Latest news with #Tumaini
Business Insider
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Business Insider
South Sudan declares Kenyan-led peace talks dead amid escalating tensions in Africa's youngest nation
South Sudan has officially declared the Kenyan-led Tumaini Peace Initiative defunct, months after the process was quietly suspended amid mounting tensions and deepening mistrust between the Juba government and newly incorporated opposition groups. South Sudan has officially announced the termination of the Kenyan-led Tumaini Peace Initiative. South Sudan raised concerns over financial transparency and the creation of a military wing by opposition groups abroad. Government representatives criticized Tumaini for undermining the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS). Tumaini undermines existing peace deal – Juba Speaking on behalf of the South Sudanese government delegation, Presidential Advisor Kuol Manyang Juuk criticised the Tumaini Initiative for straying from its original mandate and attempting to sideline the existing Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), signed in 2018. "The R-ARCSS has not been dissolved, so it cannot be replaced by the Tumaini," Juuk told reporters. "Eighty per cent of what Tumaini quotes is already part of the R-ARCSS. The remaining 10 per cent was not included in the original deal for good reason, you add the few to the majority, not the other way round." The Tumaini Initiative was launched in December 2023 at the request of President Salva Kiir and with Kenya's support. It aimed to reinvigorate South Sudan's stalled peace efforts by involving newly formed opposition movements, including the United People's Alliance. However, Juba now claims the initiative has legitimised rebellion and undermined a functioning peace framework. Accusations of political subversion Juuk further accused Tumaini backers of seeking to "do away with the R-ARCSS so Tumaini can take over, and they come in as the new authority of the land." He said those involved were once part of government and could not now disown policies they had participated in shaping. He also raised concerns about the financial integrity of exiled opposition leaders. "Some of them are living lavishly abroad—renting or buying villas. Where is that money coming from if not looted from South Sudan when they were in power?" he alleged. One of the Tumaini Initiative's central proposals was the creation of a Leadership Council to serve as the apex body of governance, a suggestion Juuk dismissed as a veiled attempt at a coup. "That's a coup by another name. Accepting such a model would set a dangerous precedent of political blackmail," he warned. "Anyone can now gather five supporters, move to Nairobi, and demand peace talks as a new rebel group." He disclosed that South Sudan had officially protested to Kenya over reports that the United People's Alliance had formed a military wing while operating from within Kenyan borders, a move he described as contrary to East African Community (EAC) norms. "You can't allow anyone claiming a dispute with the government to gain legitimacy through rebellion. So it's dead. Tumaini is dead," he stated firmly. The Tumaini talks were adjourned for the third time on 7 February 2025, without any concrete resolutions. Initially hailed as a bold intervention by Kenyan President William Ruto to revive a faltering peace process, after frustrations with the Italy-based Sant'Egidio talks, the Tumaini Initiative now appears to have collapsed under the strain of mutual suspicion and political infighting.
The Sun
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
The Kuunganisha Project
As the world becomes more fragmented, with families torn apart due to war, domestic strife, natural calamities, famine and climate change, children naturally become the main victims as they struggle to survive, especially in rural communities all over the world. During their travels to rural communities, a group of international artistes, who call themselves The 'ItinerAnts' came across one such impoverished community living in the outskirts of Dodoma, in the village of Ihumwa and Gairo in Tanzania and so they collectively decided to bring theatre and storytelling to uplift the children and the communities living there. They chose to work with the Tumaini Foundation, founded by Tumaini Raymond Kivuyo, 36 years, who had experienced abuse and homelessness, on the streets, at a young age and had vowed to do her best to help children in the same predicament. Among the Malaysians who joined Tumaini in this project were Shantini Venugopal and Susie Kukathas, led by UK artistic director Cinzia Ciaramicoli, who herself had lived in Malaysia for more than fifteen years. She had formed a strong bond of friendship with Shantini and Susie, with whom she had previously worked with in Malaysia. Tumaini, on a short visit to Malaysia to gather information and resources for her foundation in Tanzania, shared with The Sun how the 'ItinerAnts' had brought hope through theatre to her poor rural community on the outskirts of Dodoma and also Gairo, two hours away. 'It was a wonderful experience for the whole community, who had never been exposed to music or the performing arts and for five weeks, we sang together, danced to the rhythm of drums, shared stories, and puppet shows, paraded the streets with giant insects, which we had built together and the children loved every minute they spent with us,' she said. The 'ItinerAnts' came from Malaysia, UK, Canada, Brazil, Nigeria, Poland and Italy. They worked together to bring storytelling, painting, music, puppet shows and cinema to more than 9,000 people, composed of mostly children, the elderly and widows of the village. Shantini who had taken on the role of 'Diva' in the whole project had travelled from Malaysia to work on the project together with the rest of the 'ItinerAnts'. 'It was one of the most fulfilling projects I have ever worked on,' she shared. Shantini herself has been a prominent figure in the performing arts in Malaysia since 1989. Cinzia, who had travelled to Malaysia from the UK to be with Tumaini on her first trip to Malaysia, explained, 'Kuunganisha' means connecting in 'Swahili', which represents one of the dialects of the people in Tanzania. 'This project had effectively brought together and connected the poor rural communities in Dodoma and the surrounding areas and the culmination was the three-day 'International Children's Arts Festival', a series of workshops, which involved bringing together the local and international artistes to create a magical experience for the children,' she said. 'This was made possible by sponsors, and each of the artistes had worked hard to bring in sponsorship and finally we even managed to save USD400 that we donated to the Tumaini Foundation to pay for the schooling of Marietha, who was born with a disability, and had led an isolated life,' said Cinzia. She also felt it was one of the best projects she had worked on and during her stay in Tanzania they managed to plant 19 fruit trees near schools in Ihumwa and Gairo in the hope the community would benefit in the long term. 'It was determination and passion that drove us,' said Cinzia.
Arab Times
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Arab Times
South Sudan parties adjourn talks in Kenya
NAIROBI, Feb 10, (Xinhua): Talks between South Sudan's Transitional Government of National Unity and holdout opposition groups adjourned Saturday in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, after making some progress that could usher in a new dispensation in the country, Chief Mediator Lazarus Sumbeiywo has said. The adjournment of the talks came at a time when South Sudan is confronting significant challenges, including 9 million people requiring humanitarian aid, 7.5 million experiencing food insecurity and an influx of over 1 million returnees and refugees fleeing violence in neighbouring Sudan. There are three priority areas of critical importance necessary to ending the perpetual transition in South Sudan, Sumbeiywo said. The unification of forces and security sector reforms, the permanent constitution-making process, and the holding of free, fair, credible and transparent elections are the three key points that could help end conflict in the country, he said. "Given the acute human insecurity and humanitarian crisis in South Sudan, the mediation believes that actions must be taken for there to be effective mechanisms of implementation," Sumbeiywo said in a communique issued in Nairobi. Dubbed Tumaini, meaning hope in Swahili, the peace talks between South Sudan's transitional government and opposition groups have been ongoing in Nairobi since last year but have sometimes been postponed to allow for further consultations among the parties involved. During the latest round of talks, Sumbeiywo said, the root causes of the conflict were extensively deliberated through a joint technical committee. The committee summarized the root causes as political, governance and leadership crises; power struggle; structural and institutional weaknesses; and economic crisis and resource mismanagement, he said. Other root causes include insecurity and militarization of society; lack of social cohesion and historical factors; and external and geopolitical influences.
