STATEMENT BY H.E. AMB. LT. GEN. AUGOSTINO S.K. NJOROGE INTERIM CHAIRPERSON, RJMEC TO THE RJMEC MEMBERS 30 June 2020 Juba, South Sudan

Tuesday, 30 June 2020 04:34

This statement is submitted to the RJMEC members electronically. Its delivery at the virtual monthly meeting has not been possible due to the challenges of COVID-19 and lack of virtual quorum.

STATEMENT

Honourable Ministers, Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen, Members of RJMEC.

  1. I would like to start by offering my apologies for the delay in holding this meeting. I am sure all of you will appreciate the unprecedented challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic which has led to the changes in how we are meeting today. It is far from ideal, and some RJMEC members may be absent – but we have done our best to ensure that as manymembers as possible are present. Even though RJMEC’s ways of doing things may be required to change for the time being, the pursuit of our mandate has not changed.

  2. At the outset, I would like to offer my congratulations to those members promoted to high office in the RTGoNU — in particular His Excellency Hussein Abdelbagi, Vice President, Honourable Angelina Teny, Minister of Defence and Veterans Affairs, and Honourable Stephen Par Kuol, Minister for Peacebuilding. We wish them all the best in their new roles, and I am sure they will all continue to collaborate with us for the good of the whole of South Sudan. On a sad note, I would like to again convey my condolences for the loss of Honourable John Luk Jok, former Minister for East African Affairs and a member of the National Constitutional Amendment Committee. His is a loss to all of us. May his soul rest in eternal peace. Furthermore, I would like to express sympathy to all those suffering the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and extend my condolences to those who have lost loved ones.

 

  1. My statement today will highlight the status of implementation since our last monthly meeting, to include the critical Pre-Transitional tasks that remain outstanding. I will also report on developments in the implementation of the Transitional period tasks. My statement will update members on some current activities of the Secretariat, highlight some recurring issues, and I will then conclude with my recommendations on the way forward.

    Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

  2. I would like to begin by congratulating the Agreement Parties on the formation of the Revitalised Transitional Government of National Unity (RTGoNU). Though it was extended twice, the Pre-Transitional period ultimately transited into the Transitional Period. This was made possible by the relocation of opposition members to Juba, where they found a conducive environment in which to work freely. This is a success on the part of all the Parties.

  3. As you may recall, the Presidency was sworn in on 22 February 2020, and the Council of Ministers was appointed on 16 March 2020. These are significant steps towards the full establishment of the RTGoNU in structure and composition, and it represents a momentous milestone for South Sudan, and one that holds much promise. Now that we are in the Transitional Period, it is time to deliver on that promise and begin the real work of building sustainable peace.

  4. At the time the RTGoNU was formed, I met His Excellency Salva Kiir, the President of the Republic of South Sudan to congratulate him for his political leadership, provided during the peace process, and in particular, on the issue of the number of states and their boundaries. I also urged the President to continue working with the members of the Presidency in the spirit of collegiality, cooperation and compromise during the Transitional Period.

  5. I also met with their Excellencies, the First Vice President and other Vice Presidents, following the formation of the RTGoNU. I discussed with them the remaining Pre- Transitional tasks, as well as the expectations linked to the implementation of the Transitional activities. I was able to expound on their unique roles as heads of the respective clusters and how this is integral to the successful implementation of the R-ARCSS.

 

  1. During the period since we last met, I also held meetings with some Ministers, including those of Defence, Peacebuilding, and Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Throughout, I reiterated our commitment to deliver on our mandate, as RJMEC, and to work in collaboration with the RTGoNU.

    Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

  2. There are many issues to discuss today. In the run up to the crucial talks held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in February 2020, the most critical issues which held up the formation of the RTGoNU included, among others, the resolution of the number of States and their boundaries; ratification of and assent to the Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 6, 2020; restructuring and reconstitution of the Transitional National Legislature (that is, the Transitional National Legislative Assembly and Council of States); and selection, screening, training and redeployment of the Necessary Unified Forces (NUF).

  3. My expectation was that when the RTGoNU was formed, there would be collegiality, collaboration, consensus building and compromises between the Parties to the Agreement.Following the Parties’ failure to agree on the issue of responsibility sharing at the State and local government levels, Dr Riek Machar Teny, First Vice President and Chairperson of SPLM/A-IO, sought my intervention to assist the Parties to the R-ARCSS to break the deadlock, in line with Article. 7.11. Accordingly, I convened a consultative meeting of the representatives of the Parties to the R-ARCSS on 27 March 2020, but the Parties were still unable to agree on the way forward. As my recommendation for resolution in line with article 1.16.1 of the R-ARCSS was rejected, I formally referred the matter to the IGAD Heads of State and Government on 9 May 2020 for their guidance and urgent intervention.

