Watchdog says trust deficit among parties continue to obstruct peace implementation

JUBA, SEPTEMBER 17, 2023 (SUDANS POST) – A South Sudan civil society watchdog has said that trust deficit among the signatories to the revitalized peace agreement is obstructing the 2018 peace deal’s smooth implementation.

In an interview with Sudans Post, the Executive Director of Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) Edmund Yakani said that the trust deficit has made it hard for the revitalized peace agreement to be implemented and that needed compromises are not being made.

“The implementation of the R-ARCSS pending tasks is very slow due to the high deficit in trust and confidences among the top leaders in the government,” the civil society activist told Sudans Post at his office yesterday.

“The issue of mistrust and lack of confidence has made the implementation of the R-ARCSS harder and not easy to gain compromises for paving a way for genuinely and timely implementation of the pending tasks of the R-ARCSS especially the elections proposed for December 2024 and transitional security arrangements,” he added.

The civil society activist further called on the coalition government under Kiir to address concerns raised by the head of the UN mission in South Sudan during his briefing to the United Nations Security Council on Friday last week.

“CEPO is urging the government to implement the concerns raised by UNMISS and RJMEC leadership in relation to genuine implementation of the pending tasks of the peace agreement,” Yakani added.

In a briefing to the UN Security Council on Friday, Nicholas Haysom, the head of UN mission and Special Representative of the Secretary General to South Sudan said that most of questions that have remaining regarding the peace implementation do not need material resources and that only compromises, and consensus is needed among the parties.

“The country anticipates holding its first elections in December 2024. However, key institutions and legal frameworks are yet to be put in place. And critical questions remain unanswered. Resolving these questions does not require material resources, only the political will to reach compromise and consensus,” Haysom told the Council.

“Such questions include: the type of elections to be held; voter registration requirements; how electoral boundaries will be determined; the nature of participation of refugees and internally displaced persons; the allocation of security responsibilities; and how electoral-related disputes will be managed,” he added.