Poster for cultural event in Juba. (Photo: Nyathong William/Eye Radio).

Women groups from different parts of South Sudan held a cultural festival in Juba on Friday aimed at campaigning against cultural practices that are harmful to women including gender-based violence.

The event held under the theme: Promoting our Arts for Peaceful Co-existence in South Sudan, was organized by Women Advancement Organization in Partnership with Norwegian People’s Aid.

It brought together communities from different states, including Jonglei, Upper Nile, Lakes, Central Equatoria, Western Equatoria, and Western Bahr el Ghazal.

Susan Pasquale, the Executive Director of Women Advancement Organization said that this community-oriented approach is to encourage collaboration and inspire positive change.

Ms. Pasquale said the gathering helps facilitate dialogue and allow participants to share experiences and strategies for combating GBV.

“Regarding this project, we have been implementing with the NPA, it is all about gender-based violence reduction of gender-based violence within the community,” she said.

“So, we focus on bringing the community together like this so that we can learn the best cultural practices and then also we campaign against the harmful traditional cultural practices against women and girls and even boys or men.”

“So, when we bring them together like this, it’s an opportunity for us to raise a campaign.”

Suzan Pasquale also said such gathering will promote each community’s culture and bring about unity of the country.

“We are having the representation of like seven states today. So, we are going to learn from each other, we are going to promote each other’s cultures, and we are going to love to be in unity with one another.”

South Sudan accounts for the second highest prevalence case of Gender Based Violence in the East African region, according to a survey by the UNFPA.

Women activists in the country have been advocating for the passage of an Anti-GBV bill that was drafted in 2019 and widely seen as an opportunity to address violence against women and girls.

But since the bill was submitted to the National Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs in 2020 for examination and presentation in parliament, it has yet to be tabled before the legislature four years on.

Various stakeholders and women’s rights groups have persistently urged for its enactment.

Controversial aspects such as customary marriages and the recognition of marital rape have prolonged deliberations on the Anti-Gender-Based Violence Bill, as disclosed by a member of parliament.