Communication Office

PRESS RELEASE

(For Immediate Publication)

Thursday, 9 November 2023, Juba, South Sudan

RJMEC MEETS IN JUBA: WELCOMES RECONSTITUTION OF KEY BODIES, EXPRESSES CONCERN ON UNIFICATION OF FORCES

Today, 9 November 2023, the Chairperson of the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC), Amb. Maj Gen Charles Tai Gituai, addressed a meeting of the RJMEC members: “Today we meet at a more hopeful moment with the recent appointment of members to reconstitute the Political Parties Council (PPC), the National Constitutional Review Commission (NCRC) and the National Elections Commission (NEC). The reconstitution of these institutions is a welcome development and I commend the Parties to the Agreement for this milestone,” he said.

Regarding these institutions, Amb. Gituai explained: “Their effective functioning will pave the way towards the widening of civic and political space, the completion of the permanent constitution, as well as the timely conduct of elections.” As such, he said, “focus should now shift to operationalisation and adequate resourcing to ensure the delivery of their mandates.”

Noting that the reconstituted Political Parties Council attained 50% women’s representation, the Chair added: “However, women’s representation in the reconstituted National Constitutional Review Commission is 33%, and in the reconstituted National Elections Commission, it is 22%. RJMEC reiterates its appeal to the Parties to always adhere to the 35% minimum representation of women in various institutions and bodies of the R-ARCSS.”

On a different note, the RJMEC Chair highlighted concerns regarding the unification of forces, a task which, he said, “faces the biggest challenges, and yet, it is the most consequential for the stability and enduring peace of South Sudan.

Amb. Gituai continued: “For almost four years, troops have languished in the cantonment sites and training centres with very little support, and while the upper command echelon of the NUF is unified, the mid and lower levels are not.”

The RJMEC Chair stressed the point that “without the completion of unification of forces and bringing these forces under one commander-in-chief, achieving a secure environment for the holding of elections will be a huge challenge.” Therefore, he added, “there is no justification for the further delay of this process, or the defection of forces from one party to the other, which continues to be reported.”

Noting that the recurring problem of lack of funding of the Agreement institutions and mechanisms, causing them severe operational difficulties, he appealed to the RTGoNU to fully fund the unification of forces and to support the efforts of the Security Mechanisms who are working to bring the process to its conclusion. He said: “If this lack of support continues, then the transitional security arrangements, especially the much-delayed unification of forces, will further slowdown.”

Although this RJMEC meeting did not reach quorum and cannot be classed as the 33rd RJMEC Plenary, it nonetheless progressed with the statements and detailed briefings by different Agreement institutions and mechanisms on the status of the implementation of the Agreement and subsequent vibrant discussions. The 33rd RJMEC Plenary is accordingly rescheduled to 7 December 2023.