REPUBLIC OF SOUTH SUDAN NATIONAL DIALOGUE STEERING COMMITTEE SUBCOMMITTEE FOR BOMA REGION GRASS-ROOTS CONSULTATIONS FINAL REPORT DETAILS FOR GREATER PIBOR AND GREATER POCHALLA FROM DECEMBER 2 nd 2017 TO MARCH 27 th 2018 Report By: Hon. Baba Medan Konyi, Chairperson for National Dialogue Steering Committee; Subcommittee for Boma Region. www.ssnationaldialogue.org CONTENTS PART 1: FIRST ROUND GRASS-ROOTS CONSULTATIONS IN BOMA REGION 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Makeup of the National Dialogue Steering Committee Subcommittee for the Boma Region: 1.2 Issues Discussed: 1.3 Stakeholders consulted 1.4 Grass-roots Consultations Launch: 1. 5 Consultative Meeting with Members of the Executive and Legislature at the State General Secretariat Hall 1.6 Consultative Meeting with Organized Forces, including Police, Wildlife, Fire Brigade and Prison at the State Secretariat Pibor 1.7 Consultative Meeting with the Business Community 1.8 Consultative Meeting with the SPLA at the State General Secretariat 1.9 Consultative Meeting with Counties Administrators 1.10 Consultative Meeting with Political Parties in Pibor Boma State 1.11 Consultative Meeting with Chiefs and Religious Leaders in Pibor North and South 1.12 Consultative Meeting with Youth and Women in Pibor North and South 1.13 Consultative Meeting with Senior Civil Servants in Pibor 1.14 Consultative Meeting with Pibor North and South Chiefs 1.15 Recommendations PART TWO: SECOND ROUND GRASS-ROOTS CONSULTATIONS IN GREATER POCHALLA 2.0 Introduction 2.1 Brief meeting with Governor of Boma State and his Cabinet, including the legislature on National Dialogue consultations, second round 2.2 Consultative meeting with Greater Pochalla County Commissioners and local administrators (Executive Directors) 2.3 Consultative meeting with SPLA and other Organized Forces (police, prison, wildlife, fire brigade) 1 2.4 Consultative meeting with Greater Pochalla Kings and their Assistants at the County Headquarters 2.5 Consultative meeting with; youth and women, the business community, disabled people and people with special needs and religious leaders 2.6 Church events on Sunday, 01 April 2018 2.7 Otallo Women Agricultural project launches 02 April 2018 2.8 Conclusion 2 Saturday December 2nd 2017 PART 1: Introduction National Dialogue grass-roots consultations in Greater Pibor Reception events: Members of the National Dialogue flew by chartered plane to Pibor on Saturday, on the 2nd of December 2017. The Honourable Ismail Konyi, governor of Boma state, received the National Dialogue team upon their arrival at Pibor airstrip. The Governor stated his readiness to cooperate with the delegation during a joint press statement made before the National Dialogue grass-roots consultations began in the state. Soon after we arrived, we were briefed by deputy governor Hon. Omot Ogullo in his capacity as acting governor at the state secretariat. On Sunday morning, they went to church where the steering committee explained the work plan on the National Dialogue based on grass- roots consultation meetings in the Boma Region and announced the first group to be ready for Monday consultative meetings. Briefing: The Hon. Omot Ojulo Abai, Deputy Governor Boma state-Pibor, briefed and strongly welcomed the National Dialogues Steering Committee for Boma Region upon their arrival at the statehouse on Saturday, 2 December 2017. The Steering Committee explained the National Dialogue objectives as “to end all violent conflicts in South Sudan, constitute national consensus and save the country from disintegration.” State stakeholders welcomed the move before the official start of the consultative meetings with stakeholders on Monday, 3 December, with the executive and the legislative, prior to the grass-roots consultation meeting of the National Dialogue in Boma State-Pibor. Deputy Governor Hon. Omot Ojulo assured the team that they would be able to carry out their activities freely and without fear or intimidation. The meeting included the state Cabinet, legislators, advisers and county commissioners. 3 Sunday Church remarks: 3 December 2017 At the church, Mr. Chairman Hon. Baba Medan Konyi conveyed a message of peace to the congregation: “I greet you all in the name of God and the Nation South Sudan, now it is your time to speak out the truth and you have a right to speak without fear and intimidation, please speak freely.” 1.1 Makeup of the National Dialogue Steering Committee Subcommittee for the Boma Region: • Hon. Baba Medan Konyi (Chairperson) • Hon. Mark Nyipuoch Ubong (Deputy Chairperson) • Hon. Festo Simon Pigga (Member) • Hon. Kennedy Gain (Member) • Hon. Ngundeng Moses Giek (Member) Makeup of the Boma Region Subcommittee secretariat: • John Jal Wuor (Documentation) • Victoria Ayen (Finance) • Mayo James Ween (SSBC Reporter) • Monday James Pigga (SSBC Radio) • Enosa Karaba Gabriel (Cameraman) • Ibon Martin David (Secretary) Total number of the delegation: 11. 1.2 Issues Discussed: General questions posted by National Dialogue Steering Committee for Boma Region in Pibor: Is the National Dialogue a tangible forum to bring our differences? Is the National Dialogue the fastest and easiest way to resolve our differences? If not, what are the possible solutions to problems in South Sudan? 