GUELPH, Ontario, March 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Humanitarian organization Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) has had the opportunity to transport and work alongside leaders, communities, and peace-fostering organizations in South Sudan. In 2022 alone, two of our flights have facilitated peace conferences and reconciliation training for local leaders.
It can be hard to find the good news buried amongst the weariness of the last two years, and the rubble of a new, horrifying world conflict. But there is change happening. There is hope left, and there are people working tirelessly to make this possible.
One of those groups is Peace Canal. Peace Canal envisions a new era of inter-communal relations in South Sudan where communities are taking responsibility for the local level frameworks to create a lasting peace. It’s a work that MAF is incredibly proud to support with flights. Two weeks ago, we were able to safely transport the Chief Administrator for the Greater Pibor Area, the honorable Lokoli Ame, after a weekend conference encouraging dialogue and peace negotiations between age sets.
South Sudan is one of the world’s youngest countries and has been plagued by war since before its independence in 2013. For generations, raiding was a way to settle rivalries. Death rates have soared since guns replaced traditional weapons, deepening already bitter divides between communities and tribes. This war is estimated to have caused nearly 400,000 deaths through intercommunal violence, and 10% of South Sudan’s population has fled the country to seek safety in neighbouring Uganda and Kenya.
Candian Pilot, Chris Ball also had the opportunity to fly the Peacebuilding Opportunities Fund in 2021. As he stood at the side of the Pieri airstrip, watching the negotiations between armed youth leaders in the shade of a tree, he realized just how important these meetings were to the country he lives and works in. Just a day later, these same leaders cemented their gains in a public statement on Radio Tamazuj in South Sudan.
“Youth from the Greater Pibor Administrative Area and their counterparts from Bor of Jonglei State, resolved to peacefully co-exist,” the report begins, then goes on to say, "We could tell these are the right people, who could agree to dialogue, make peace among themselves, and make it hold. Both sides have agreed that as soon as they return home, they will mobilize themselves to disseminate a message of peace and reconciliation to the community."
For more than 75 years, Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) has been bringing help, hope and healing through aviation to some of the most isolated places on earth. Today, we partner with over 1,500 organizations to deliver support, supplies, staff, spiritual care, and community development to thousands of communities where flying is not a luxury but a lifeline.
CONTACT: Brad Bell, CEO
MAFC.org | 1-877-351-9344 | bbell@mafc.org
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