UROR COUNTY – “So many of us are dying for no reason.”
Women representative, Nyawal Thon, perfectly captured the views of many other community members attending a reconciliation and peace event facilitated by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) in remote Uror County, Jonglei.
“This is why we need sessions like this that make us recognize our shared struggles and hopes so that we can translate them into concrete actions together,” continued the passionate advocate for peace.
And so, they did.
After only two days of discussions, participants from Nyirol, Uror, and Akobo identified 14 solutions to help their communities reconcile years of intercommunal conflict and shape the path for a more peaceful coexistence.
Ranging from the abolishment of violent blood compensation practices that allow a family to honor the killing of their relative by trading it with the killing of a family member of the perpetrator to the formation of peace committees and religious tolerance, the new resolutions reflected all main potential causes for conflict.
“We forgot how to talk to each other. In the face of humanitarian crises and hardly any access to drinking water, food or shelter, this showed us that we should at least try to work together to make all our lives easier rather than harder,” highlighted Acting Uror County Commissioner, Peter Gatkuoth Gatwech.
This sentiment was echoed by others who affirmed their commitment to carry messages of unity and peace to community members unable to attend the sessions.
“People from all over our three counties have been saying that enough is enough and yet they struggle to find solutions looking back at a history that was predominantly shaped by conflict and division,” said Bol Deng Bol, Civil Society Chairperson in Jonglei State.
He emphasized the importance of reaching out to people across all communities and counties “to carry on the message of peace”.
For UNMISS, initiatives like this are a vital step in supporting social infrastructures that will inform peaceful dynamics across previously divided communities.
“The activity aimed to strengthen the relationship between people of Greater Lou and empower them to find shared solutions on how they can manage their differences and overcome their grievances by practicing forgiveness,” explained UNMISS Civil Affairs Officer, Fred Paul.
By Achol Kur Marial
