{"id":46237,"date":"2026-07-19T17:11:06","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T15:11:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/?p=46237"},"modified":"2026-07-20T17:18:30","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T15:18:30","slug":"eu-reaffirms-support-for-justice-reforms-in-south-sudan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/19\/eu-reaffirms-support-for-justice-reforms-in-south-sudan\/","title":{"rendered":"EU reaffirms support for justice reforms in South Sudan"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Lodu William Odiya<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The European Union has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting justice sector reforms and transitional justice in South Sudan, emphasising that accountability, the rule of law, and an independent judiciary are essential for lasting peace, democracy, and the protection of human rights.<\/p>\n

In his statement during the commemoration of the International Day of Criminal Justice on Friday, the European Union’s Charge d\u2019Affaires, Lothar Jaschke, said the EU remains committed to helping South Sudan build an accessible, independent, impartial, and effective justice system.<\/p>\n

Jaschke recalled the launch of justice sector reforms in South Sudan, which were based on recommendations of the Judicial Review Committee supported by the European Union.<\/p>\n

“We welcome and support the process towards an accessible, independent, impartial, and effective justice system for all in South Sudan,” the statement read.<\/p>\n

He noted that strengthening the rule of law is a key pillar of democratic governance, adding that a fair and transparent legal system fosters public confidence while safeguarding the rights and dignity of every citizen.<\/p>\n

“Justice is the basis of peace within our societies and peaceful relations of individuals. Justice has a beautiful face if it works and if it makes sure that no one is above the law, but all are subject to the same rules. This is the Rule of Law,” the statement continued.<\/p>\n

The diplomat said the European Union was founded on the principles of human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law, and respect for human rights, values that continue to shape its engagement with partner countries.<\/p>\n

Turning to international justice, Jaschke said it remains the foundation of the global order, with the United Nations Charter prohibiting the use or threat of force and serving as a guiding framework for peaceful international relations.<\/p>\n

He explained that the International Day of International Criminal Justice is observed every year on 17 July, marking the adoption of the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC).<\/p>\n

“The ICC is the only permanent international criminal jurisdiction with a universal vocation. The goal of the Rome Statute is to bring justice to the victims of the most serious crimes while ensuring the effective prosecution of their perpetrators,” the statement added.<\/p>\n

Jaschke reiterated the European Union’s support for the ICC, stressing that the bloc remains committed to defending the integrity, independence, and universality of the Rome Statute while encouraging all states to cooperate with the Court.<\/p>\n

On South Sudan, he said the EU continues to support the country’s transitional justice process through a three-year regional programme worth approximately six million US dollars, managed by the EU Delegation to the African Union.<\/p>\n

According to Jaschke, the programme seeks to facilitate the domestication of the African Union Transitional Justice Policy and implementation of its roadmap.<\/p>\n

It also supports victim support groups and promotes youth participation through digital storytelling initiatives.<\/p>\n

At the global level, he said the European Union launched a \u20ac21 million project in 2024 aimed at combating impunity for international crimes, strengthening international law, and increasing awareness and support for the mandate of the International Criminal Court.<\/p>\n

Jaschke further praised the role of civil society organisations, lawyers, prosecutors, and human rights defenders in promoting accountability and documenting human rights violations and breaches of international humanitarian law.<\/p>\n

“The European Union will continue to engage in efforts to support civil society, lawyers, prosecutors, and all courageous individuals who work in the field of international criminal justice and who seek justice for atrocity crimes,” the statement added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Lodu William Odiya The European Union has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting justice sector reforms and transitional justice in South Sudan, emphasising that accountability, the rule of law, and an independent judiciary are essential for lasting peace, democracy, and the protection of human rights. In his statement during the[Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":46238,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[133,80,79,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","category-national","category-news","category-politics"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Lothar-Jaschke-EU-Charge-d-Affaires-courtesy-photo.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46237","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46237"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46237\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46239,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46237\/revisions\/46239"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46238"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46237"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46237"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46237"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}