South Sudan Postpones Elections for Second Time
The government of South Sudan has announced it will postpone the general election that was scheduled to take place in December of this year.
This is the second time the government has postponed South Sudan’s elections, since a transitional government was formed in 2018 to end a bloody civil war between rivals Salva Kiir, the nation’s interim president, and Riek Machar, the sitting vice president.
The government cited a need for “more time” to complete prerequisites to the election that would include conducting a general census, drafting a permanent constitution, and registering political parties.
An added concern was instability in a nation already suffering the effects of extreme poverty, weather disasters, and a widespread famine worsened by an overwhelming influx of refugees escaping Sudan’s civil war.
Kiir’s office issued a statement saying, “There is a need for additional time to complete essential tasks before the polls,” adding that the country is going through an economic crisis in which civil servants haven’t been paid for nearly a year after its oil exports were affected by a damaged pipeline from the civil war in Sudan.
The United Nations echoed concerns in March over the possibility of chaos ensuing in South Sudan if elections were not managed carefully, noting “intensified fights over resources, high unemployment, political competition among the ruling elite, increased inter-communal clashes, and the added strain of returnees and refugees escaping the conflict” from Sudan’s civil war all contribute to its precarious state.
“There is a potential for violence with disastrous consequences for an already fragile country and the wider region,” the UN said further.
As of now, South Sudan’s general election has been pushed to December of 2026. It would be the first in the world’s youngest country, which only achieved its independence in 2011.
Sudan Relief Fund continues to deliver aid to the refugee crisis in South Sudan’s northern region, where Sudan’s ongoing civil war continues to force a steady flow of displaced people across the border.
Read more here:
South Sudan postpones December election by two years (Al Jazeera)
South Sudan’s Government Delays Presidential Vote by Two Years (yahoo.com)
