HOW CAN WE ACHIEVE PEACE IN SOUTH SUDAN?
5 min readBy Zechariah Gatnog Machar, Egypt
March 15, 2015 (SSB) — “We can only maintain peace when we accept to address the root cause of December 15th genocide”
South Sudanese believe that peace will only return through negotiation rather than war. Today we will discuss the importance of Justice and the reason behind violence. “Without Justice there can be no Peace – Martin Luther Junior”
I am confident that in most cases we will all agree that violence should be the last alternative; I also recognize that every individual has his own way of defining the term Justice.
In my previous article I define Justice as disciplinary equipment utilized to hold the perpetrators responsible for their actions. When individual are not held responsible for their deeds entire community are left to be blame and they become the target of the future violence.
After the publication of the African Union Leak report, I gained back hope believing that South Sudanese may now wake up from the tribal Coma which acutely affected their brain functioning. According to the continental Union latest report in South Sudan’s ongoing conflict, the region and the international community admitted that December 15th event was masterminded by General Salva Kiir Mayardit and his allies.
Sticking to the main argument “How to achieve Peace”; issues that are preventing the country’s peaceful co-existence must be dissociated first into the following:
Centralization: a system of government that supplies more authorities to the president that later resulted in the adaptation of one man rule “Dictatorship”. Because of central system people of greater Equatoria constantly complains from land grabbing and inhuman treatment by the same government they permitted to take Juba as the country’s national capital.
Nepotism discriminately forced us to hire only our closest relatives once we got equivalent governmental or organizational position. By practicing nepotism South Sudan’s employment system is categorize into three, with the Dinkans centralizing the government institutions, Equatorians leading the non-governmental organization (NGO) recruitment staffs and lastly the Nuer and Collo community being the money exchangers on the streets of Juba.
By tribalism we become the slaves to our tribal leaders. Because of tribalism government’s organs targeted children, women and the age just because they were from Nuer in December 15th /2013.
Because of tribalism residents in Juba cowardly turn or switchoff South Sudan’s Television (SSTV) channel whenever Malaak Ayuen Ajok or Michael Makuei Luth program is about to start.
Because of tribalism locals in South Sudan’s states were able to manage to ignore the severe killing of demonstrators in Wau back in December 13/2012; they were heartless enough to disregard the Murle’s Massacre in 2011.
Illiteracy killed the father of my friend Arok Diing Abraham Chan. Because of illiteracy and envy the political commentator Mr. Isaiah Diing Abraham Chan Awuol was murdered in the country’s capitalin December2012. The killing was motivated by his political writing for better South Sudan hence,the government officials took it as a direct criticism. Because of illiteracy government servants do not distinguish the language should be spoken in the public government’s institutes.
Because of illiteracy government and locals appoints the members of Parliament according to their influence in the military and their military background in the Sudan’s People Liberation army (SPLA). In South Sudan prefermentis maintain through defections and through how many child soldiers you manage to recruit just like comrade David YauYau and Johnson Oliny.
SOLUTION TO THE OUTSTANDING ISSUES
Federalism must be adopted. Federalism is a system of governance that separated the central from the states government. In federal system of government parliament is more powerful than the prime minister. Federalism means more job vacancies to the citizens and fast track of modern world live standard.
When states executives are segregated from central administration supremacy amongst the state’s governors becomes the prime objective in term of education, development and sport; and unknowingly cattle raiding and revenge killing will vanish.
Sudan’s People Liberation Army (SPLA) must be completely transformed into national army that will guard only the sovereignty of the country. There shall not be any army under the supervision of Sudan’s people Liberation Movement (SPLM) or any South Sudanese party. The people of South Sudan must only vote-in politicians instead of military generals.
Dear South Sudanese, I am calling on every single one of you to accept JUSTICE before PEACE; our leaders need to understand that our lives value just as their family’s lives. We must bring them to justice by jointly coming together and call for Justice.
“We must acknowledge that not all Dinkans participated in the killing of Nuer but only SalvaKiir and his group trained in Luri-Juba were responsible for the December 15 genocide. If Nuer were not killed in Juba, there would be no fighting in Bor, Bentiu or Malakal; Mr. Edward Lino narrated.”
Readers may ask why I amso concerns about Justice and what would happen if justice is done?Well, justice is not going to erase the memory of the crimes committed neither the people who committed the crimes but it will provide people with some level of closure.
At least they will know it has been dealt with, it has been talked about, some has been held accountable and perhaps even, ideally, the victim has received some form of compensation. It is very important that the truth be known, that the people who were killed be commemorated and that their killers be acknowledge.
Long live South Sudan!
Long live citizens and nationals of South Sudan!
Zechariah James Machar, is a political activist and the SPLM Youth League Chapter Secretary General in Egypt you can reach him through zee4yo@yahoo.co.uk. The views expressed in this Opinion articles does not reflects my political position as the Chapter Secretary of SPLM-YL in Egypt but my personal view.
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