{"id":3673,"date":"2023-02-04T19:01:58","date_gmt":"2023-02-04T19:01:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=3673"},"modified":"2023-02-04T19:40:46","modified_gmt":"2023-02-04T19:40:46","slug":"south-sudans-pope-warns-leaders-that-peace-process-is-stalling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/politics\/south-sudans-pope-warns-leaders-that-peace-process-is-stalling\/2023\/02\/04\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"South Sudan’s pope warns leaders that peace process is stalling"},"content":{"rendered":"

JUBA, South Sudan (AFP) \u2014 Pope Francis, on a novel ecumenical peace mission to the world\u2019s youngest country, warned<\/span><\/span>\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0South Sudan<\/a><\/span>\u00a0political leaders on Friday that history will judge them harshly if they continue to drag their feet implementing a 2018 peace accord.<\/p>\n

Greeted<\/span> by<\/span> songs<\/span> and<\/span> high-pitched<\/span> cries,<\/span> Francis<\/span> called<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> hundreds<\/span> of<\/span> people<\/span> gathered<\/span> in<\/span> his<\/span> Hall<\/span> of<\/span> Freedom<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> the<\/span> “seeds<\/span> of<\/span> hope”<\/span> that<\/span> would<\/span> soon<\/span> bear<\/span> fruit<\/span> for<\/span> a<\/span> nation<\/span> of<\/span> 12<\/span> million.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“You<\/span> will<\/span> be<\/span> a<\/span> tree<\/span> that<\/span> will<\/span> absorb<\/span> the<\/span> contamination<\/span> of<\/span> years<\/span> of<\/span> violence<\/span> and<\/span> restore<\/span> the<\/span> oxygen<\/span> of<\/span> brotherhood,”<\/span> he<\/span> said.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> head<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> UN<\/span> mission<\/span> in<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan,<\/span> Sara<\/span> Beysorrow<\/span> Nyanti,<\/span> told<\/span> Francis<\/span> that<\/span> women<\/span> and<\/span> girls<\/span> were<\/span> “extremely<\/span> vulnerable”<\/span> to<\/span> sexual<\/span> and<\/span> gender-based<\/span> violence.<\/span> of<\/span> attack.<\/span> She<\/span> said<\/span> women<\/span> and<\/span> girls<\/span> were<\/span> at<\/span> risk<\/span> of<\/span> rape<\/span> just<\/span> by<\/span> being<\/span> outside<\/span> for<\/span> their<\/span> daily<\/span> routines<\/span> and<\/span> household<\/span> chores.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“South<\/span> Sudan<\/span> will<\/span> change<\/span> if<\/span> South<\/span> Sudanese<\/span> women<\/span> are<\/span> given<\/span> the<\/span> opportunity<\/span> to<\/span> grow<\/span> and<\/span> given<\/span> the<\/span> space<\/span> to<\/span> be<\/span> productive,”<\/span> she<\/span> told<\/span> Francis.<\/span> Pope<\/span> Francis<\/span> addressed<\/span> her<\/span> theme,<\/span> saying<\/span> women<\/span> are<\/span> key<\/span> to<\/span> the<\/span> peaceful<\/span> development<\/span> of<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>“Protect,<\/span> respect,<\/span> appreciate<\/span> and<\/span> respect<\/span> all<\/span> women,<\/span> girls,<\/span> young<\/span> women,<\/span> mothers<\/span> and<\/span> grandmothers,”<\/span> he<\/span> said.<\/span> “Otherwise<\/span> there<\/span> is<\/span> no<\/span> future”<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>According<\/span> to<\/span> UNICEF,<\/span> about<\/span> 75%<\/span> of<\/span> girls<\/span> in<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan<\/span> are<\/span> out<\/span> of<\/span> school.<\/span> Because<\/span> their<\/span> parents<\/span> want<\/span> them<\/span> to<\/span> stay<\/span> home<\/span> and<\/span> get<\/span> ready<\/span> for<\/span> a<\/span> marriage<\/span> that<\/span> will<\/span> bring<\/span> the<\/span> family<\/span> a<\/span> dowry.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Half<\/span> of<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan’s<\/span> women<\/span> are<\/span> married<\/span> before<\/span> the<\/span> age<\/span> of<\/span> 18,<\/span> after<\/span> which<\/span> they<\/span> face<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> highest<\/span> maternal<\/span> mortality<\/span> rates<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> world.<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan’s<\/span> United<\/span> Nations<\/span> Human<\/span> Rights<\/span> Commission<\/span> said<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> report<\/span> last<\/span> year<\/span> that<\/span> women<\/span> and<\/span> girls<\/span> here<\/span> were<\/span> sending<\/span> “a<\/span> hellish<\/span> existence”<\/span> across<\/span> the<\/span> board.