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UN chief concerned over political impasse to form unity gov't in South Sudan

Xinhua, January 26, 2016 Adjust font size:

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday expressed his concern over South Sudan's failure to meet the Jan. 22 deadline to establish the Transitional Government of National Unity.

Ban stressed in a statement that "the formation of the Transitional Government is an essential step in implementing the peace agreement and laying the foundation for peace and stability in the country."

President Salva Kiir appointed 28 new governors, just as rebel delegates arrived in the capital of Juba to begin work on the new government. The two sides blamed each other for violating the terms of the agreement.

Calling on the parties to overcome their differences, Ban encouraged "the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and African Union member states to seize the opportunity of the forthcoming African Union summit to address the political impasse that is impeding the formation of the Transitional Government of National Unity," the statement said.

The Secretary-General reaffirmed that the United Nations will continue to do all it can to support the people of South Sudan who continue to be subjected to unimaginable suffering and human rights abuses, it said.

The plan for a unity government was part of the peace deal in August to end the civil war which began in 2013 when President Kiir accused then vice president Riek Machar of plotting a coup. Thousands of people have been killed and millions displaced since 2013.

Under the deal proposed by the IGAD, the conflicting sides will form a new government. Machar, leader of South Sudan's major rebel group, is expected to regain the post of vice president after he was dismissed in 2013. Enditem