4 Objectives of the National Dialogue: “End all violent conflict in South Sudan, constitute national consensus and save the country from disintegration.”1 1.3 Stakeholders consulted: Day Consultative stakeholder State/Town Date meeting held with: 1 Executive and legislative Pibor 4 December 2017 2 Organized forces Pibor 5 December 2017 3 Business community Pibor 6 December 2017 4 Sudan People's Liberation Pibor 7 December 2017 Army 5 Counties administrators Pibor North & South 8 December 2017 6 Political parties Pibor 9 December 2017 7 Religious leaders Pibor 10 December 2017 8 Women and youth Pibor 11 December 2017 9 Senior civil servants Greater Pibor 12 December 2017 10 Pibor North and South chiefs Greater Pibor 13 December 2017 Conflict is inevitable; to be human is to experience conflict because people differ in motives, backgrounds, interests, beliefs, and problems. Conflict refers to all kinds of opposition with different value structures and often manifests itself in war. Well-managed conflict can help people solve their problems confidentially, strengthen relationships and increase commitment to constructive organization. Intra-state conflicts are often greed- or grievance-led; such is the conflict in South Sudan, Africa’s youngest nation. 1 South Sudan National Dialogue Document Number One October 2017. Available at: https://www.ssnationaldialogue.org/wp-content/uploads/DOCUMENT-NO1.pdf 5 1.4 Grass-Roots Consultations Launch: Day One: 4 December 2017 1.5 Consultative Meeting with Members of the Executive and Legislature at the State General Secretariat Hall Hon. James Chacha Konyi–PiborState, Member of Parliament The Hon. James Chacha Konyi-PiborState Member of Parliament said he was delighted, and praised H.E. the president Salva Kiir Mayardiit for launching the National Dialogue initiative. He further stated that the National Dialogue is the only way to bring a sustainable and long-lasting peace to the country and to save the nation from disintegration. In his opinion, people must adhere tonormal democratic practices and principles (rules) and that the president should be changed through ballot boxes in a general election instead of through a resort to arms or rebellion, as Dr Riek Machar did in 2013, which turned the country into civil war. Hon. Chacha stated that at the national level, the cabinet is not equally representative of the 64 ethnic groups of South Sudan. He said that one ethnic group (Dinka) dominates the cabinet and that qualified and competent people from the 32 states should be represented in the national cabinet. He also stressed that some ministers, once appointed, want to stay in their office for life and do not want to give others a chance. He went further, saying that national wealth is not being properly or equitably shared. Boma state is completely neglected because the national government sends nothing to Boma state in terms of wealth or resources sharing (e.g. Boma state has no trunk, all-season or feeder roads to address insecurity problems in the state). Rampant child abduction is among the many results of this neglect. He suggested that the Pibor-Juba, Bor, Gumruk-Pibor roads, Pibor-Pochalla, Pibor-Lekuangole feeder roads, and Pibor-Akobo roads be constructed with urgency. As things stand, Pibor Airstrip is the only means of supplying the state with basic commodities. Furthermore, he said the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) should be restructured and properly reorganized or trained and that each state should be given a properly equipped and trained army division. Hon. Olul Akol Kuach, Minister of Agriculture Pibor The Hon. Olul Akol Kuach, Minister of Agriculture Pibor, said that when appointing people to political positions, nepotism and tribalism are the major practices instead of following party structure. He said that there should be a two – to - three-term limit for president of South Sudan in order to give a chance 6 to others who want to run for president. He recognized that Boma state is isolated and that there are no roads or bridges on rivers during the rainy season (people travel on foot and by canoe during flooding). The distance from Pibor to Pochalla is 75miles, from Pibor to Akobo is 80 miles and from Pibor to Bor is 120 miles. Pibor-Juba, Pibor-Boma. Hon. Simon Lewa, Acting Speaker for Pibor State Assembly Hon. Simon Lewa, Acting Speaker for Pibor State Assembly, said that the random arrests of people by national security in Juba bring fear countrywide. He noted that tribalism is the country’s major problem and that for the country to survive or to come out of crisis, tribalism needs to be handled very seriously (for example if the president wants to issue a decree he has to go back and consult with his Dinka community as his advisers). He noted that during the struggle, “we used to call ourselves ‘comrades’”, but now it goes back to the Jieng Council of Elders as the main spoiler; for South Sudan to survive, this body needs to be immediately dissolved or disbanded immediately.