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STORY: SOUTH SUDAN / WOMEN POLITICAL FORUM
TRT: 02:47
SOURCE: UNMISS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 18 DECEMBER 2023, JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN
1. Various shots, attendees, speakers, banner, Vice President walking on stage
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, Vice President, Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS):
“Don't take this one as a small workshop. Those who are in this room, you are an ambassador for those sisters of yours who have not come here. You have to inform them about this workshop. You have to inform them about what is coming. I know there are a lot of hurdles which are there, but we women can overcome them.”
3. Various shots, attendees, Vice President, IGAD representative, PAD Director, United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS):
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, Vice President, Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS):
“We are the mothers. We are the wives. We are the sisters. We have a lot of roles to play. We bring up children and you know, I was hearing here before that women are 50 percent, no in South Sudan we are 60% or even more, young people, the youth, including girl child, are 73.6%. We are the biggest population. If we put our hands together and we do not want to vote for anybody, what will happen? Who Will Win?”
5. Various shots, women seated speaking
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Agum Adut, Assistant Professor, Political Science, Upper Nile University:
“This time of the civic education needs to be started a bit earlier for us to know, because women, some of them, they don't know how to write, they don't know how to read, they don't know even where to pick their rights.”
7. Med shot, women seated
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Guy Bennet, Chief, Political Affairs Division, United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS):
“With less than a year until the scheduled elections in December 2024, South Sudan stands at the critical juncture. Now is not the time for divisive party politics. It's a time for empathetic and inclusive leadership. The transitional government must ensure key institutions, such as the National Elections Commission and the Political Parties Council, are adequately resourced, mandated, and supported with the necessary political will to succeed in their mandated tasks. The National Constitutional Review Committee also needs resourcing now.”
9. Med shot, women seated speaking
The second of two political party forums on inclusive governance took place today (Dec 18) in Juba, South Sudan.
It was a collaborative workshop with the Office of the Vice President for Gender and Youth, The African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) that focused on the participation of women in political processes to get a voluntary code of conduct from the parties on how they will behave in an electoral process.
A consultant with experience in codes of conduct has been brought in, and it is hoped that the forum will give a voice to women and educate and encourage the parties towards this voluntary code of conduct. The Vice President of Gender and Youth, also known as the ‘Mother of the Nation,’ Rebecca Nyandeng, was on hand to encourage the women legislators.
Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS), said, “Don't take this one as a small workshop. Those who are in this room, you are an ambassador for those sisters of yours who have not come here. You have to inform them about this workshop. You have to inform them about what is coming. I know there are a lot of hurdles who are there, but we women can overcome them.”
The vice president, a proponent of women's and girls' rights, thanked UNMISS and its partners for having the workshop. She told the women that their chosen path is not easy but that they should stay the course and not be distracted by the naysayers as they are in the majority and entirely responsible for nation-building.
She also said, “We are the mothers. We are the wives. We are the sisters. We have a lot of roles to play. We bring up children, and you know, I was hearing here before that women are 50 percent, no in South Sudan we are 60 percent or even more, young people, the youth, including girl child, are 73.6 percent. We are the biggest population. If we put our hands together and we do not want to vote for anybody, what will happen? Who Will Win?”
A broad cross-section of women in the South Sudanese Society attended the workshop.
One of the leading concerns presented was the lack of civic education among the women in the country.
It was felt that this was one of the main reasons women were not taking their rightful place in the country’s leadership, and it needed to be addressed.
Agum Adut, Assistant Professor of Political Science at the Upper Nile University in South Sudan, said, “This time of the civic education needs to be started a bit earlier for us to know because women, some of them, they don't know how to write, they don't know how to read, they don't know even where to pick their rights.”
The Political Affairs Division of UNMISS has been holding forums like this for the past 4 years. Not just to give women a voice but to encourage dialogue amongst all involved.
UNMISS believes all must agree on a consensus to guide the way forward.
But it cannot be reached except by dialogue, full implementation of the peace agreement, and resourcing the relevant institutions.
Chief of UNMISS Political Affairs Division, Guy Bennet, said, “With less than a year until the scheduled elections in December 2024, South Sudan stands at a critical juncture. Now is not the time for divisive party politics. It's a time for empathetic and inclusive leadership. The transitional government must ensure key institutions, such as the National Elections Commission and the Political Parties Council, are adequately resourced, mandated, and supported with the necessary political will to succeed in their mandated tasks. The National Constitutional Review Committee also needs resourcing now.”
South Sudan’s social-political landscape continues to be uneven across all segments of society.
Considering the situation, these four remain the strength of the capacity of women leaders, facilitate discussions of the role of women in political and peace processes, and foster the development of a more inclusive and constructive political culture in South Sudan.
This cultural shift will place women at the forefront of discussions on peace and security within South Sudan.
