MilanMUN2017
Political Committee
Background Paper
South Sudan and Horn of Africa
Introduction
South Sudan, separated from Sudan in 2011 after almost 40 years of civil war, it was soon
after drawn into a new conflict in late 2013, when a political dispute overlapped with a pre
existing ethnic and political conflicts that had turned violent. Different parties in the conflict have
been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. This and many other factors resulted
in the war and becoming a humanitarian crisis that displaced more than 2.7 million people,
200,000 sheltered at U.N. peacekeeping bases in the country and over 2 million South Sudanese
fled as refugees, 1 million of which have crossed into neighboring countries including Sudan,
Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda, however there is no reliable death count. The U.N. have report that
about 4.8 million people are facing life-threatening hunger and that famine may be on the
horizon. Aid workers as at least 62 aid workers have been killed during the conflict, and U.N.
experts warn that threats are increasing in scope and brutality.
In August 2015, a peace agreement was signed by the warring parties, but it did not end
the conflict. A Transitional Government of National Unity was formed in late April 2016, six
months behind schedule, that followed months of ceasefire violations. The leader of the
opposition Riek Machar returned to the South Sudanese capital, Juba, for the first time since the
beginning of the conflict, and vowed as First Vice President of the new government led by his
rival, President Salva Kiir. This was seen as a major milestone toward peace. By late June, as there
were little signs of the agreement being implemented, the head of the international monitoring
commission warned that the peace deal was under threat of collapse, which resulted in amplified
concerns about a return to full-scale war.
By early July, the situation had deteriorated quickly as the new government had allowed
to have armed elements in the capital. The conflict resumed, which side started the fighting
remains subject to debate, but hundreds were killed before ceasefires were declared on July 11.
More than 12,000 people sought shelter at the U.N. peacekeeping bases in Juba; Machar and
other opposition officials fled the city and ultimately sought refuge outside the country.
The United States, at the request of East African countries, has since led an international
effort to deploy additional U.N. peacekeepers to Juba, with the immediate aim of providing a
secure environment in the capital, and with the hope that the force’s presence may create
conditions more conducive for broader stabilization efforts. The South Sudan government has
been hesitant to accept the force, viewing it as a threat to its sovereignty. While negotiations on
the force’s deployment continue, the U.N. Security Council, in August, had proposed the idea of
a possible arms embargo, which was not agreed on and failed on December 22, 2016.
By now the Transitional Government of National Unity and the peace agreement have
almost collapsed, and reports suggest that both sides may be preparing for a return to full-scale
war. Without robust donations made by other countries, such as the donations made by the U.S
in the previous crisis, South Sudan’s troubles will certainly worsen. Donors, however, are
concerned weather to help or not as state corruption is very high in the country as reports say
that senior officials have used state assets to fuel the war, and for their own benefit.
Mapping of Conflict in South Sudan
Countries and Organization
The number of refugees from South Sudan has passed one million after the violence that
ruptured in July forced thousands to flee to neighbouring countries, who have no other choice
but to host them. This created one of the world's worst humanitarian disasters, according to the
United Nations. According to the UN, neighbouring country Uganda hosts the largest number of
South Sudanese refugees, more than 373,000, and more than 20,000 arrived there just after the
peace agreement fell. Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Central African
Republic also have received tens of thousands of people fleeing. Because of this inconvenience
to South Sudan’s neighboring countries, they are all in favor of a peace agreement working and
UN and international donors help. In fact when the peace agreement signed in August fell, many
leaders were disappointed. For example Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari expressed his
concern over the deterioration of security in war-torn South Sudan, he said to South Sudanese
ambassador, Paul Malong Akaro, "I was a little disappointed with the subsequent developments
in your country. I was hoping that we can move forward and develop the great potentials of your
country after the peace accord," Buhari told Akaro, according to the Vanguard newspaper.”
