South Sudanese leaders should address chronic insecurity, rights abuses, and the worsening humanitarian situation during the country’s extended transition period, Human Rights Watch said Thursday.

Regional and international partners should enhance pressure and leverage to ensure that institutional reforms are completed, the rule of law is restored, and there is significant progress in protecting human rights, the rights body said.

On August 4, 2022, parties to the September 2018 peace deal agreed to extend it for another 24 months starting in February 2023, when the original deal is expected to expire. President Salva Kiir, who signed the extension alongside four other political groups, said that the extension will allow for the unification of the armed forces, the creation of a new constitution, and time to prepare for elections to avoid a return to war.

“The last four-and-a-half years in South Sudan have been characterized by repression, violence against civilians, and attacks that have undermined efforts to complete the transition,” said Nyagoah Tut Pur, South Sudan researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The extension needs to be accompanied by a dramatic shift in the attitude of South Sudan’s leadership and concrete steps toward improving the country’s human rights situation.”

According to HRW, the extension takes place against a backdrop of widespread insecurity and a heavy climate of repression. Between the localized and intercommunal conflicts in some parts of the country, floods, chronic underdevelopment, and the impact of Covid-19, South Sudan residents face a dire humanitarian situation, with 60 percent of the population facing food insecurity.

South Sudan descended into violent conflict in 2013, where all sides to the conflict committed abuses against civilians. A peace deal signed in 2015 for a unity government collapsed in 2016, spreading further conflict. That deal was “revitalized” by warring parties in 2018 and was set to end in February 2023. But sporadic violence has continued.

“The extension of the peace agreement should not be used to extend suffering and betray the hopes of South Sudanese people,” Pur said. “Regional and international partners should be ready to take bold action to ensure that leaders remedy their past failures and pave the way for justice, democracy, and sustainable peace.”