YouSaid · the spoken record

James Wani Igga

lines on the record: 30
first: 2013-09-24
most recent: 2015-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“South Sudan is very resilient and its future is certainly full of hope, particularly with all the assistance and cooperation that the international community has to offer. We should not be subject to undeserved isolation and sanctions, given our level of fragility as a new country.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“Honouring the numerous pledges made in forums such as in Oslo in 2005 and 2014 and the International Engagement Conference hosted by the sisterly country of the United States in 2011 will go a long way in enabling the current peace agreement to be fully implemented, in order to meet the pressing need for humanitarian aid and post- conflict reconstruction. We are firmly determined to correct the errors of the past and look forward to the future. I take this opportunity to appeal to all friends and supporters of South Sudan to rapidly step in to support the humanitarian process I alluded to previously — the processes of rehabilitation, peacebuilding, cantonment and national reconstruction.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“6/25 15-29664 01/10/2015 A/70/PV.23 There is no doubt that development and prosperity can quickly lead to cementing peace and stability. It is therefore crucial for the Government of South Sudan to remind international donors about the many pledges they made earlier but which have never been honoured. More than at any other time in our conflict-riddled history, the upcoming post-conflict imperatives of resettlement, rehabilitation and disarmament require concerted financial and technical assistance from our many friends of goodwill around the world.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“The announcement by the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) — our Government Army — about a week ago that it would move out of Juba to a location 25 kilometres away is further proof that our Government is committed to this agreement. That is a clear demonstration of the Government’s will to execute the accord. As the SPLA is already moving to redeploy, the international community needs to expeditiously provide the necessary funding to help build new army barracks in those forests. As we embark on the implementation of the peace agreement, sanctions and travel restrictions imposed on our officials should no longer be an option. At this juncture, I urge all countries of good will to rush in with humanitarian, resettlement and development projects.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“That is mainly attributable to the absence of a joint monitoring and verification mechanism installed on the ground and of funding from IGAD for that purpose. I urge IGAD to work more speedily on creating and designating that vital instrument for enforcing any meaningful ceasefire. With respect to security arrangements, from 13 to 18 September the warring parties held a workshop in Addis Ababa, which ended with our Government delegation signing the minutes and a communiqué. Our brothers in the rebellion, however, declined to sign, for reasons best known to them. It is now incumbent upon “IGAD-Plus” to persuade the armed opposition to sign the minutes as quickly as possible.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“We respect the content and provisions of the Geneva Conventions and vow to strictly observe and apply them in our difficult and complex context. Since our independence, whenever we have received reports of human rights abuses by elements associated with our security institutions, we have investigated and immediately dealt with them in accordance with the law. We are delighted to announce that through the efforts of IGAD, alongside the Troika, on 26 August His Excellency President Salva Kiir Mayardit not only signed the agreement but also declared the ceasefire. This ceasefire is holding surely in certain parts of the country — there is no doubt about that — but not in all, I must underscore.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“Nonetheless, any renewal of the UNMISS mandate without consultations with and the consent of our Government would not be right and would therefore be unacceptable. It is a well-known fact that matters of that nature are sovereign and due consultation is imperative. Committing crimes against the people we govern or violating human rights have never and shall never be condoned by our Government. Promoting and protecting the safety of persons, families and communities and their physical and social well-being is a duty that we take very seriously. We will not allow impunity to reign. We are conscious of our obligations to humankind, and we respect the human rights charter contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related protocols.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“I am sure it will be cemented by prosperity and happiness. We give credit to our neighbours and the international community at large. The next step now is for this body to quickly join and help us in terms of both humanitarian assistance and reconstruction as we vow to implement the agreement. South Sudan is concerned about global and regional peace, security and respect for human rights. Though we have been tied down by our own difficulties, we are also mindful of our participation in global and regional strategies aimed at tackling threats of terrorism, environmental change and the like. I commend the role that the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) played during the period leading up to our declaration of independence in 2011, and afterwards.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“However, our progress has been thwarted and marred by unjustified internal power feuds that resulted in a regrettable conflict that engulfed three of our country’s 10 states. It is my pleasure and a relief to announce to the Assembly that this regrettable war and unnecessary bloodshed have been brought to an end. The people of South Sudan were yearning for peace, and on 26 August 2015 our President took the courageous step — with the help of IGAD, the Troika, China, Russia, the United Nations and so on — to sign a peace agreement with our brothers in the rebellion to silence the guns and end the civil war. This signature was immediately followed by the President’s declaration of a permanent ceasefire the next day. We must congratulate our people for this historic achievement of peace.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“After going through so much for too long, the dream, aspiration and vision of the people of South Sudan for a country of their own were finally realized on 9 July 2011, with strong support from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the United Nations 15-29664 5/25 A/70/PV.23 01/10/2015 and the Troika. Almost one week thereafter, in this great Hall, the General Assembly took a historic step and endorsed our independence. We most enthusiastically thank the United Nations for that. Having attained freedom for our country and its people, we, the leaders, wasted no time in pushing forward with the creation of institutions of good governance and democratic exercise. We started virtually from rubble, following the first civil war.