On Tuesday, December 20, 2022, a delegation of the Padang community led by newly appointed SPLM member Stephen Dhieu Dau visited the King of Chollo His Majesty Reth Kwongo Dak Padiet, in his residence in Juba.

The community leaders who met the King included representatives from Renk, Melut, Akoka, and Baliet areas in the Upper Nile state.

Dau says the meeting was about recommitting to peaceful coexistence in the Upper Nile state.

Speaking to the media, the senior SPLM official says the visit was to pay homage to the King and give their assurance of peace and unity.

“We met with His Majesty King Kwongo Dak Padiet, King of Chollo Kingdom, we had come to deliver our best wishes and solidarity to him, and we wish him well in the new year, and Christmas festival,” said Dau.

“We had come to give him [Chollo King] moral support and also to show him that as simple of peace and unity and love in Upper Nile state, we had come from Padang community representing Renk, Melut, Akoka and Baliet,

“We have talked to him that as the leaders we want to work together for peace, reconciliation and healing in the region and as is a simple of unity and peace in the region,

“He [Chollo King] has to lead us, we are behind him, and we must work together to unite our people and put the suffering to an end.”

The delegation met King Kwongo weeks after he was airlifted to Juba from Fashoda County due to intensified armed conflict in the oil-rich state.

For his part, the former deputy governor of Upper Nile State, James Tor Monybuny says it is time for the communities of the state to exercise peaceful coexistence.

“It’s a time for us to call for peaceful co-existence with the communities of Upper Nile whether the Shuluks, the Dinka, or the Nuer and also our neighboring areas,” said Tor.

“We also condemn, and we also call upon for peace as a whole, and together we have to hold our hands and call for peace within Upper Nile or in Jonglei or unity state or any other places that in Upper Nile, we need peace more than anybody now.”

The King of Chollo, His Majesty Dak thanked the visiting delegation and appealed for Upper Nile to return to peace.

“My brothers from Dinka Padang of Upper Nile all came to visit me, and they came to say sorry for what happened in the area. I thank them for this good spirit of brotherhood and their appeal for Upper Nile to return to its previous situation,” said King Reth.

Last month, the violence escalated to Fashoda County – where the palace of the King of Chollo is based.

Activists, aid agencies, and the UN Mission in the country have condemned the violence and called on the national government to deploy security forces to contain the situation.