Africa-Press – South-Sudan. President Salva Kiir ordered his government to rejoin the Sant’Egidio-mediated peace talks with holdout opposition groups just as the country prepares to welcome Pope Francis and other religious leaders later in the week.
In November 2022, Kiir withdrew the government’s participation in the talks mediated by the Catholic Community of Sant’Egidio, saying the rebel groups were buying time to prepare for war.
However, the arrival of the Pope and two other global church leaders has caused President Kiir to change his mind, instructing his government to return to the negotiating table with the opposition parties, according to Dr Barnaba Marial Benjamin.
Dr Barnaba, who spoke on Saturday while accompanying President Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar to inspect preparations for the Pope, said the head of state ordered the resumption of negotiations in honour of the coming spiritual leaders.
“He has also lifted the postponement of the Rome peace talks, and he has instructed the government to resume peace talks with non-signatories,” Dr Benjamin said while accompanying President Kiir and FVP Dr Machar on a tour of the facilities that will be used by the Pope during the ‘peace pilgrimage.”
He, however, did not reveal when the talks would resume.
After the withdrawal, a delegation from Sant’Egidio came to Juba and held talks with Kiir in December last year.
According to media reports, the Sant’Egidio delegation pleaded with Kiir to allow negotiations to resume, but the breakthrough only surfaced on Saturday—a few days before the expected arrival of the pope.
This was the second time the government abandoned and rejoined the negotiations with the groups comprising the National Salvation Movement/Army (NAS) led by General Thomas Cirillo, the South Sudan United Front/Army led by General Paul Malong Awan, and the Real Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (Real-SPLM) led by Pagan Amum, among others.
In 2021, President Kiir withdrew from the talks after accusing one of the groups, the National Salvation Front/Army (NAS) led by General Thomas Cirillo – of killing civilians, including two Catholic nuns along the Juba-Nimule road.
The 86-year-old pontiff will finally make his long-promised trip to Juba after years of postponement over security concerns and illness.
His journey has been described as the last hope for peace restoration in a country that has been devastated by years of civil war and natural disasters.
The talks between the government and the non-signatories, an alliance of opposition parties that were not part of the 2018 agreement, began in 2019, but nothing beyond a shaky ceasefire has so far been achieved.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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