COMMUNIQUE OF THE 26th EXTRA ORDINARY SESSION
OF THE IGAD ASSEMBLY OF HEADS OF STATEAND GOVERNMENT
ON THE SITUATION IN SOUTH SUDAN
ADDIS ABABA,10June 2014
June 11, 2014(Addis Ababa) — The IGAD Assembly of Heads of State and Government held its 26th Extra-Ordinary Summit on the 10th of June 2014 at the National Palace in Addis Ababa, under the Chairmanship of H.E. Hailemariam Dessalegn, the Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and current Chairperson of the IGAD Assembly, to discuss the situation in the Republic of South Sudan.
The Assembly was attended by H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda, H.E. Salva Kiir Mayardit, President of the Republic of South Sudan, H.E. William S. Ruto, Deputy President of the Republic of Kenya, H.E. Bakri Hassan Saleh, First Vice President of the Republic of the Sudan, H.E. Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed Mohammed, Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia; and H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Djibouti;.
The Summit was also attended by Amb. (Eng.) Mahboub Maalim, Executive Secretary of IGAD; Amb. Ismael Chergui, Commissioner for Peace and Security of the African Union Commission; Representative of the United Nations; Representative of the IGAD Partners Forum (IPF); Representative of the People’s Republic of China; Representative of the European Union; as well as Representatives of the Troika (the Governments of Norway, UK and the US).
In light of the ongoing IGAD-led mediation process in Addis Ababa, the Summit received a progress report from IGAD Special Envoy Gen. Lazaro Sumbeiywo.
After consideration of the report and extensive deliberations on the overall political and security situation in South Sudan in a closed session;
The Summit:
1. Recalling its earlier decisions in the communiqués of the 23rd, 24th and 25th Extraordinary sessions of the IGAD Assembly of Heads of State and Government, held on 27th December 2013 as well as 31st January and 13 March 2014 respectively;
2. Commends the recommitment by the two leaders, H.E. Salva Kiir Mayardit, President of the Republic of South Sudan (RSS) and Dr. Riek Machar, former Vice President of the RSS and Leader of the SPLM/A-In Opposition, to ending the war and fully engaging in the ongoing IGAD-led peace process as per the 9 May 2014 Agreement to Resolve the Crisis in South Sudan;
3. Further commends their commitment to expedite and complete dialogue on the formation of a transitional government of national unity within sixty (60) days as well as to ensure unhindered humanitarian support to affected people with immediate effect;
4. Applauds the two leaders on their signing of the 9 May 2014 landmark agreement in Addis Ababa, which provided the basis for negotiating a transitional government of national unity; and committed them to ensure the inclusion of a broader range of South Sudanese stakeholders in the negotiations, namely: the Government of the Republic of South Sudan, the SPLM/A In Opposition, SPLM leaders (Former Detainees), political parties, civil society, and faith-based leaders in the peace process;
5. Commends the initiation of an inclusive, multi-stakeholder phase of negotiations, through the 6-7 June Symposium in Addis Ababa, which drew over 200 South Sudanese participants from a broad range of sectors and regions, and provided a platform to engage constructively on key issues toward political transition and peaceful resolution of the crisis;
6. Further Commends H.E. President Salva Kiir Mayardit and the Government of the Republic of South Sudan for releasing all the political detainees, and their engagement in the negotiation process;
7. Applauds the IGAD Special Envoys Amb. Seyoum Mesfin of Ethiopia, Gen. Lazaro Sumbeiywo of Kenya and Gen. Mohammed Ahmed Moustafa El Dabi of the Sudan for their tireless efforts to help the South Sudanese parties to resolve the crisis;
8. Expresses, meanwhile, its deep disappointment in the failures of both the Government and the SPLM/A In Opposition to honour their commitments to date, to engage the peace process meaningfully toward political resolution of the crisis and to bring an end to senseless killings;
9. Regrets in particular the continued and flagrant violations of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreements (signed on 23 January 2014, 6 May 2014 and 9 May 2014) as documented by the IGAD Monitoring and Verification Mechanism; and hereby Demands that the parties respect the Cessation of Hostilities (COH) Agreements and immediately implement the necessary Modalities in accordance with the 9 May 2014 and other relevant Agreements;
10. Stresses the primary responsibility borne by the Parties to ensure unhindered humanitarian access and support for affected populations, in line with their Recommitment to the Humanitarian Matters of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement of 6 May 2014 and in failure whereof the two sides shall assume full responsibility;
11. Reaffirms the principle of inclusivity in multi-stakeholder negotiations, in accordance with the agreement signed on 9 May 2014, which envisages the participation of: the Government of the Republic of South Sudan, the SPLM/A In Opposition, SPLM leaders (Former Detainees), political parties, civil society, and faith-based leaders; that affirms that those stakeholders have the explicit right to determine the composition of their representation in consultation with the mediation;
12. Calls on all parties to refrain from behaviour that stands in the way of an inclusive process; and Expects, therefore, the Government and the SPLM/A In Opposition to immediately endorse the modalities for inclusive participation as developed by the IGAD Special Envoys to the Peace Process, and to move immediately to inclusive negotiations on substantive issues as per the 9 May 2014 Agreement;
13. Resolves that IGAD Member States will take further collective action to pressure any party who fails to honour its commitments to date or the resolutions of this Communiqué, including through imposition of punitive measures;
14. Commends the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2155 (2014) as critical in facilitating the expeditious deployment of a regional protection force as part of a strengthened United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS); and in this regard, Calls on the troop contributing countries to the protection force to take all necessary steps toward expeditious deployment; and likewise Urges the United Nations to take all necessary steps to coordinate the expeditious deployment of the protection force as part of the strengthened UNMISS;
15. Notes with appreciation the substantive progress made on operationalizing the Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (MVM) including the deployment thus far of Monitoring and Verification Teams (MVTs) to Bentiu, Bor, Malakal, and Nasser with other planned deployments of MVTs in up to 20 sites; and Demands the Parties to immediately facilitate the full implementation of, and cooperation with, UNMISS and its protection force, and the MVM, in discharging their responsibilities;
16. Appreciates the continued strong support of the international community to the Mediation Process, and the outcomes of the humanitarian conference held in Norway on 19-20 May 2014; and Calls on the international community to act speedily to deliver pledged humanitarian assistance and further mobilize all necessary political, diplomatic, and financial support to the peace process and the delivery of critical humanitarian support;
17. Commits to provide all the necessary support to the African Union (AU) Commission of Inquiry headed by H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and urges all Parties to fully cooperate with the Commission to ensure that alleged human rights violations in South Sudan are addressed to serve national reconciliation and healing.
18. Decides to remain seized of the matter.
Issued on the 10th June 2014 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