  4. In the meantime, on 18 June 2020, Hon. Nhial Deng Nhial, the Minister of Presidential Affairs announced that bi-lateral discussions between President Salva Kiir Mayardit and the First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar had resulted in agreement on the allocation of the states as follows. The former I-TGoNU shall nominate governors to the states of Unity, Eastern Equatoria, Warrap, Northern Bahr El Ghazal, Central Equatoria and Lakes. The SPLM/A-IO to Upper Nile, Western Bahr El Ghazal, and Western Equatoria; and SSOA to Jonglei. This is still not in conformity with Article 1.16.1 of R-ARCSS as the OPP are not allocated a state as per Article 1.16.1.4.

 

  1. Since the announcement, SSOA has expressed its disappointment at the lack of consultation and restated its preference to nominate a governor to Upper Nile State. However, the Secretary of SSOA later wrote a letter indicating concurrence with the responsibility sharing proposal. At the same time, a representative of the OPP, in a letter addressed to me, stressed that their party was not consulted, or included in negotiations and were waiting for a resolution as would be communicated by the Chairperson of IGAD.

  2. My attention was drawn to the confusion arising from the membership of the OPP as provided in the R-ARCS. I, therefore, wish to make clarification as follows:

    1. The OPP referenced in article 1.16.1.4 is the same party to the R-ARCSS as provided for in article 1.3.1.5 and not in article 1.3.1.1; which refers to the OPP in the ITGoNU; and

    2. The OPP has six parties who are signatories to the R-ARCSS and they do not have a single leader (See page.78).

  3. While the issue of the determination of the number of states and their boundaries has now been settled, several important issues remain unimplemented, and in the Transitional Period, they must be prioritised for completion. In particular, these are:

    1. reconstitution of the Transitional National Legislature, comprising the Transitional National Legislative Assembly and the Council of States;

    2. unification of forces, including their redeployment; and

    3. DDR process for the former combatants.

  4. Other important issues relate to adherence to the provisions of the R-ARCSS in making political appointments, with particular regard to the Undersecretary of Ministry of Petroleum, as well as alterations detected in the Constitutional Amendment Act No. 6, 2020 that was assented to by the President. I have formally drawn His Excellency President SalvaKiir’s attention to these matters. Furthermore, when the President appointed the membersof the Council of Ministers and Deputy Ministers of the RTGoNU, it was noted that the Parties did not adhere to the 35% mandatory provision for women participation in the Executive, as appointments to these bodies stood at 26% and 10% for the cabinet ministers and deputy ministers respectively and therefore not in conformity with articles 1.12.2 and 1.12.5 of the R-ARCSS. I urge all the Agreement Parties to be seized of this gender provision in the R-ARCSS.

  1. As we enter the Transitional Period, the Permanent Ceasefire continues to hold, and this is a laudable achievement. However, it is sad to note that since the formation of the RTGoNU in particular, loss of life through rising incidences of inter-communal violence continues in various parts of the country. I believe that the final resolution of the issue of responsibility sharing at the state and local government levels, will go a long way in addressing the power vacuum in which these inter-communal clashes are taking place.

  2. Of great concern is the escalation of fighting allegedly between the SSPDF and NAS as well as between SPLA-IO and NAS. The fighting is causing deaths and displacement of civilians at a time when communities are preoccupied with the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, CTSAMVM has not been able to verify and investigate these clashes due to the lack of communication with and access to NAS field commanders. I appeal to the Parties involved to stop fighting and pursue peace as per the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement signed in Addis Ababa in December 2017, and the Rome Declaration of January 2020.

  3. On the unification of forces, this is one of the major uncompleted tasks carried forward from the Pre-Transitional Period. As reports from CTSAMVM indicate, many training centres and cantonment sites continue to endure difficult conditions, including insufficient food, medication, poor living conditions, and lack of separate facilities for women. As a result, there are reports that some sites and centres are being abandoned as personnel leave in search of the basics of life support. Furthermore, concerns surrounding the issue of the COVID-19 pandemic and the difficulties of access during the rainy season are exacerbating what is already a dire situation in many locations.

