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| Rev Macleord Baker Ochola II, Retired Anglican Bishop of Kitgum |
By Jacinta W. Odongo, Media Officer, Uganda Episcopal Conference
Retired Anglican Bishop of the Diocese of Kitgum, Rt. Rev. Macleord Baker Ochola II, has urged the people of South Sudan to unite for stability, togetherness, independence, peaceful co-existence, inclusiveness and take a stand against ethnocentrism.
Speaking during his keynote address to participants at the National Dialogue Workshopon Peace-Building for South Sudan Crisis at Bomah Hotel in Gulu on December 6, 2019, Bishop Ochola said the challenge for unity for South Sudan remains with every individual person from every ethnic group throughout South Sudan.
“You have the answer for all the problems that you have created by yourselves. The UN, IGAD and International community at large, are all standing together with you in solidarity. All you need to do is, first and foremost, accept yourselves, as people of South Sudan regardless of your ethnic differences,” he said adding that “In life everything rises and falls with leadership.”
He noted that Religious leaders in Acholi Sub-region under their umbrella Acholi Religious Leader’s Peace Initiative (ARLPI) and their South Sudan counterparts South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC) are playing a significant role to bring everlasting peace to South Sudan as millions of thousands of people are suffering.
The Anglican prelate told the participants that on July 9, 2011 when South Sudan formally became an independent country from Sudan, the entire population stood firmly together in solidarity with one another with a strong sense of identity, unity, purpose and perspective.
“This is where the answer lies for all the current problems in South Sudan,” he stated.
In his speech, the Chairman of the SSCC, Bishop Arkanjelo Wani Lemi urged religious, political and cultural leaders to work tirelessly for an “inclusive dialogue” saying dialogue is the only way to address the complexities of South Sudan’s endless conflict.
“We have traveled the world for meetings with various world leaders including Pope Francis, the U.S.A President among others, seeking foreign intervention to influence our leaders to come to terms, but all is in vain. We have prayed and asked God ‘what kind of country does He want us to have?’ We are facing a very difficult situation. Let us come together and dialogue as a team since it is the only way to solve this matter,” he explained.
He further encouraged the international community not to neglect accompanying the nation on the path to national reconciliation.
The bishop lauded Ugandans for opening their doors to millions of South Sudanese refugees ever since the crisis started in 2013, when a political power struggle broke out between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and former vice President Riek Machar.
He also encouraged refugees to learn to live together as brothers and sisters and talk one language of reconciliation and peace.He also advised the leaders to focus on the women and youth if they want lasting peace.
The Paramount Chief of the Madi people of Uganda, Drani Stephen Izakare, challenged African countries to unite with S. Sudan and bring hope to the S. Sudanese as they wait for the outcome of the peace deal.
“Why would we let two people disagree and cause the whole country to suffer? The two leaders have betrayed the people of S. Sudan. Therefore, the conflict in South Sudan is a concern for the whole of Africa. Let us stop being Ugandans, but Africans,” he stated.
He urged Ugandans to treat the refugees as a family and avail them with more land to help them in the healing process following war trauma.
The National Dialogue Workshop was organized by the Caritas UgandaDepartment of Uganda Episcopal Conference under the theme: "Unity is Strength”. It attracted over 50 participants from Uganda and South Sudan who included religious and cultural leaders, youth, civil society organizations and representatives of refugees in Uganda.
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| Christine Laura Okello, Humanitarian Emergency Coordinator Caritas Uganda |
According to Christine Laura Okello, the Humanitarian Emergency Coordinator of Caritas Uganda, National Dialogue is a part of an effort employed by Caritas Uganda to confront the causes of the war, and at the same time bring about peace and positive development.
“Our goal is to address the complexities of South Sudan’s conflict through discourse that links the national, regional, and grassroots levels in efforts to curb the civil war,” she said.
“The importance of inclusivity in the dialogues in South Sudan proves to be a great resource in working toward peace in South Sudan. Generally, the dialogue has been an effective tool used by different countries to promote peace building,” she added.
The dialogue comes in just less than 20 days when leaders and stakeholders of the South Sudan agreed to extend by 100 days the formation of transitional government.
On November 7, President Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, met President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda at State House Entebbe to discuss the deadline for the formation of a unity government in which Machar will serve as first vice president. The initial deadline for this was November 12, but at the meeting in Entebbe, the deadline was extended by 100 days.
The conflict in S. Sudan is motivated by several underlying political and social-economic factors including ethnic division, resource scarcity, marginalization of groups, and political rivalry mainly between the ruling South Sudan Liberation Movement (SPLM) and SPLM-In Opposition.