Attachments
Executive Summary
This report on the status of implementation of the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) has been prepared pursuant to article 7.9 of the R-ARCSS. The report covers the period from 1 April to 30 June 2023 and builds on the previous quarterly Reports Nos. 001/19 - 018/23. It provides a status update on implementation or lack thereof of the thematic chapters of the R-ARCSS during the reporting period and around 18 months, according to the Roadmap, to the holding of elections in December 2024.
In the assessment of the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC), the critical pending tasks outlined in the Roadmap, which are expected to pave the way for elections remain either unfinished, or may not have started. Key among those is the delay in the passage of the National Election Bill 2023 and a failure to reconstitute the National Constitutional Review Commission (NCRC) and the Political Parties Council, which are two key institutions needed to overseeing the constitution and the election processes respectively. In addition, there continues to be delays in the redeployment of the Necessary Unified Forces that are needed for election-related security.
The ad hoc Judicial Reform Committee (JRC) has continued to undertake tasks pursuant to its mandate. In June 2023, the JRC held regional consultations in several States.
The public consultations were intended to incorporate stakeholders’ perspectives so as to enrich the JRC’s recommendations to the RTGoNU on appropriate judicial reforms in the Republic of South Sudan. At the same time, the mandate of the National Constitutional Amendment Committee (NCAC) tasked by the R-ARCSS to draft, amend and review legislation was extended by the RTGoNU for an additional six months to enable the Committee to complete amendments to five pieces of legislation.
During the period of reporting, there were no major ceasefire violations among the signatory Parties. However, CTSAMVM submitted two violation reports to the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and RJMEC, and also reported on clashes between civilians in the Malakal Protection of Civilians site. There has been gradual progress in the enforcement of accountability among the SSPDF who commit crimes against civilians. The SSPDF conducted a General Court Martial (GCM) in Yei River County, Central Equatoria State, which heard 29 cases. It culminated in 14 rulings, against various ranks, accused of offences ranging from murder, rape, sexual harassment, and loss of weapons and ammunition.
The onset of rains and the influx of refugees and returnees forced out of Sudan by conflict have exacerbated the already severe humanitarian needs compounded by the cumulative effects of prolonged intercommunal conflicts, long-term flooding, and high levels of food insecurity. The situation is worsened by limited funding to cover the nine million people already in need of humanitarian assistance and protection in South Sudan.
South Sudan is witnessing a deepening power crisis in land administration and confusion about the roles of the existing institutions at the different levels of the government, state, and local government. Despite an ambitious framework for land administration expressed in the 2009 Land Act, the 2009 Local Government Act and the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011, as amended, the institutional foundations for such a structure remain largely non-existent due to capacity and resource constraints. Also, progress has been slow in implementing Public Financial Management reforms, as there is a need for draft bills that legitimize some of these reforms to be finalized and legislated by the TNLA. As a result, a considerable number of provisions in this area have therefore missed their benchmark dates as indicated in the Roadmap.
During this reporting period, the RTGoNU successfully convened a conference on Transitional Justice mechanisms under the theme Building a Sustainable Transitional Justice System for South Sudan from 15 to 18 May 2023 in Juba, South Sudan. The conference was organized by the High-Level Standing Committee on Implementation of the Roadmap, in collaboration, with the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs (MoJCA). The MoJCA is now at an advanced stage of completing the drafting of the Commission for Truth Reconciliation and Healing and the Compensation and Repatriation Authority Bills following the conference.
Consistent with its monitoring, evaluation and oversight mandate the leadership of RJMEC briefed H.E Salva Kiir Mayardit, President of the Republic of South Sudan, Dr Riak Machar, First Vice President, H.E. Dr William S. Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya and the United Nations Security Council on the status of implementation of the R-ARCSS. RJMEC leadership also attended the 14th Ordinary Summit of the IGAD Heads of State and Government in Djibouti, and held substantive discussions with H.E. Dr Workneh Gebeyehu, Executive Secretary of IGAD and H.E. Dr Ismail Wais, IGAD Special Envoy for South Sudan. The main focus was mainly on an assessment of the status of the implementation of the R-ARCSS, as well as concerns over the very slow pace of implementation and the risk of failing to complete the critical tasks required for the conduct of peaceful and credible elections by the end of the Transitional Period.
The relevant entities acting upon the following RJMEC recommendations will provide some much-needed impetus to the peace process, which largely stalled.
To the Parties to the Agreement and Relevant Stakeholders
• follow the example of the other Stakeholders and immediately submit lists of their nominees to the various Constitution making mechanisms;
To the Reconstituted Transitional Government of National Unity
• consider to expeditiously reconstitute the NCRC and establish the Preparatory Sub Committee and other relevant mechanisms for the constitution-making process to proceed;
• avail adequate and predictable resources to facilitate the establishment and operationalization of the relevant constitution-making mechanisms;
• complete review of the CTRH and CRA Bills and move towards enacting these laws;
• address recurrent impediments to access and assure security for humanitarian workers and civilians as well as their goods and assets; and
• expeditiously establish the Special Reconstruction Fund and its Board to pave the way for the convening of the South Sudan Pledging Conference.
To the Transitional National Legislative Assembly
• expedite the deliberation and enactment of all the outstanding bills including the National Elections Bill, which have been presented by the RTGoNU to help strengthen the elections process.
To International Partners and Friends of South Sudan
• all donor partners to consider supporting the permanent constitution-making process, including by directly resourcing some of the critical mechanisms, civic education, and providing capacity building; and
• consider extending full support to the permanent constitution-making process, including resourcing the critical mechanisms, supporting civic education, capacity building of the NCRC secretariat, and facilitating participation of different disadvantaged groups in the Constitution making process.