South Sudan: Communiqué of 547th meeting of the PSC, at the level of Heads of State and Government, on the situation in South Sudan

The Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), at its 547th meeting held on 26 September 2015 at the level of Heads of State and Government, adopted the following decision on the Report of the AU Commission of Inquiry on South Sudan (AUCISS):

Council,

1. Takes note of the statement made by the Chairperson of the Commission and the introductory remarks made by the Commissioner for Peace and Security, the Chairperson of the AUCISS, as well as of the recommendations made by the Peace and Security Council ad hoc sub-Committee established pursuant to Communiqué PSC/MIN/COMM.(DXXVI) adopted at its 526th meeting, held on 24 July 2015, to consider the report of the AUCISS and the Separate Opinion submitted by a member of the AUCISS and make recommendations on the way forward. Council also takes note of the statements made by the Vice-President of the Republic of South Sudan and by the Chairperson of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD);

2. Recalls its previous pronouncements on the situation in South Sudan, including communiqué PSC/MIN/COMM.(DXXVI) referred to above and press statement PSC/BR/2.(DXXXVII) adopted at its 537th meeting held on 24 August 2015;

3. Welcomes the signing of the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (hereafter the Agreement) by Dr. Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon,
   Chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement In Opposition (SPLM/IO), Mr. Pagan Amum, on behalf of the Former Political Detainees (FD), and by other South Sudanese stakeholders, during the IGAD-Plus Summit held in Addis Ababa, on 17 August 2015, and by President Salva Kiir Mayardit, in Juba, on 26 August 2015;

4. Commends the Chairperson of IGAD, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn of Ethiopia, and the other leaders of the region, as well as the Team of IGAD Special Envoys, for their sustained efforts in facilitating the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan. Council also commends the AU High Representative for South Sudan, former President Alpha Oumar Konare, and the members of the AU High-Level ad hoc Committee on South Sudan (Algeria, Chad, Nigeria, Rwanda and South Africa), as well as the other members of the IGAD-Plus Mechanism (European Union – EU, United Nations – UN, IGAD Partners Forum – IPF,
   China, Norway, United Kingdom and the United States of America), for their contribution to the finalization and signing of the Agreement;

5. Stresses that the signing of the Agreement represents a decisive step in the efforts to end the conflict that broke out in December 2013 and the untold violence inflicted on the civilian population, and reiterates the AU's full support to the Agreement, noting that it is the result of intensive and prolonged negotiations and consultations, and underlines that the provisions contained therein should be implemented in their entirety and unequivocally;