  4. Following the Government’s decision to complete training, graduate and deploy all within 30 days as of 8 May 2020 (announced by the Joint Defence Board on 6 May), I am concerned that there appears to be no official plans released for graduation or redeployment yet. I also want to highlight that whilst some preliminary unification training has taken place at the training centres, it appears that no NUF training in accordance with the Joint Transitional Security Committee (JTSC) curricula has been conducted. Therefore, continuation of training programmes will need to be developed and conducted following redeployment, in accordance with the provisions of the Revitalised Peace Agreement.

  1. Restrictions on movement and a lack of adequate funds and resources are making it particularly difficult for the DDR Commission to implement its plans at training centres and regional offices, and to establish transit centres for those personnel selected for the DDR process. The DDR Commission remains a crucial and integral part of the Transitional Security Arrangements and it is imperative that sufficient government funds are allocated at both national and regional levels to enable effective implementation at the earliest opportunity to ensure that those not selected or those combatants who volunteer for the DDR process are adequately catered for.

  2. I am deeply concerned about reports of continued sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) including rape in some areas of the country. In its report on SGBV cases in Rubeke, Central Equatoria, released in May 2020, CTSAMVM confirmed that there have been multiple cases of SGBV, specifically rapes and gang rapes, committed in Rubeke on 13 February 2020 by soldiers from the Lasu-based SSPDF mobile force. I wish to remind the Parties that such acts are serious violations of the R-ARCSS, and I call on the SSPDF commanders to take appropriate action against the perpetrators. That said, I would like to commend the RTGoNU for the recent launching of a helpline for reporting cases of gender-based violence in an effort to fight against SGBV.

    Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

  3. Now for a look at some current activities of the RJMEC Secretariat. One important current activity of the Secretariat is the imminent reconstitution of the Working Committees as per Article 7.3 of the R-ARCSS and clause 9 of the RJMEC Terms of Reference. These thematic RJMEC Working Committees will interface with a combination of the RTGoNU Ministerial clusters and relevant line ministries as appropriate. The Working Committees will beRJMEC’s core platform to develop monitoring and evaluation indicators for each chapter,evaluate progress of implementation, assess capacity, identify gaps and recommend remedial steps towards effective implementation of the Revitalised Peace Agreement. I urge all members of RJMEC to participate in the Working Committees to the fullest, I would like to remind RJMEC members to respond to us on your participation, if not already done.

 

  1. A second key current activity is the development of the R-ARCSS Transitional Period implementation matrix, which has been provided to the RJMEC members, as well as to the RTGoNU. I would like to remind the RJMEC members to offer their feedback on the implementation matrix to the Secretariat for it to be updated accordingly.

  2. Thirdly, RJMEC is required by the R-ARCSS to hold a workshop of the Parties to agree on the modalities of the Permanent Constitution making process. This workshop was due to be held this month, June 2020. However, due to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, we now intend to hold the workshop later in 2020, subject to the Parties agreeing with the recommended timeline. In preparation for the workshop, RJMEC commissioned a comparative study on post-conflict constitution making processes to help highlight lessons for South Sudan. A copy of the report has been shared with RJMEC members.

    Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

  3. Now for a word on the humanitarian situation. Humanitarian access is limited owing to restrictions put in place by the COVID-19 High-Level Task Force, as well as persistent inter- communal violence particularly in Jonglei, Warrap, Unity and Lakes States. According to UNMISS, January to May 2020 has been the most violent period since the signing of the R- ARCSS with 415 violent incidents recorded, up from 129 during the same period in 2018. Furthermore, according to the International Organisation for Migration, during the period January to April 2020, a total of 80,000 persons were displaced due to inter-communal violence, compared to 85,000 displaced during the entire year of 2019. It is important to point out that within this scenario, the rights of women and girls were also violated. UNMISS records show that between January and March this year, at least 1,767 civilians were either killed, injured, abducted, or suffered sexual violence compared to 912 between the same period in 2019 with the majority of casualties arising from inter-communal violence.

  4. The May 2020 killing of three humanitarian workers in Uror, Jonglei during inter-communal violence has brought the total number of humanitarian workers killed to four in 2020, which is a very sad situation. In general, there is an urgent need to remove conflict driven and bureaucratic constraints to humanitarian action and service delivery to ensure the flow and access of humanitarian goods and personnel to those in need.

