For Immediate Release
August 20, 2014 (SSNA) — The “Dialogue on South Sudan and Eyes on Sudan: Working for Peace” advocacy group will convene for a one-day symposium under the theme of “Diasporas Working Together for Sustainable Peace in South Sudan”. Convening and conversing together with our Good Wills’ friends will open up discussions and renew genuine calls for peace and denunciation of war.
Dialoguing, restoring and promoting being vocal about peace are some of the ways we can use in support of peace in South Sudan. This is in an effort to stop our beloved nation from bloodletting and disintegrating. Dialogue on South Sudan series # 4 will be held on September 27, 2014 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. This event will deliberate on:
- Prospect of the current peace talks in Ethiopia;
- Abyei’s referendum results with question of what next?
- Roles South Sudanese Diaspora can play in building peace;
We extend our invitation to those in Winnipeg and also across Canada and America:
1. We are calling upon South Sudanese and friends of South Sudan to join us for the Dialogue on South Sudan’s symposium series # 4 as a way for diasporas to add their voices to the call for peace;
2. We are calling upon South Sudanese leaders and citizens to show seriousness for their nation by recommitting themselves to peace and rise high for “state pride” in light of the current crisis;
3. We also appeal to the country leaders that military confrontation is not a viable option to resolve internal matters. Therefore, rethinking a new approach during the current phase of crises requires compromise to uphold state stability, social cohesion and “economic solidity” as well as fostering transparency and accountability;
4. We are calling upon signatories of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that resulted in an independent nation to exert more effort to restore peace in the world’s newest nation. This will foster developmental programs and encourage interactions of the united South Sudan that we “dreamt and fought” for;
5. We are calling upon the same signatories to the CPA to live up to their moral obligations to the unfinished clauses in the CPA. The case in point is the Abyei referendum, which was conducted out of “frustrations” by the citizens of Abyei and the results of which exercise were not ratified by any institutions to date;
Our advocacy role is a national call: citizenship is a responsibility which should keep us active by engaging, endorsing and playing our parts, especially by reaching out to other institutions as a way to convince and converse for the restoration and promotion of sustainable peace in South Sudan.
Background
“Dialogue on South Sudan and Eyes on Sudan: Working for Peace” was established in 2010 by the South Sudanese and their friends in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The aim was to create and raise awareness on thepolitical and human rights situation in Sudan before the 2010 election during and after thereferendum in 2011, respectively. It is of primary importance to the members of the South Sudanese-Canadian community—men and women—to have the opportunity to voicetheir concerns on the issues surrounding their country of South Sudan. A focus group has been active at The University of Winnipeg since the fall of 2010. This group consists of academics, students and professionals from South Sudan as well as those interested in the political situation there.
In addition to The University of Winnipeg’s Global College support, there are several other active partners within the City of Winnipeg that we anticipate will be supporting series # 4. These include St. Matthew’s Anglican Church, Mennonite Central Committee, the Canadian Mennonite University, Institute for Community Peace Building and Menno Simons College. They also supported the previous conference and Series # 1, 2 & 3.
“I would like to sincerely thank and acknowledge contributions that were made by the above organizations and individuals that represented them since 2010 when we initiated this educational forum that brings South Sudanese and non-South Sudanese together. All these individuals and their organizations are die-hard supporters of South Sudan of which they always devoted their knowledge, experience, resources and time to enlighten the masses about unheard issues of prolonged decades of struggles as well as current internal conflict in the country” reads the immediate release, which was signed by the Chair, David Mabior Atem Kuir.
Objectives for series 4
This series seeks to bring students, academic, politicians and NGO members together to address the challenges and promises that face “the world’s newest nation”, particularly the Abyei referendum and the current crises. The chief aim of this forum is to promote dialogue within the South Sudanese Diaspora and friends on the future of the Republic of South Sudan related to issues of peace and economic development. Our ongoing series will address building capacity among scholars, researchers, activists, politicians and policy makers toward supporting South Sudan.
About the Speakers:
Our keynote speaker, Dr. Luka Biong Deng, is a well-known scholar and prominent SPLM member, will enlight us about ongoing peace efforts in Ethiopia, He is a fellow at Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, former Co-chair of Abyei Joint Oversight Committee (AJOC), former national Minister of Cabinet Affairs of the Government of Sudan (National Unity), Former Minister of Presidential Affairs in the Office of the President of the Government of South Sudan, former Senior Economist for the World Bank in South Sudan and current Associate Professor at University of Juba and a Global Fellow at the Peace Research Institute Oslo. Dr. Luka Biong Deng will deliberate on two topics: prospect of current peace talks in Ethiopia and Abyei’s referendum result with questions of what’s next. He will bethe fourth SPLM official from South Sudan to visit Canada. Please read report of the third SPLM official at this link: http://newsudanvision.com/diaspora-publisher/2731-hon-atem-garang-dekuek-south-sudan-government-chief-whip-during-first-visit-to-canada
Kuir ë Garang is a South Sudanese author, poet, publisher and political analyst living in Calgary, Alberta. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from McGill University in Montreal. Kuir’s works center on personal experiences and philosophical analyses of contemporary issues. He’s written extensively about South Sudan’s political issues. His latest book, South Sudan Ideologically, looks at ideas and ideologies that shaped both Sudan and South Sudan during five decades of the liberation struggle. Kuir ë Garang will deliberate on the roles of South Sudanese Diaspora in building peace.
Dialogue on South Sudan is a forum driven by impartiality and inclusivity with open membership regardless of gender and group affiliation to embrace patriotism, trust-building and discourage divisive sentiments. In light of that, our leadership has approached two of the South Sudanese community’s organizations; the Council of South Sudanese Community in Manitoba (COSSCOM) and Manitoba Women for Women of South Sudan (MW4WSS) for partnership. “Our partnership with the above organizations is intended for a clear consolidation of ideas, enhancement of human power and resources for the common purpose of advocating for peace and development in the Republic of South Sudan. Our forum is a center for informational-sharing of “fresh” and “old ideas” as a way to learn, evaluate and engage appropriately. Thus, critical thinking skills are used in generating and translating ideas as we progress towards peace and policy development with inclusive respect for human rights” reads the immediate release, which was signed by the Chair, David Mabior Atem Kuir.
For more detail about the Dialogue on South Sudan’s symposium, please direct your query to this email address: [email protected] and your enquiry will be answered in the order they are received. For the City of Winnipeg media groups are advised to contact one of our organizing committee members, Reuben Mayen Garang who will be ready to answer questions related to the event. We are looking forward to hearing from you and your organizations in regard to how you can participate in this national event striving toward a long-lasting peace.
Signed by: