Women hold a banner containing peace awareness message in Unity State. (Photo: DRI).

The Executive Director of Dialogue and Research Institute has called on the intellectuals and politicians from Unity State to refrain from divisive politics and work for peace in their communities. 

The oil-rich state had been plagued by waves of inter-communal and politically-motivated violence since the outbreak of the 2013 crisis.

On Friday, Dialogue and Research Institute conducted a national advocacy forum for advancing peace opportunities for the communities of Koch and Mayendit County in southern Unity State.

The forum brought together parliamentarians, civil society, national and International NGOs, and UN agencies working in the areas of peace, governance, justice, and human rights in the State.

During the forum, the participants shared learning on a USAID-funded project known as Community Managing Conflict Project in Koch and Mayendit counties.

The project in Koch and Mayendit encourages the communities to work towards positive peace-building.

Gordon Lam is the Executive Director of Dialogue and Research Institute.

He said the forum was also meant to accelerate peace and coordinate actions with the Unity State government and civil society organizations there.

“The influence is that the message that we send across should be a positive message, should be a message that brings peace to the people, not a message that divides the people,” Lam said.

“So we are urging everybody that despite your political color or your political status, make sure that what you say must bring peace to the people of South Sudan and must bring peace to the people of Unity State.”

On her part, Anna Samuel, a Member of Parliament representing Mayendit County at the Transitional National Legislative Assembly appealed to her community to embrace peace.

“My message to my community in Mayendit is that let them embrace peace, when they will have to be peace, they will live peacefully.”

“There should be no problem among you the people of Mayendit because if you don’t embrace peace in your home, you will not be able to extend the peace to Koch, or in Leer.”

“Let us start peace in Mayendit first and we will extend to our neighbor in Leer and Koch.”

DRI is a national organization working with communities and national institutions to effect change in public policies on peace-building and human rights.

The organization says it mainly focus on influencing decision-makers to change public policies and practices in ways that will have a positive impact on the lives of men and women living in conflict and poverty.