The cycle of violence must be broken if we are to build a peaceful, healthy, healed and reconciled nation for ourselves and our children.
This is the plea the head of the National Committee for Healing, Peace and Reconciliation, Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul, made in a press statement on Monday.The ECS Archbishop said the Committee he heads will examine why the new country is being built upon a culture of violence and conflict.
Archbishop Deng said the journey of healing, peace and reconciliation will take years and requires patience and perseverance.
He classified the journey as spiritual rather than political and it starts with a National Day of Prayer on July 8, the eve of the second anniversary of South Sudan’s independence.
Archbishop Deng explained that the National Day of Prayer under the theme “Lamentation, leading to repentance and personal conversion/transformation” will be prepared by prayers with different groups including government, organized forces, women, youth and Muslim and Christian communities.
The Archbishop explained that the National Committee for Healing, Peace and Reconciliation is a consultative body tasked to create an impartial space for listening and consultation to collect all the views of the citizens of South Sudan.
He added that the process includes government, politicians, intellectuals, academics, military, police, business leaders, civil society, elders, traditional leaders, women, youth, disabled, tribes, faith communities, insurgents and everybody.
“From that platform, a credible reconciliation and healing process can be built”, Archbishop Deng concluded.