7 July 2013 - A key aim of UNMISS was to support South Sudan in becoming a modern state with working institutions and full respect for human rights, the UN’s top peacekeeping official said today in the Jonglei state capital Bor.
“A lot has already been achieved in two years,” said Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hervé Ladsous, who arrived in South Sudan for a three-day visit on 5 July. “We are working solidly with the government … to continue making progress in providing the citizens with all that they expect from the state.”
Mr. Ladsous, accompanied by Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) Hilde F. Johnson, met with Jonglei State Governor Koul Manyang Juuk and members of his cabinet in Bor to discuss the security and humanitarian situation of the conflict-ridden state.
In a press briefing after the meeting, the peacekeeping chief said challenges the state faced could not all be solved at once.
“It is clear that the UN does not have the means to take over (or deal) with all these issues … due to the financial austerity in the whole world,” said Mr. Ladsous. “We have, for instance, very significant constraints in terms of our own mobility within the state.”
But he pledged that the UNMISS South Korean Engineering contingent would continue to assist the state in developing its infrastructure.
“The Under-Secretary-General informed us about the mission of the Korean engineering contingent that has already started working on roads in Bor,” said Governor Juuk. “According to the information we heard, during the dry season they will … (connect) counties (like) Pibor, Pochalla and Akobo, which are remote and inaccessible areas of the state.”
Visiting the UNMISS Indian contingent, Mr. Ladsous paid tribute to peacekeepers who lost their lives in an attack by unknown assailants in April.
Following his arrival in the country on 5 July, Mr. Ladsous met with South Sudanese President Salva Kiir in Juba. They discussed resolving conflict in Jonglei as well as UNMISS support for national political processes like constitutional review, legal and judicial reforms and capacity-building of national police.
Accompanied by SRSG Johnson and Head of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) General Yohannes Tesfamariam, Mr. Ladsous spoke with the president about the contested region, emphasizing UN support for the African Union High Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP).
“We had an exchange on the bilateral relationship between Sudan and South Sudan, which remains, of course, a subject that requires close attention by the international community,” he said. “There are clearly a number of obstacles, but we have to support all efforts to make the relationship between Juba and Khartoum a stable one in the interest of both countries and their populations.”