Reconciliation Efforts In South Sudan

Ten months after an agreement ended armed conflict between forces loyal to South Sudan’s top political rivals, South Sudan’s bishops called for the nation to “rise above negativity” and pull together to achieve lasting peace in the world’s youngest nation. The prelates urged in a statement on June 16, as they concluded a three-day meeting in the capital, that personal and tribal interests be set aside and for all South Sudanese to “compromise for peace and the common good.” The church leaders also welcomed the work since August to form a transitional government under the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan. The settlement ended a 30-month civil war between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and rebels allied with his former deputy, Riek Machar. Fighting erupted barely three years after the South Sudanese voted overwhelmingly for independence in January 2011. More than 10,000 people were killed and more than one million were displaced by the fighting.