Africa-Press – South-Sudan. South Sudan’s prominent activist Edmund Yakani has warned that hostile propaganda by rival community leaders may exacerbate the ongoing violence in Eastern Equatoria state, just hours after community leaders clashed during a meeting with top security chiefs in Nimule.
President Salva Kiir Mayardit who is on a two-day trip to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this morning dispatched a team of top security officials and politicians to Nimule to meet rival communities in an attempt to diffuse tensions caused by cattle influx in Eastern Equatoria state.
Eyewitnesses told Sudans Post that rival community leaders clashed and quarreled during the meeting with the security chiefs, General Akol Koor, the Director General of ISB of the National Security Service, and General Santino Deng Wol, the Chief of Defense Forces of the SSPDF.
They blamed each other of standing behind the genesis of the attacks that have resulted in the death of almost 100 people since the start of the year. The most recent one is the deadly attack that killed 22 people at a Bor Community cattle camp at Mugali in Magwi County.
In a statement, the CEPO said hate speech and hostile propaganda has increased since the increase in deadly communal fighting across the country citing hostile statements being released by rival communities blaming each other for the increase in violence.
“Following the recent increase in deadly communal violence across the country, the trend of raise in hate speech and hostile propaganda among the conflicting communities of South Sudan is alarming,” the statement a copy of which was sent to Sudans Post reads in part.
The CEPO said that it “recently observed sharp increase in hate speech and hostile propaganda among the conflicting communities of South Sudan in their write ups in official statements and interactions in various platforms of social media.”
Yakani who is the Executive Director of the CEPO urged the conflicting communities to avoid propaganda and hate speech so that it does not add fuel to the flame and accused elites of the communities in particular of standing behind these propaganda practices.
“Late the members of the conflicting communities across South Sudan abstain from hate speeches and hostile propaganda since it is not healthy for our peaceful co-existence. Amplifying hate speeches and hostile propaganda easily leads to commitment of human rights violations that may constitute genocide or crime against humanity. It is sad that elites of the conflicting communities are one driving the hate speeches and hostile propaganda. It is time to remain all that hate speech and hostile propaganda never embrace tolerance,” Yakani said.
“The social fabric among the communities of South Sudan is breaking further due to the occurrence of continue armed deadly violence among the communities. It is essential for people who like to express opinion on any violent situation to be conflict sensitive in the use of language. It is clear that nowadays in various social media platforms and release of official press statement, use of language full of hate and hostile propaganda is taking dominance,” he added.
The CEPO further “urged the conflicting communities’ elites to abstain from hate speech and hostile propaganda in expressing themselves on ways for mitigating their grievances. Hate speech and hostile propaganda kills the spirit of tolerance.”
It further vowed to “be fully engaged in tracking all forms of media online and offline on matters of hate speech and hostile propaganda.”
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