{"id":23940,"date":"2026-01-30T16:52:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T13:52:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/?p=23940"},"modified":"2026-01-30T16:52:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T13:52:16","slug":"south-sudan-south-sudan-is-more-than-any-human-desire-bishops-condemn-the-renewed-fight-in-the-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/2026\/01\/30\/south-sudan-south-sudan-is-more-than-any-human-desire-bishops-condemn-the-renewed-fight-in-the-country\/","title":{"rendered":"SOUTH SUDAN: South Sudan is More than \u201cAny Human Desire,\u201d Bishops Condemn the Renewed Fight in the Country"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA<\/em><\/p>\n

The Catholic Bishops of South Sudan have condemned the renewed fight between the South Sudan People\u2019s Defense Forces (SSPDF), the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-iO) and other opposition groups, declaring that the country is \u201cmore than any human desire” and calling on political and military leaders to immediately cease hostilities and embrace dialogue.<\/p>\n

In a statement signed by His Eminence Stephen Ameyu Martin Cardinal Mulla, the President of the Sudan and South Sudan Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SSSCBC), and Metropolitan Archbishop of Juba, the Bishops expressed alarm at escalating violence in Jonglei and Eastern Equatoria States and condemned alleged calls for violence against civilians.<\/p>\n

They said, “This country is more than any human desire, it’s a home for thousands of generations to come. Let us care for it and protect ourselves as long as God gives us a new day,” and further reminded citizens: “We do not have other South Sudan to migrate to, so let’s work for what unites us.”<\/p>\n

They Church leaders expressed deep concern about the total disregard for the full implementation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement for the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) that was signed years back in September 2018.<\/p>\n

“As shepherds and leaders in this country, we are alarmed and surprised by the total disregard to the full implementation of the revitalized peace agreement. The growing discord within the Unity Government, attacks and counter attacks between the warring parties in many parts of the country is spreading rapidly causing displacements, hunger, and many other inhuman conditions,” the Bishops said in statement released Tuesday, January 27.<\/p>\n

The prelates also noted an alarming increase in armed robbery targeting motorists and ordinary citizens, even in the capital city of Juba and other parts of the country.<\/p>\n

The Catholic Bishops condemned in particular an alleged speech by Gen. Johnson Olony, the Deputy Chief of South Sudan Defense Forces (SSPDF) for Mobilization and Disarmament, calling for indiscriminate violence against civilians in Jonglei State.<\/p>\n

“Directing forces to ‘spare no lives’ is a direct call to genocide,” The bishops stated and added, “We call on all the fighting forces not to heed to any directive that risks victimizing innocent civilians and pitting communities against each other.”<\/p>\n

According to the statement that was shared with\u00a0AMECEA Online<\/em>, the Bishops also raised concerns about the proliferation of dangerous messaging on social media platforms, which they said amplifies hate speech, misinformation, and disinformation.<\/p>\n

“The worst part of this kind of communication in social media is the promotion of tribal sentiments and incitement,” the statement read in parts, warning that such rhetoric further divides communities and fuels conflict.<\/p>\n

It is not the first-time members of SSSCBC have raised concern to the government on behalf of the suffering people in the country. Last year specifically in July, they warned political leaders not to ignore dialogue.<\/p>\n

“All these conflicts in the country are happening because genuine dialogue is being side-lined intentionally, while military action is wrongly embraced as a solution to addressing political and social differences,” the Bishops stated in their July message.<\/p>\n

They posed a pointed question to government and opposition leaders saying, “Do you have this country and its people in your hearts or are you only concerned and obsessed with pursuit of power and wealth?”<\/p>\n

During their annual plenary meeting in the Catholic Diocese of Malakal last November, the bishops urged all parties to the peace agreement to work for the good of the suffering people by fully implementing R-ARCSS to create confidence among citizens and engage in sincere dialogue.<\/p>\n

They referenced Pope Francis\u2019 2023 message when he visited South Sudan and said, \u201cNo more war, no more bloodshed, no more conflicts, no more violence and mutual recriminations about who is responsible for it, no more leaving your people athirst for peace. No more destruction: It is time to build! Leave the time of war behind and let a time of peace dawn.”<\/p>\n

Appealing to the government to stop war and embrace dialogue, listen to one another and to the people they claim to fight for, the Bishops said, “The citizens are not properties, they are human beings and it will be good to know their pains, hunger for peace, and their desire to live in freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n

“Let us pursue what leads to peace and to building one another up,” they told the leaders quoting Romans 14:19.<\/p>\n

Despite the dire situation, the Bishops called on all people of good will not to lose hope in God. “A hope which will not let us down, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.”<\/p>\n

They called on the faithful to “hold to prayers for this country” and urged clergy, religious men and women, and all people of good will to dedicate special prayer time for peace in South Sudan.<\/p>\n

The bishops acknowledged the support of international partners, regional bodies, and the international community and stated, “The people of South Sudan are aware of your valuable contribution. We urge you on behalf of the suffering people of our country not to grow tired of doing what is right for them.”<\/p>\n

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Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA The Catholic Bishops of South Sudan have condemned the renewed…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":23920,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23940","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-amecea-news","category-sudansouth-sudan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23940","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23940"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23940\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23941,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23940\/revisions\/23941"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23920"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23940"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23940"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23940"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}