Hoyer Marks One-Year Anniversary of the Onset of the Crisis in South Sudan, Calls for Peaceful Resolution of the Conflict

WASHINGTON, DC - House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) spoke on the House Floor this afternoon to mark the one-year anniversary of the onset of the crisis in South Sudan, which is December 15, and call for a peaceful resolution of the conflict. Below is a transcript of his remarks and a link to the video:

Click here for the video.

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my deep concern about the ongoing situation in South Sudan.  Next Monday will mark the one-year anniversary of the outbreak of civil conflict in that young country, which gained its independence in 2011.  Since that conflict began, as many as 2 million people have been displaced while a million and a half people are without secure access to food. Fifty-thousand civilians are estimated to have been killed as a result of fighting between the rival factions.

“Alarmingly, Mr. Speaker, both sides have been stockpiling weapons and are expected to launch fresh attacks once the rainy season ends. The international community, with strong American leadership, must encourage a peaceful resolution before further bloodshed occurs.  I want to commend the United Nations Mission In South Sudan peacekeepers, for their hard work bringing aid to those in need, and  I thank Secretary Kerry for his efforts to achieve a political settlement.

“I traveled to Juba in 2007. As a matter of fact, the former Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, the Gentlelady from Florida [Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen], was with me, and I saw a nation full of promise and hope for the future on the cusp of its independence. That bright future of possibilities for the people of South Sudan ought not to be dimmed by violence, instability, and enmity. As Americans we must exert our diplomatic arsenal to bring an end to the fighting and restore that promise of the peaceful and hopeful future for South Sudan.”