South Sudan’s Costly Conflict and the Urgent Role of Religious Leaders

Abstract

In 2013, two years after South Sudan’s formation as the world’s newest nation, a costly civil war erupted that has ensnared the South Sudanese people and the nation’s developmental and consolidation process for more than five years. The article explores the current conflict against its historical backdrop, proposing a greater role for religious leaders in the peace and reconciliation processes. It draws upon original interview data generated in 2018 from dozens of South Sudanese informants as a direct window into the effects of the conflict and into the prospects for peace and reconciliation within the context.

Keywords:

• conflict
• mediation
• reconciliation
• churches
• South Sudan

Acknowledgements

This article stems from research conducted by the Hekima Institute of Peace Studies and International Relations (Nairobi, Kenya) and the Transatlantic Roundtable on Religion and Race, with funding from the Nagel Institute for the Study of World Christianity (Grand Rapids, Michigan).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Nagel Institute for the Study of World Christianity (Grand Rapids, Michigan).

Notes on contributors

Lucy Poni Modi

Lucy Poni Modi is a passionate human rights promoter from South Sudan, with a wealth of experience in broadcast media and a background in international relations, peace, and reconciliation. She is committed to conflict transformation, reconciliation, and peace in her country and globally, and brings to this work a keen interest in the role of media in peacebuilding. She holds BA in Human Resource Management from Kenya Methodist University and an MA in Peace Studies and International Relations from the Hekima Institute of Peace Studies and International Relations, Nairobi, Kenya.

Elias O. Opongo

Elias O. Opongo is the director of Hekima Institute of Peace Studies and International Relations, Hekima University College, and teaches and conducts research on transitional justice in post-conflict society; conflict resolution and reconciliation; religious extremism and violence; state fragility and proliferation of arms; as well as statebuilding and democracy. He holds a PhD in Peace Studies from University of Bradford, UK and MA in International Peace Studies from University of Notre Dame, USA.

R. Drew Smith

R. Drew Smith is Professor of Urban Ministry at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, and is Co-Convener of the Transatlantic Roundtable on Religion and Race. He has published widely on religion and public life, including serving as sole or lead editor of a dozen books and special journal collections and as author of numerous articles and essays. He earned his Bachelor degree from Indiana University and a Master of Divinity and PhD in Political Science from Yale University.