U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) has called for accountability for past crimes and atrocities in South Sudan and took a swipe at the African Union for failing to fulfill its responsibilities in setting up the Hybrid Court.
Menendez made the remarks in his statement last Friday commemorating the 10th anniversary of South Sudan’s independence.
In the statement which will be introduced into the Senate record, Chairman Menendez said, “Ending the cycle of conflict and despair in South Sudan will require accountability for past crimes and atrocities. The lesson of eight years of conflict in South Sudan is that progress is impossible in a climate of impunity. Yet despite support to the AU Hybrid Court for South Sudan from the US and other donors, the AU has failed to fulfill its responsibilities and the Hybrid Court remains in limbo. Justice delayed is justice denied.”
He added, “With our allies in tow, the Biden administration must make clear to relevant stakeholders at the AU and in Juba that further delay on the issue of transitional justice is unacceptable. If these parties do not act, the Biden administration should work with allies to pursue alternative justice and accountability mechanisms.”
Chairman Menendez said South Sudan’s independence turned into a tragedy and that the rivalry of the country’s leaders brought about a catastrophe.
“Yet the promise of South Sudan’s independence has turned into tragedy. Deep fault lines that emerged during the country’s long struggle for independence, accentuated by rivalry and rent-seeking among the country’s corrupt political elite, brought about catastrophe,” Menendez said. “A little over two years after independence, four hundred thousand people were killed and more than four million were displaced during the five-year civil war between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir against those aligned with Vice-President Riek Machar. Unspeakable atrocities were committed against civilians during the conflict, including women and children. In 2017, the war-induced a famine that brought hundreds of thousands more to the brink of disaster.”
He added that the United States and other international partners have invested heavily to end the conflict in South Sudan but that the implementation of the peace deal is slow and wanting.
“Although far from ideal, the agreement lays out a framework for a peaceful resolution of the conflict, political reform, and democratic transition. But implementation of the agreement remains slow, and South Sudan sits at a very dangerous crossroad. Responsible parties have failed to implement major provisions of the R-ARCSS, including those on power-sharing, constitutional development, security sector reform, economic issues, and transitional justice, or have reneged on their commitments. Non-signatories to the R-ARCSS continue to wage an active insurgency, particularly in Equatoria," he said.
He further noted that locally rooted communal violence is also rampant, fueled by the invisible hand of rival national political elites, “Kiir’s security apparatus continues to violate the human, civil, and political rights of the South Sudanese people. Overlaying all of these problems is an urgent humanitarian crisis – driven by conflict-induced food insecurity, displacement, and Covid-19 – made all the more worse by long-standing efforts by the Government of South Sudan to undercut humanitarian access.”
The Senator cast a shadow of doubt on whether the elections scheduled in the peace agreement will take place due to the lack of progress in the implementation of the peace deal.
“It’s clear that South Sudan’s stalled peace process needs a reboot. The lack of progress on implementation of the R-ARCSS has created significant concern about elections now slated for 2022- if they are even held. And if they are held, without prior implementation of core components of the agreement and other key actions, the polls could be a flashpoint for conflict and violence,” Menendez said.
He said that to prevent the resurgence of violence, South Sudanese leadership, the U.S., and international partners must take urgent action.
“Political leadership in Juba must immediately organize a process for robust and inclusive negotiations over a new constitution in a process that involves all South Sudanese stakeholders, including civil society and hold-out rebel groups,” the Senator said. “While I would not presume to dictate what the South Sudanese people themselves might decide, it seems to me that devolution of power from the national government to the states and local administration, and genuine power-sharing at the national level are necessary ingredients to avoid the winner-take-all calculus that has served as an incentive to take and hold on to central power at any cost.”
Senator Menendez encouraged the Biden Administration to appoint an experienced Ambassador to South Sudan, someone who has served as an Ambassador in the region, and who is familiar with the history of the relationship.
“Second, the administration should pursue additional bilateral and multilateral sanctions on South Sudanese political actors where needed, including on those who obstruct the delivery of humanitarian aid. In that same vein, it should support the continuation of the UN arms embargo, and regularly name parties that violate the embargo and hold them accountable,” Menendez said. “Third, the corruption that has long fueled South Sudan’s political crisis must be confronted head-on. The U.S. and its partners must demand full transparency from the Government of South Sudan on its oil accounts: the international community must know what revenue is coming in, and what expenditures are being made. Kiir’s foot-dragging on public financial management has persisted for years; it is well past time that Juba faces consequences.”
He said the US must use its voice and vote at International Financial Institutions to oppose all budget support to the Government of South Sudan, “and urge an end to all programs that do not directly benefit the health and welfare of the South Sudanese people until and unless the government is willing to open its books to donors, and more importantly, the South Sudanese people.”
Senator Menendez concluded, “I congratulate the people of South Sudan on this milestone. Their independence was hard-won. I only wish their leaders had treated them better. At this critical moment, the U.S. must stand with all South Sudanese in their pursuit of justice, democracy, and equitable development.”