peace agreement to respect the provisions of the peace deal and avoid any violations thereof.
“The Chairperson of the Commission seizes this opportunity to, once again, appeal to all the South Sudanese parties to implement in full and in good faith the commitments they have entered into, including respecting the ceasefire and ending the suffering inflicted on the civilian population,” Zuma said.
She urged the parties to extend full cooperation to the chairperson of the JMEC and to facilitate the urgent launch of the activities of this important organ.
It should be recalled that the JMEC was established by the agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan.
JMEC is entrusted to monitor and oversee all aspects of the implementation of the agreement, including the mandate and tasks of the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU) which will be formed by the parties to run the country for the next 30 months before elections are conducted.
(ST)