The Peace Seminar Aims for Achievement of Peace and Development in South Sudan

The South African Broadcasting Corporation(SABC) reported that the president and the rebel leader had contacted for the first time in more than two years in South Sudan, where the civil war is ongoing for five years. Two leaders agreed on ‘permanent ceasefire’ on last 27th. The movement toward peace has also taken place from the grass-roots.

The peace seminars under the topic of ‘The pursuit of peace-building for the development of all classes’ opened respectively at Youth Gardens in Yei on Whitaker Peace and Development Initiative(WPDI) Learning Center in Juba on 27th and 29th of June. On this occasion jointly hosted by People’s Empowerment Center South Sudan and the International Peace Youth Group(IPYG), about 50 participants including the teachers and the youth joined several events such as ‘Peace Painting’ and ‘Peace Letter’.

The students wrote their promise in the peace letters to carry out peace activities in various ways such as peace walk, seminar, and concert wishing for the end of the war in the world as well as in South Sudan. It also contained the support of the Declaration of Peace and Cessation of War(DPCW), which includes 10 articles and 38 clauses for the prohibition of the use of force, peace education, and peace culture, as a solution to the end of the war.

In particular, the article 10 of the DPCW, ‘Spreading a culture of peace’, addresses the importance of promoting peace awareness through peace activities and peace education, and the peace painting activity of this event was carried out to spread a culture of peace to the local community.

Justoson Victor Yuasa, the executive director of People’s Empowerment Center South Sudan, said, “This is a true peace campaign in which young people write letters to the president with a heart of peace-loving. Presidents and leaders should remember that their children are so crying out for the peaceful world like this.”