Amid escalating violence, IFOR's Branch in South Sudan, the Organization for Nonviolence and Development (ONAD) joined a coalition of organizations who have responded to the call for National Dialogue issued by South Sudan's President Salva Kiir Mayardit.
The coalition of organizations is known as "The Voluntary Civil Society Taskforce on Implementation of the Peace Agreement." It is a coalition of over 20 diverse and non-partisan South Sudanese civil society organizations and networks. The Taskforce is interested in genuine and full implementation of the Peace Agreement and a quick end to the suffering inflicted on innocent citizens of South Sudan by the political crises in the country.
The Voluntary Civil Society Taskforce on the Implementation of the Peace Agreement (the Taskforce) organized three consultative meetings in Juba on February 15, 22 and 24, 2017 for civil society to discuss the national dialogue announced by President Salva Kiir Mayardit in his address to the Transitional National of Legislative Assembly on December 14, 2016. These three civil society consultative meetings brought together more than 260 participants from over 100 diverse South Sudanese civil society organizations, academic institutions, groups for persons with disabilities, faith-based groups, women’s associations, youth groups and university students, among other members of society, to discuss the national dialogue.
The Taskforce issued a press release thereafter that underlined 14 considerations they feel are critical to the success of any effort towards national reconciliation. The full text of the press release with each of the 14 points can be read here.