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“On behalf of my President, His Excellency Mr. Salva Kiir Mayardit, I would like to congratulate the newly elected President of the General Assembly. We stand with his leadership. I also thank his predecessor, Mr. Sam Kutesa of Uganda, for his beautiful and successful tenure in office. I would like to express our sincere gratitude for the pivotal role of the United Nations, and of many other friends, before, during and after the birth of our country, South Sudan, in July 2011. We commend this noble world body and its able leadership for firmly supporting our independence. We vividly remember the three days that the Secretary-General spent in Juba, dedicated himself to lecturing and advising us as independence neared. We congratulate His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-moon.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“It is important for the United Nations to monitor and promote the complete implementation of the cooperation agreements reached between South Sudan and Sudan to cement harmonious and peaceful coexistence.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“In conclusion, I wish to repeat that we remain steadfast in our vision of a country at peace with itself and with its neighbours — a country which is growing in security, the rule of law and human rights and progressing towards justice and prosperity. I offer my sincere thanks to our many partners and friends for their continued support. We look towards the future confident of what we, a people emerging from marginalization and suffering civil strife, can accomplish together. The Organization has to redouble its efforts to nurture and reinforce its new Member, South Sudan, both economically and in its determination to put an end to human rights violations.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“While many, including our friends, had doubted our ability to peacefully manage as simple a political exercise as a cabinet reshuffle, the domestic backing is revealing. Our immediate agenda for the new phase, which we are calling phase two, is to improve health care, education, roads, electricity supply and the quality of life. We are determined to uproot impunity and corruption, phenomena which plague post-conflict States, wherever they may be, and which can derail all of our efforts and determination to succeed. Based on its resolve to combat corruption and set a new standard, our Government has erased 16,000 “ghost names” it found on the police payroll. We are carrying out a similar exercise in the military and other organized forces.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“The African Union Peace and Security Council and the United Nations Security Council accepted the proposal as “representing a fair, equitable and workable solution”. The international community must therefore ensure that this proposal is implemented expeditiously. Our new Government in Juba, energetic and with new faces, is leaner, so as to reduce expenditure, but broader in terms of inclusiveness of other political parties and civil society, even those without party affiliation. The reshuffle has been highly supported and applauded countrywide, with a recent opinion poll carried out by two organizations — CRN and ST — showing 84.7 per cent for the new team and 92 per cent for the choice of the new Vice-President.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“The civil war currently taking place in the Nuba mountains and Blue Nile regions of the Sudan, as well as in Darfur, has created an influx of refugees to South Sudan, and that is a source of concern for us. We appeal for humanitarian access and supplies for those refugees. Given our unique knowledge, acquaintance and position as partners to Khartoum and former comrades-in-arms in the fighting forces in those two regions, in addition to our interest in realizing peace along our northern border, the Government of South Sudan can play a constructive mediation role if required. On Abyei, we will continue to cooperate with the Republic of the Sudan to implement the agreement on the final status of Abyei through a referendum, set for October 2013 by the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“Our relationship with the Sudan has been a mixture of cooperation and squabbles. Fundamentally, both sides acknowledge that there is no alternative to lasting peace other than harmony and cooperation, given our shared history. That is why President Kiir Mayardit, remarkably, visited Khartoum early this month and held amicable discussions with his counterpart, President Omer Hassan Al-Bashir of the Sudan. They agreed to enhance cooperation on all fronts, including allowing the unhindered flow of oil from South Sudan through the Sudan. We call on the parties at war in the Sudan to find a durable political solution to the conflict, a situation to which the CPA has provided a workable remedy. We urge the international community to play a positive, stepped-up role in narrowing the gap between both parties.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“We appeal from this rostrum for expeditious relief assistance in various forms. Another urgent security demand is the training of a police force capable of eliminating the high rate of crime we are experiencing in Pibor county and, indeed, the entire country. UNMISS, to which we express our profound appreciation, has helped transform hundreds of former combatants into a police force conscious of the rule of law. UNMISS is doing a very commendable job under its able leadership. The rate of crime caused by the proliferation of small arms has been alarming. While our police force has managed to apprehend many criminals, others are still at large. The Government is committed to erasing this menace. We refute any allegation to the effect that such violations are deliberate and systematic orchestrations.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“Regarding the situation in Pibor county, which has been of particular concern to all of us, we have determined, thanks to UNMISS and OCHA, the number of people who are currently registered for food distribution in various camps for internally displaced persons and villages. If that number is compared with the pre-conflict population of Pibor county, we could now be relatively relieved at the fact that most of those who had been unaccounted for are in fact alive and receiving much-needed humanitarian assistance from United Nations agencies and other organizations. Out of the total population of approximately 140,000 in Pibor, for instance, nearly 100,000 people have been identified in the Pibor bush alone, along with another 10,000 in Juba City and 26,000 registered as refugees in neighbouring countries.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“To date 84 cases of human rights abuses have been tried in the courts of law. We are determined to see that the violations committed by some indisciplined SPLA elements do not go unpunished. Recently the Government formed a peace and reconciliation committee headed by top religious leaders to promote dialogue with all groups, including rebel groups in Pibor county. The Government has allowed the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and other humanitarian bodies unhindered access to all parts of the country, including, of course, Jonglei state.