Bishops of Sudan and South Sudan make heartfelt appeal for peace

The tragic humanitarian crisis in Sudan calls on the global community to take urgent action by ending the fighting, desist from sending arms to combatants, and instead scale-up much-needed humanitarian assistance, the Catholic Bishops say.

Consequences on civilians beyond tolerable

“We are deeply worried about the deteriorating socio-political situation in the Sudan, which is the result of the war that started in mid-April 2023, and continues with no chance for peace due to a lack of dialogue between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Thousands of Sudanese have lost their lives, and millions have since fled their homes to seek refuge in relatively peaceful states or in neighbouring countries. The humanitarian consequences on the civilians has gone beyond toleration and must be condemned in the strongest terms possible,” affirm the Bishops.

The prelates urge the belligerents and the people of Sudan, in general, to reject violence and work for peace. “We equally implore the neighbouring countries, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN) to prioritise their intervention to rescue Sudan from disintegration and restore peace. We call upon the warring parties and their supporters from both sides to respect humanitarian law and desist from blocking humanitarian corridors for lifesaving assistance,” said the Bishops in a Pastoral Statement signed by all the Bishops and released Thursday.

Worrying developments in South Sudan

The Bishops Conference, which encompasses two countries, is equally concerned with the persistent socio-political and economic crises that the people of South Sudan have to deal with daily. To illustrate, they point to civil servants and armed forces who have not been paid their salaries for almost a year. The Bishops further address themselves to the agreement between the government and South Sudanese political parties’ which resulted in the extension of the country’s transition period and the postponement of long-awaited elections.

“With the recurrent postponements of democratic elections in South Sudan, the hope for sustainable peace is waning … We exhort the Government of South Sudan and the opposition groups to speed up the implementation of the milestones of the 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) and the speedy conclusion of the expected 2024 Tumaini Consensus without further delay. We desire to see South Sudan transiting quickly from politicians-based power-sharing agreements to people-centred constitution promulgation, multiparty dialogue, and elections of government leaders. We plead with the international partners to continue supporting South Sudan to exit from humanitarian traps into a developmental nation-state, which values stability for prosperity,” said the Bishops.

Paul Samasumo – Vatican News