After South Sudan became the newest countries in the World in 2011 ending its very long
conflict with Sudan, its relationship with Sudan remained complicated because of the existence
of oil pipelines situated on the southern part of Sudan and northern part of South Sudan. In this
area there have been a conflicts between Sudan’s People's Liberation Army and South Sudan’s
Unity, who were fighting for property of the oil pipes which highly benefited Sudan’s economy
and was essential to South Sudan’s economy. Even though the greater part of the conflict
happened in 2012 and was called the Heglig Crisis, relationships between the two countries
remained tense. Not only have these pipes caused conflict between neighbouring countries, but
right outside of the plant's central processing facility, vegetation is invading and toxic oil is leaking
into the earth. There are massive leakages from most of the tubes and pipes, allowing chemicals
to seep into the ground. This is an environmental catastrophe, the oil will reach the drinkingwater level affecting the local population, who is already struggling to live with the little water
they have. A study was made, six years ago, by Sign of Hope and African Water Ltd that estimated
that almost half a million people could be affected by oil-contaminated drinking water in the area
of the oil pipes.
Crisis in South Sudan
Timeline of Events
2013 December - Civil war erupts. President Salva Kiir Riek Machar, of plotting to overthrow him.
Rebel factions seize control of several regional towns, thousands are killed and many more flee.
Uganda troops intervene on the government's side.
2014 January - A ceasefire is signed but broken several times over subsequent weeks, and further
talks in February fail to end. Fugitive Riek Machar is charged with treason.
2014 May - UN envoy Toby Lanzer says conflict has resulted in slaughter of thousands,
displacement of more than a million and five million in need of humanitarian aid.
2014 July - UN describes the food crisis in South Sudan as the worst in the world.
2014 August - Peace talks begin in Addis Ababa and drag on for months as fighting continues.
2015 February - General elections due in June are called off because of the ongoing conflict.
2015 March - Rebels free 250 child soldiers. Unicef says 12,000 child soldiers are involved.
2015 August - Despite "reservations" and under threat of UN sanctions, President Salva Kiir signs
an internationally-mediated peace deal under which rebel leader Riek Machar will return as vicepresident.
2016 November - UN sacks Kenyan commander of its peacekeeping mission over the failure to
protect civilians in Juba during July violence. Kenya responds by saying it will withdraw its
peacekeepers.
Key Vocabulary
Peace Agreement
Peace agreements are contracts intended to end a violent conflict, or to significantly
transform a conflict, so that it can be more constructively addressed. There are various types of
agreements that can be reached during a peace process. Each type of agreement has a distinct
purpose and serves a value in itself towards building positive momentum for a final settlement.
It is also sometimes used as a possible solution for an ongoing conflict or a possible pause.
Horn Of Africa
The Horn of Africa is a region of eastern Africa. It is the easternmost extension of African
land and is defined as the region that is home to the countries of Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and
Somalia, whose cultures have been linked throughout their long history. Other definitions of
the Horn of Africa are more restrictive and exclude some or all of the countries of Djibouti,
Eritrea, and Ethiopia, as well as Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, and Uganda.
Heglig Crisis
The Heglig Crisis was an armed conflict between Sudan and South Sudan in 2012 over oilrich regions between South Sudan's Unity and Sudan's South Kordofan. South Sudan invaded and
briefly occupied the small border town of Heglig before being pushed back by the Sudanese army.
Small-scale clashes continued until an agreement on borders and natural resources was signed
on September, resolving most aspects of the conflict, even though it wasn’t concluded.
Transitional Government
A Transitional Government, also known as a provisional government, is an emergency
governmental authority set up to manage a political transition, generally in the cases of new
nations, or following the collapse of the previous governing administration. Transitionals
governments are generally appointed, and frequently arise either during or after civil or foreign
wars. They usually last even when the conflict is over so that when the country will be stable
enough it will create its own new government.
