John Akoon
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. The international community expressed doubts over a guarantee that South Sudan will conduct credible elections in 2024, citing half-baked preparations that fail to match the busy timeline.
Addressing the UN Security Council meeting to discuss Sudanese and South Sudanese status, the UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Amb. James Kariuki, said South Sudan is yet to actualise some basic building blocks for credible elections.
Kariuki hailed the recent reconstitution of electoral bodies such as the National Elections Commission, the Political Parties Council and the National Constitutional Review Commission but pointed out that they need to be well resourced to ensure preparation for polls.
“As we’ve just heard, South Sudan is going to hold elections in just 12 months, yet few of the basic building blocks for a credible process are in place,” he observed.
He also said there is further need for clarity about the voting process, where the voters need to be well-drilled on how they will cast the votes and to which levels.
“For the elections to be free and fair, we urge the South Sudanese authorities to ensure the necessary political and civic space so political parties, civil society, and voters can freely express views without fear of reprisal,” he said.
Kariuki emphasised the importance of security for the safety of the South Sudanese population during and after the election.
“We call on South Sudan to finalise the deployment of a single, unified national army and to ensure they are adequately paid and provided for.”
Likewise, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, Nicholas Haysom, told the UN Security Council that South Sudan is not in a position to hold an election.
According to Haysom, the member states made an enquiry to UNMISS as to whether the country can be considered capable of holding free, fair, credible, and especially peaceful elections, but as for him, the country is not yet in a position to hold credible polls.
“We have clearly stated that, as matters stand now, the country is not yet in a position to hold credible elections, a view shared by almost all key stakeholders across the political spectrum,” Haysom added.
He called for the necessary conditions to be put in place for credible elections. Such include the new “permanent constitutional framework to be in place, properly trained and equipped unified forces deployment formulation of election security operational plan, clear electoral institutions and mechanisms being placed.”
He also emphasised that “voter registration modalities and electoral dispute resolution mechanisms should be agreed upon through consensus, an agreed code of conduct for the political parties, and civic spaces.”
He highlighted that all conditions are more important for the conduct of elections that are not only free and fair but also deemed credible and acceptable to South Sudanese citizens.
China’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Dai Bing also appealed to the parties to unite their ranks and work for the interest of the South Sudanese.
“China calls on all parties in South Sudan to put the interests of the country and its people first, and resolve differences through dialogue and consultations, to create conditions conducive to the holding of general elections,” Bing said.
Also, he appealed to the council to lift the arms embargos imposed on South Sudan and some African countries, noting that the sanctions have hurt the security capacity building of South Sudan for a long period of time.
On December 11, 2023, the chairperson of the political parties’ council, James Akol Zakayo, said plans are in place to roll out the registration of all political parties in January 2024.
He said the activities will continue until June 2024, which would mark the deadline for the parties to conform to the legal conditions of operating and competing in the coming election.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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