The Bishops of South Sudan and Sudan had audience with Pope Francis on Wednesday in the sideline of their plenary in Rome, Italy and invited him to visit both countries.
Pope Francis said “I am ready. I want to. I want to. I want to. But we have to leave everything in the hands of the Lord”, Vatican Radio reported.
Pope Francis, who was accompanied by Cardinal Fernando Filoni, greeted each Bishop in the presence of the Apostolic Nuncios of both countries.
Archbishop of Juba Paulino Lukudu Loro said the “issue of peace” is still a priority in both countries, especially South Sudan, “because we are at war.”
He called on the Vatican to address the issue of vacant dioceses and providing support for the local clergy.
The Bishops at the meeting discussed peace, poverty and vocations in each country. They thanked the Holy Father during the meeting.
Pope Francis gave them a written message and made sure that all the bishops had it.
Meanwhile, the report released by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute or SIPRI on Tuesday 19th January, entitled “scenarios for South Sudan in 2020”, outlines possible scenarios for the future pointed out that there is hope for a peaceful future if the 2015 agreement is implemented and the peace process opened up beyond the current parties.
The first scenario indicates ‘united in diversity’ where the agreement is implemented and the peace process consolidated and deepened.
The other picture shows ‘dictatorship’ and ‘21 Kingdoms’ in which tremendous cost in human lives, oppression and the victory of either side may come.
The third scenario predicts divided leadership’ where a badly implemented peace process will lead to renewed war.
The last scenario shows ‘fragmentation’ in which continuation of war may lead to a complete breakdown of the governance.
If South Sudan’s leaders continue to believe that they can potentially win the war, fragmentation of the country is a very likely scenario, warns Dr. Jaïr van der Lijn, Head of SIPRI’s Peace Operations and Conflict Management team.
He adds that the international community is unlikely to come to the rescue, in spite of the terrible human suffering and large refugee flows.
Source: CRN
