Inter-Church Committee of South Sudan Council of Churches in collaboration with Justice and Peace Commission of the Torit Catholic Diocese with support from PAX Netherlands is organising a three-day ecumenical leadership peace forums in Torit.
The forum is organized under the theme: ‘Leadership for sustainable peace among communities in Torit’, Radio Emmanuel reported.
Inter-Church Committee chairperson Reverend Solomon Oryem Abalang told the participants that the forum is to engage leaders on effective neutral forum process.
He adds that by enhancing leaders with peace building skills helps builds peaceful co-existence among leaders and their communities.
‘The purpose of this forum is we as leaders on the ground, we should know that we are the source of peace in our community, this is what we should know. You are the ones to spread peace and you are the ones to bring peace, the community members are innocent. God called you to lead this people like He did to Moses’, he explained.
PAX Representative, John William said they work in solidarity with committed groups of people to address issues brought by war among communities.
He encouraged South Sudanese to believe in unity to fight hatred and conflicts among citizens.
There are number of inter-church committees at the grassroots, as PAX we are supporting them into two regions of our country in Eastern Equatoria and Unity State. We have come here specifically today to support the ICC on the ground on this specific programme. We are also just to show our solidarity to people who are committed and for groups of people in this part of this region who are committed to vision the ways forward on how our communities can be able to address some of the issues that are creating these dividing wars between our communities’, William elaborated.
He disclosed that ‘as church we have decided to support the church because we do believe that as PAX our tradition emanates from Christian tradition that let them be one irrespective of all the ethnic divisions we have among ourselves’.
Meanwhile a participant, Davidica Ikai Grasiano expects leaders to work hand in hand with communities for total peace to prevail to allow school children have access to quality education.
‘My expectation is that after this workshop, all the peace leaders should really join hands and go to the ground and talk to the people for total peace so that the community can be free especially for the school children can go to school and education can take place’, she expressed.
The forum which commenced on Thursday is expected to end on Friday in Torit.