US urges S. Sudan’s leaders to distance themselves from peace spoilers or risk being sanctioned
US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo (Photo: Supplied)
January 10th, 2020 (SSNN)—The US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo has advised leaders from South Sudan’s government and opposition groups to stay away from those who undermine the implementation of the peace agreement or face more sanctions.
The head of the United States Department of State, delivered the statement barely a day after the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned South Sudanese First Vice President Taban Deng Gai for his complicity in grave human rights violations in the country.
“January 1, 2020 marked the halfway point of the most recent extension to form an inclusive unity government. We urge the Government of South Sudan and opposition leaders to act now to distance themselves from peace process spoilers and to prioritize the will of the South Sudanese people for peace,” the statement said.
The senior US official asserted that the recent sanctions against South Sudan’s high-profile figures are a show of commitment, and thus affirms that Washington doesn’t condone human rights violations around the world.
“This decision underscores the U.S. government’s continuing commitment to promote and protect human rights globally and reflects our determination to promote accountability of all those who seek to undermine the South Sudanese peace process.”
Earlier this week, South Sudan’s First Vic-President Taban Deng Gai was slapped with sanctions for directly involving in the disappearance and reported deaths of two human rights defenders who were kidnapped from Nairobi at the request of South Sudan’s National Security Service.
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