South Sudan's ceasefire monitors on Thursday last week reminded all parties of their commitment to vacate civilian buildings as the deadline passed.
The Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMVM) had called on South Sudan parties to vacate civilian buildings by June 15.
“That date has now passed and still we observe a significant number of civilian buildings occupied by the armed forces. Moving forward, CTSAMVM will consider the continuing occupation of civilian buildings as a violation of Chapter II of the R-ARCSS,” Desta Abiche Ageno, chairperson of the ceasefire monitoring body told the 12th CTSAMVM meeting of the technical committee in Juba.
He further said South Sudan faces numerous logistical challenges in requests to support the provision of food, water, medicines and shelter for troops already cantoned and those supposed to be cantoned.
“We urge the parties and the NPTC [National Pre-Transitional Committee] to address those issues as a matter of urgency,” he said.
Abiche said his team will continue to monitor and verify cantonment sites, besides the impact they have on local communities including women and children.
He added, “Without cantonment, the peace agreement cannot be implemented and we must maintain the momentum towards peace”.
Meanwhile, Abiche said the ceasefire has continued to hold throughout most of the country with no reported incidents of violence between the warring parties.
“There are tensions in several areas, but the indications are that these are a result of inter-communal differences. CTSAMVM continues to monitor the overall security situation and reports of tension in order to encourage early mediation to prevent escalation,” he observed.
The CTSAMVM is mandated by the regional bloc IGAD to monitor and verify the implementation of the Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities as per the peace deal.