Youth lead efforts to heal South Sudan’s war-torn communities

The past is already past, according to the saying. Lunia Okuch, a youth peace ambassador in Malakal, South Sudan, whose generation was raised in a country where conflict is most prevalent, calls for the opening of a new chapter.

I lost family members during the war. But she says, “I am aware that it has occurred and that it has already ended.”

Before South Sudan’s independence in 2011, the country’s history of peace had been strained by cycles of violence and distrust. Every step toward stability has been fought with great effort, from the 2013 civil war to the recently resurrected peace agreement in 2018.

Today, youth groups’ sporadic cattle raiding and gang violence are some of the main barriers to lasting peace, but many of them are more localized.

A 22-year-old man who has been a member of a neighborhood gang since he was 17 says, “If I had a job, I would not be in a gang.” We lack the necessary resources to attend school, including employment.

Akol’s journey began after he left school because he had no other options, which is a common experience for many young men in South Sudan. People will steal everything from you if you don’t have backup.

He claims that despite having a number of different ethnies, the Malakal gangs are united by their common struggles of poverty and displacement. We don’t fight over tribes, they say. We must survive in battle.

The instability in South Sudan is ascribed to both gang activity and youth. However, youth are also the ones who have the greatest chance for a peaceful future, with young leaders like Okuch working tirelessly to break up divisions and foster understanding in communities that are still besieged by violence.

Beyond the youth, the burden of rebuilding and reshaping the country’s future is immense. Women’s representative for 13 counties in the Upper Nile State, Nyawar Monykuany, and others like her are taking on leadership positions to revitalize divided communities.

She claims that her efforts to bring together Malakal’s tribes “can be peace ambassadors.” Monykuany, which is fluent in several regional languages, uses dialogue to build trust between groups that once treated one another with suspicion and hostility.

Another crucial component of the puzzle is the recovery of the economy. After years of displacement in the neighboring Uganda, Joseph John, a builder in the town of Yei, credits vocational training programs with giving him a chance to support his family. He claims, “I chose this work because I can use it to rebuild my life.” He worries, as well as many others, that rural insecurity might prevent towns from progressing as a whole.

The nation celebrated a significant milestone with the newly revitalized peace agreement of 2018, but difficulties remain in addressing the violence’s root causes.

Conflict is still sparked by ethnic divisions, land disputes, and resource shortages, particularly in regions where displacement and flooding cause tensions. Organizations like the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have facilitated local dialogue and promoted peace through grassroots initiatives.

However, peace is developing primarily through the incremental, determined efforts of South Sudan’s citizens, as communities like those in Malakal and Yei demonstrate.

Source: Aljazeera