![South Sudan First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar speaks during the launch of the consultative meeting to establish the truth commission. [Photo by Sudans Post]](https://i0.wp.com/www.sudanspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/211707037_328593312172909_5539654092681767314_n.jpg?quality=89&ssl=1)
First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny presided over the launch of the consultative meeting in present of senior government officials and members of the diplomatic community, and stressed in his speech that telling truth is important in setting South Sudan, the world’s youngest country, on the path to reconciliation.
“For people to reconcile, you must talk it out. You must tell the truth, what happened. Because you won’t reconcile without telling it and this is important,” Machar who is also the leader of the main armed opposition SPLM-IO stated.
“Once we have told the story, then we say: ‘okay, let us move forward.’ That becomes the process of reconciliation,” the opposition leader said, adding that to move forward, “we must leave the past behind.”
“There can be other things that would happen in the process because the result from the commission will be awaited by the other mechanisms; the hybrid court. Healing process takes time. You first reconcile, and then you accept that this thing is over then you start to heal,” he continued.
The meeting was attended by the minister of justice Rueben Madol, minister of defense Angelina Teny, minister of federal affairs Lasuba Wango, minister of gender and social welfare Aya Benjamin, members of the diplomatic body and representatives of the parties to the revitalized peace agreement.
