As of today, over 50,000 civilians in South Sudan have been displaced. Many other persons were killed, including 50 people killed by an air bombardment. Political opponents are being arrested and detained.

The humanitarian support is inadequate. Life there is insecure. The hardship is unimaginable. The worst part of it is that South Sudan’s violent conflict is no longer making any headlines. It has become an obscure corner of the world where war crimes are being perpetrated and nobody cares. I am calling on the African Union, IGAD, UN and international community as a whole to, as a matter of urgency, spearhead a process that will result in a ceasefire, safe delivery of humanitarian support, protection of civilians, and restoration of normalcy to South Sudan.

It is also important that the key actors involved in this latest circle of violence be held accountable for their abominable acts committed against people.

For AU to achieve its “Silencing The Guns” agenda, it must go beyond issuing press releases by taking concrete measures that will yield permanent peace.

All the same, the international community must not abandon the people of South Sudan in their trial moment.

Comrade Bishir Dauda, Executive Director, Citizens Participation Against Corruption Initiative