Civil Society Coalition Calls for Inclusive National Dialogue Beyond Inter-Party Talks
The National Civil Society Coalition (NCSC) has welcomed plans for an inter-party dialogue in September but called for a broader national consensus dialogue involving political groups, civil society and other stakeholders to address South Sudan’s political and security challenges.
In a statement issued Tuesday, the coalition said the proposed inter-party dialogue could help resolve political and legal disagreements among parties to the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), particularly those related to general elections.
However, the coalition said the dialogue alone would not adequately address the security threats facing South Sudanese, especially in rural areas.
“The proposed inter-party dialogue should precede an inclusive national consensus dialogue,” the coalition said.
The NCSC said a broader dialogue should include armed and unarmed political groups inside and outside South Sudan, women, youth, faith-based institutions, civil society, the media, students, academia, regional bodies and the international community.
It said such a process would have a better chance of developing sustainable solutions to the country’s political, social, economic and security challenges.
The coalition also said an inclusive national dialogue could help support a peaceful conclusion to the transitional unity government.
“We therefore hope that the proposed inter-party dialogue will lead to this larger and more inclusive consensus-making national dialogue,” it said.
The coalition welcomed progress toward the inter-party dialogue, saying it had motivated civil society and South Sudanese concerned about the country’s future after genuine dialogue among parties to the peace agreement had remained out of reach.
The NCSC describes itself as an umbrella of grassroots civil society networks drawn from South Sudan’s 10 states and three administrative areas. It says its mission is to promote an inclusive and vibrant civil society that contributes to national conflict transformation and state-building.
