Pending issues between Sudan and South Sudan having negative security
effects – UN
01 December 2012 – The United Nations peacekeeping chief today warned that
the lack of progress on outstanding issues between Sudan and South Sudan is
having a negative impact on the stability of the latter, putting at risk the
progress made since it gained independence from the former in 2011.
“Lack of progress in resolving the outstanding security, economic and
political issues between the two countries continued to directly impact
stability and security inside the country, at the expense of efforts and
investments towards peacebuilding and state-building activities and the
delivery of essential service delivery to its citizens,”
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hervé Ladsous told the
Security Council.
South Sudan became independent from Sudan in July last year, six years after
the signing of the peace agreement that ended decades of warfare between the
north and the south. However, the peace between the two countries has been
threatened recently by clashes along their common border and outstanding
post-independence issues that have yet to be resolved.
Mr. Ladsous, who presented the Secretary-General’s latest
<
http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=s/2012/820> report on South
Sudan, stressed that tensions between the two States have subsided since
they signed the 27 September Cooperation Agreements, which created a roadmap
to facilitate post-secession relations. However, the slow implementation of
these pacts could adversely impact economic and social stability in South
Sudan, particularly if the export of oil is delayed.
“Given the dependency of South Sudan on oil revenues, further delay in
generating them would not only continue to negatively affect all Government
development programmes but could also lead to tensions within its different
components, including security services,” he said.
While the country has remained stable for the past four months, the
situation in the state of Jonglei is still challenging, Mr. Ladsous told the
15-member body.
In December last year, inter-communal violence in the state between the Lou
Nuer and Murle groups led to nearly 900 deaths, incidents of abductions of
women and children, the destruction of homes and the displacement of
thousands of civilians. Violence resurged this August, as a renegade group
of armed youth killed 24 members of the South Sudanese army and displaced
more civilians.
Mr. Ladsous said progress towards inter-communal reconciliation has been
slow, and urged a comprehensive and inclusive political process led by the
Government to address the core grievance of constituencies.
He added that the UN Mission in South Sudan (
<
http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/unmiss/> UNMISS) has reinforced
its presence in the state and remains in constant touch with the Government
to counter violent activities and prevent abuses against civilians.
Efforts to support capacity-building for South Sudan police forces are also
critical, Mr. Ladsous said. “However, progress in this area requires key
complementary legal and administrative reforms and significant resources
which have been lacking so far,” he said, adding that the country will
require sustained attention and investment to successfully build its
infrastructure and resources in this regard.
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Received on Sat Dec 01 2012 - 19:57:57 EST
