Members of South Sudanese civil society and religious leaders' delegations at the recently adjourned peace talks in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia called on the warring factions to stop fighting.

Maria Gideon, a member of the women bloc at the talks and deputy director for South Sudan War Disabled and Orphans Commission, urged women through Radio Tamazuj to not incite war which she said has widowed many women.

Maria called on Salva Kiir and Riek Machar to sit down and resolve their problem.

Civil society representative Charles Obaj urged the two warring parties not to launch fresh attacks during the recess in the peace talks. He said youth are being used in the ongoing war and that peace requires give and take between the two sides.

“I came to realize that the ongoing fighting is not because of constitutional reform, but rather a wrangling over power,” he said.

Bishop Enock Tombe, a leader of the Episcopal Church in South Sudan, called on the warring parties to stop the fighting and reach peace, which he described as “very near to South Sudan."

The bishop further said that he hopes the unarmed political parties can participate in the next round of talks. The parties' leader Lam Akol was prevented from joining the talks by the Juba government.

Another religious leader Sheikh Juma Saeed also urged a continuation of the talks.

“Peace may come at any time if we continue this way, so as religious leaders at the talks our role is to call on the parties involved to reconcile,” he said. 

Saeed called on the people of South Sudan to work tirelessly for peace not war, while urging the South Sudanese either inside the country or abroad to shun tribalism for the sake of future generations.

Photo: Members of the government delegation at the opening of current round of talks on 22 September 2014 (IGAD)

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