Ceasefire
A ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to
suspend aggressive actions, in fact they are often negotiated and agreed to, with some amount
of “good faith” attached. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have
also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces. Additionally
there are humanitarian ceasefire, which are a pause in fighting so that civilians may have time to
recuperate.
Arms Embargo
An Arms Embargo is an embargo(an official ban on trade or other commercial activity with
a particular country) that applies to weaponry, and may also apply to "dual-use technology". An
arms embargo may serve to more than one purpose. It could signal disapproval of behavior by a
certain actor or maintain neutral standing in an ongoing conflict. Arms Embargoes, requests or
notifications, can be submitted by any Member States.
Humanitarian Crisis in South Sudan - UN photo
Past solutions
In the past both warring sides have few peace deals in an attempt to the end the civil war,
however all of which have subsequently been broken with violence. These peace agreements
almost felt impossible to follow even at the start, as president Salva Kiir said “And when I signed
these peace agreement, I said this in front of the president of Uganda. I told him that this
agreement was not made to be implemented.”. If even the head of one of the warring parties
believed that the agreement would not stand it is hard to believe that anyone believed in these
deals. For example, a peace deal was signed on August 26 2015, by South Sudan's President Salva
Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar, was an attempt to end fighting. The situation quickly
deteriorated in July when violence reappeared between the two sides, and despite the
implementation of a ceasefire, there were high concerns for the peace deal, which later
collapsed. The president of South Sudan believed that the only solution to ending the conflict in
South Sudan was for the international community to send monetary help. The international
community agreed, but with two expectations from South Sudan. The first was to sign a peace
deal and the second was to form a transitional government with national unity. The first one was
accomplished, the second one, on the other hand was never achieved, which resulted in South
Sudan having barely any funds.
A possible solution for the South Sudanese conflict was proposed by the United States in
August, in the form of a resolution on imposing an arms embargo. The United States had on its
side the United Kingdom and France who had argued that cutting off the arms flow was urgently
needed and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon who had personally told the Security Council
that he feared that genocide was about to start in South Sudan unless immediate action is taken,
renewing his months-long plea for an arms embargo. The resolution garnered only seven votes
in favour in the 15-member council on Friday, while eight countries including Russia, China and
Japan abstained. It came as a shock to most when this resolution was rejected by the U.N. security
council as an arms embargo seemed to be a good solution to most. Many felt disappointed as It
was the people of South Sudan who would have had to pay an unbearable price as many innocent
people are killed, and as the United States ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power told the
Security Council after the vote, "The council members who didn't support this resolution are
taking a big gamble that South Sudan's leaders will not instigate a catastrophe."
Possible Solutions
This conflict as many others have been very hard to resolve or at least improve. Even with
the help of the UN and its troupes as well as international donors some conflicts have been really
hard to deal with. The end goal for the South Sudanese conflict would be for the civil war to end
and for South Sudan to create a new and stable government and to improve its living conditions
to the point that South Sudanese citizens who had previously migrated to neighboring countries
could come back and enjoy life in South Sudan. For this to be accomplished it is essential for the
UN and for countries involved in the conflict, as well as some who are not, to meet and discuss
further possible solutions for this ongoing conflict. In these meetings it would be essential to
discuss past solutions to change them or better them, depending on their outcome. Furthermore
in these meetings it could be further discussed what could be done of the humanitarian crisis in
South Sudan. To help the refugees, countries who could still be able to host them should make
plans to prepare for the influx of refugees in their camps as many are still fleeing. Lastly it is
essential that aid is sent to South Sudan as the country on its own won’t be able to survive this
ongoing conflict. This aid could be sent as monetary aid by the international community or by
separate donors as the United States have done in the past. A group, or more, of volunteers,
bringing with them food, water and various medical kits could also be organized and to South
Sudan with military help. There are endless possibilities and solution that will help South Sudan.
The Political Committee has to reassess solutions made in the past and create new ones, with the
intention to save South Sudan and the countries around it.
Research-Bibliography
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