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“We regret the security impediments in Jonglei and assure the international community of our Government’s determination to transform our army, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), into a professional national army that respects human rights and the rule of law and is committed to the protection of civilians. The President has declared a general amnesty for the rebel groups, and already two large groups, one under General Bapin and the second under General Johnson Oluny, have responded positively. The President has also ordered the mandatory disarmament of the civilian population and has taken legal steps to punish the perpetrators of human rights violations in Jonglei, including an SPLA Brigade Commander, who is now under arrest together with 13 soldiers who have been sentenced to prison terms that range from three to five years.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“We take seriously our responsibility to ensure that public funds are properly utilized and that our spending is rigorously monitored. We are thus determined to uncompromisingly fight practices of maladministration, including corruption. We deeply regret the loss of the lives of the Indian peacekeepers, the Russian helicopter crew and the Kenyan and South Sudanese relief workers in Pibor county. We express our condolences to the families and the Governments of those who lost their lives. We wish to assure the international community that such tragic incidents will not be repeated. Jonglei state, the most populous, with inaccessible terrain, has been of particular concern to us as a Government as well as to the international community. There is no doubt about that. It has serious security and infrastructural impediments.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“In recent years, the National Legislative Assembly, of which I was twice elected Speaker and where I served a total of eight years, enacted a good number of laws, including the Petroleum Revenue Management Act and the Investment Act, among many others, setting out clear rules on how we can efficiently and prudently spend our oil revenues. With the support of our development partners in the region and internationally, we have now embarked on the development of our infrastructure. Numerous infrastructural projects are under way. In response to the oil shutdown last year, the Government implemented austerity measures. We reduced Government spending by 40 per cent, and at the moment we have considerably increased non-oil revenue collection.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“The governing party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) will hold another general convention in March 2014 to freely elect its structures in preparation for the 2015 national general elections. Let me turn to the issue of women. Women have suffered discrimination since 1956, with a literacy rate hardly reaching 18 per cent. The SPLM as a ruling party is now raising women’s political participation from the 25 per cent in the current Constitution to a minimum of 35 per cent in the proposed permanent constitution.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“A decentralized system of governance is the outcome of a conscious decision taken by South Sudan’s political leadership, as enshrined in the 2011 transitional Constitution, to build a broad-based democracy in the post-conflict setting. We set up the 10 states with popularly elected governors and democratic legislatures as a nucleus of good governance. In 2010, President Kiir Mayardit was democratically and overwhelmingly elected. Our noble struggle was to actualize the ideals and values of true democracy, so cherished by our people. According to our Constitution, the next elections will be held in 2015. Indeed, on 18 September, our President publicly confirmed the date.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“While we recognize that, as humans and as a Government, we must have made errors of judgment as we sought to fix a war-devastated country, successful steps have also been taken, and we appeal for the goodwill shown to us in those times of difficulty to continue. We are confronted with the test of adherence to human rights as a consequence of malicious action by external hands, rather than of our own making. We commend any objective criticism and we call on the experts on South Sudan also to appreciate the bigger picture of how well the country is run in our nine other states besides Jonglei. We are presently running a Government with acceptable standards of competence.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“This became complicated during the last war as guns of various calibre fell into the hands of unauthorized civilians. We are working hard as a Government to entrench peace in all corners of South Sudan. We have established programmes to rehabilitate and integrate former rebel groups into our armed forces and society at large. We have to build a country literally from scratch, with non-existent physical and social infrastructure. This has given us the worst human development indicators in the world, including high maternal and infant mortality rates and high illiteracy rates among a population of over 8 million.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“Given the complexity of the issues involved, the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) has been relatively successful, although the protocols of the two states of Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile, the case of the contested area of Abyei, and the demarcation of the borders between South Sudan and the Sudan continue to impede the full implementation of the peace accord. Our country is well endowed with abundant natural resources. Our relations with the Sudan have recently involved unexpected tensions, with intermittent suspensions of oil flow through the Sudan. Inside the South itself, old quarrels dating back to time immemorial have re-emerged among certain communities over cattle-grazing and water points.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“I convey sincere my gratitude, as well as that of President Kiir Mayardit and the people of South Sudan, to the United Nations, in particular the Security Council, the countries of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the Troika, and all people of goodwill for diplomatically helping us to bring to an end to the conflict that had devastated our country for decades. We are grateful in particular to the international community for closely monitoring the difficult implementation of the peace accord.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“It is a great honour for me to address the Assembly for the first time as Vice-President of the Republic of South Sudan. First, I would like to express the heartfelt condolences of the Government and the people of South Sudan to the people and the Government of the Republic of Kenya, in particular the families of those affected by the brutal and inhuman act of terror in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi. We condemn all acts of terrorism and pledge our full cooperation and support to all efforts geared towards ridding the region and indeed the globe of terrorism.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)