 

  1. The food security situation continues to look grim with 7 million people in South Sudan acutely food insecure. The situation is compounded by the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and flooding on livelihoods. In Bor, flash floods have already affected 54,000 people who now need humanitarian assistance. Whereas the number of spontaneous returnees has reduced due to travel restrictions instituted to curb the spread of the COVID- 19 pandemic, a growing concern is violence and criminality. Violent incidents in the Bentiu and Juba PoCs resulted in 178 injuries and the suspension of humanitarian operations to the sites.

  2. The economic situation. It is inevitable that measures to slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic through increased social distancing, has had high costs in South Sudan just as in other countries in terms of increased prices and contraction of economic activity. Reduced purchasing power is one of the factors contributing to food insecurity. Constraints on border crossings also reduce the supply of goods and create price pressures. The strongest direct impact comes through the need for resources and medical personnel to an underdeveloped health sector.

  3. The strong decline in oil prices after the worldwide lockdown to contain the outbreak of COVID-19, is sharply reducing oil revenues available for financing the government budget. Net revenues per barrel of oil – that is, revenues after fee transfers to Sudan per barrel – have been in the range of USD 5-20 since early March, down from around USD 40 earlier this year. The negative developments in the oil price is expected to severely constrain the government’s ability to finance service delivery at present levels through revenues, let alonefinance measures to mitigate impacts of COVID-19, and to take on financial obligations related to implementation of the R-ARCSS. Lastly on the economy, I would like to commendthe Government’s establishment of the Public Financial Management (PFM) OversightCommittee, which met for the first time earlier this month. This helps to prioritise the implementation of PFM institutional reforms as set out in Chapter 4 of the Agreement.

  4. Now for a word on transitional justice. Following the formation of the RTGoNU, Chapter 5 on Transitional Justice, Accountability, Reconciliation and Healing is now very important. Three mechanisms are to be formed in the Transitional Period. They are the Commission on Truth, Healing and Reconciliation (CTRH), the Hybrid Court for South Sudan (HCSS) and the Compensation and Reparation Authority (CRA). These three mechanisms will also clearly have their mandates, jurisdictions, memberships and funding clearly defined by legislation. These legislations should be initiated through an open and transparent process where public participation is encouraged to help improve their content and legitimacy.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

31. Experience from the Pre-Transitional Period demonstrates that lack of predictable funds impedes the pace of progress of implementation of the Agreement, and is compounded by the low prioritisation of the most critical tasks. This led to doubts on political will and the lack of trust deficit. As we evaluate the Transitional Period, we can see that despite the Covid- 19 challenges the implementation of the R-ARCSS is not keeping up with the expected pace, and that there are indicators for hard times ahead. Therefore, we must redouble our efforts to assist the RTGoNU to implement the Agreement fully in letter and spirit. I therefore make my recommendations as follows:

  1. The Agreement Parties should have improved dialogue among themselves to ensure the R-ARCSS is implemented in letter and spirit. Even if implementation of the letter is constrained by the current unprecedented circumstances, it is nonetheless possible to demonstrate a willing spirit. In that regard, I urge for continued dialogue among the Agreement Parties on all unresolved issues, including agreeing on the allocation of the States among them.

  2. I appeal to the signatories of the Rome Declaration to pursue the St Egidio peace process, including adherence to the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement of December 2017 and the Rome Declaration of January 2020;

  3. I urge the RTGoNU to prioritise tasks that can be effectively accomplished within the current context of the COVID-19 pandemic;

  4. All cases of SGBV to be investigated by the appropriate authorities and perpetrators held accountable;

  5. The JDB to share publicly graduation and redeployment plans for the NUF as per article 2.3.1;

 

  1. The RTGoNU to resolve the issue of political appointments, in particular that of the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Petroleum, as well as rectification of the alterations in the Constitutional Amendment Act No. 6, 2020 and full adherence to the required levels of women representation in the RTGoNU. In addition, facilitate the DDR Commission to enable it to kick-start the DDR process for former combatants;

  2. The leadership of the Agreement Parties to resolve all outstanding issues without delay, including the reconstitution of the Transitional National Legislature; and

  3. I appeal to the RTGoNU to institute programmes for relief, protection, repatriation, resettlement and reintegration of IDPs, as well as the provision of public services like health and education to ensure sustained and dignified returns. Furthermore, the establishment of the Special Reconstruction Fund, as per Article 3.2 of the Agreement.

Thank you.

back to top
Copyright © 2022 Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC). All rights reserved.