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201cWomen<\/span> in<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan<\/span> have<\/span> been<\/span> physically<\/span> assaulted<\/span> while<\/span> being<\/span> raped<\/span> at<\/span> gunpoint<\/span> and<\/span> usually<\/span> held<\/span> down<\/span> by<\/span> men<\/span> while<\/span> being<\/span> abused<\/span> by<\/span> others.<\/span> They<\/span> are<\/span> told<\/span> not<\/span> to<\/span> fight<\/span> and<\/span> report<\/span> what<\/span> happened<\/span> or<\/span> they<\/span> will<\/span> be<\/span> killed,”<\/span> the<\/span> report<\/span> said.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Maria<\/span> Nyataba<\/span> Ulu,<\/span> a<\/span> displaced<\/span> person<\/span> now<\/span> living<\/span> in<\/span> Juba,<\/span> attended<\/span> Francis’<\/span> event<\/span> but<\/span> was<\/span> left<\/span> limping<\/span> for<\/span> days<\/span> after<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> her<\/span> neighbors<\/span> was<\/span> brutally<\/span> raped<\/span> in<\/span> front<\/span> of<\/span> her<\/span> children.<\/span>\u00a0
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Francis<\/span> started<\/span> the<\/span> day<\/span> by<\/span> meeting<\/span> the<\/span> priests<\/span> and<\/span> nuns<\/span> who<\/span> serve<\/span> the<\/span> people<\/span> of<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan<\/span> and<\/span> urging<\/span> them<\/span> to<\/span> join<\/span> the<\/span> flock<\/span> to<\/span> join<\/span> their<\/span> suffering.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>At<\/span> St.<\/span> Teresa’s<\/span> Cathedral,<\/span> he<\/span> heard<\/span> about<\/span> the<\/span> victims<\/span> the<\/span> nuns<\/span> had<\/span> sacrificed<\/span> over<\/span> the<\/span> years.<\/span> Among<\/span> them<\/span> was<\/span> the<\/span> ambush<\/span> killing<\/span> of<\/span> Sisters<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> 2021<\/span> Sacred<\/span> Heart<\/span> Sisters<\/span> Congregation,<\/span> Mary<\/span> Daniel<\/span> Abbatt<\/span> and<\/span> Regina<\/span> Loba<\/span> on<\/span> her<\/span> Ruate.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Sister<\/span> Regina<\/span> Achan,<\/span> from<\/span> the<\/span> same<\/span> congregation,<\/span> said<\/span> Francis’<\/span> visit<\/span> will<\/span> encourage<\/span> other<\/span> sisters<\/span> to<\/span> continue<\/span> serving<\/span> the<\/span> people<\/span> of<\/span> South<\/span> Sudan.<\/span> “We<\/span> stand<\/span> by<\/span> them<\/span> because<\/span> we<\/span> are<\/span> their<\/span> voice.<\/span> We<\/span> do<\/span> not<\/span> run<\/span> away<\/span> in<\/span> difficult<\/span> times,”<\/span> said<\/span> Achan.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Sister<\/span> Aura<\/span> Her<\/span> Tracy<\/span> is<\/span> an<\/span> Irish<\/span> Loreto<\/span> nun<\/span> who<\/span> runs<\/span> an<\/span> all-girls<\/span> secondary<\/span> school<\/span> in<\/span> downtown<\/span> Rumbek,<\/span> where<\/span> she<\/span> walked<\/span> her<\/span> students<\/span> for<\/span> over<\/span> a<\/span> week<\/span> to<\/span> see<\/span> the<\/span> Pope<\/span> in<\/span> Juba.<\/span> The<\/span> school<\/span> makes<\/span> a<\/span> deal<\/span> with<\/span> the<\/span> girls’<\/span> extended<\/span> families<\/span> in<\/span> which<\/span> the<\/span> relatives<\/span> agree<\/span> not<\/span> to<\/span> take<\/span> the<\/span> girls<\/span> out<\/span> of<\/span> school<\/span> and<\/span> marry<\/span> them.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

JUBA, South Sudan (AFP) \u2014 Pope Francis, on a novel ecumenical peace mission to the world\u2019s youngest country, warned\u2019s\u00a0South Sudan\u00a0political leaders on Friday that history will judge them harshly if they continue to drag their feet implementing a 2018 peace accord. Greeted by songs and high-pitched cries, Francis called on the hundreds of people gathered […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3674,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[280,562],"tags":[174,965,969,970,971],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/P.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3673"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3673"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3673\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3690,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3673\/revisions\/3690"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3674"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3673"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3673"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3673"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}