By James Chatim

A senior South Sudanese civil society activist said most of the country’s political leaders abroad and within, have chosen to use violence in addressing political differences.

In a statement released on Monday, Edmund Yakani, the Executive Director of Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), urged the politicians to change their attitudes towards embracing dialogue as a tool for resolving differences.

“I would like to bring to the attention of our South Sudan elites inside and outside the country that it has come to our attention as an organization that recently majority of our elites opted to use a violent attitude in addressing their political differences,” he stated.

“These have led to sustaining the culture of resolving political differences or discontented positions through violence,” said Yakani.

According to him, there is a section of elites who are political caste elites in the country.

He said such a syndrome is very dangerous because it will take this country decades to walk out of the culture of violence.

 “We like to appeal to our elites that you have high opportunity whether inside the country or outside the country to fix the situation of this country and you can’t fix the situation of this country until you change your attitudes towards embracing dialogue as an instrument as a tool of resolving your political differences,” Yakani said. “The country is paying a very painful price in terms of violence through the common citizens, while the factors that trigger this violence are elite-driven factors and that’s why we’re urging our elites that please don’t constitute yourself as a political elite caste for this country.”