South Sudan Peace Activist Receives US Award
2020-09-19
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1South Sudanese peace activist Rita Martin Lopidia Abraham received the 2020 Women Building Peace Award this week.
2The award comes from the United States Institute of Peace, a group set up by Congress.
3The Institute works in support of conflict resolution and prevention worldwide.
4Abraham heads a not-for-profit group called EVE.
5The organization was formed in 1996.
6It works to empower women in South Sudan.
7Abraham says her struggle for peace in her country has been difficult.
8She told VOA she has faced countless threats, even some from men taking part in negotiations.
9"Sometimes when you talk to the parties and you speak truth to power, people seem to misunderstand you," she said.
10"This is very sad, because at the end of the day, the purpose is for peace.
11But with the warring parties (in South Sudan), it's not always the case.''
12The activist will receive $10,000 and be recognized by the Institute during a celebration next year.
13Abraham said she will use part of the money to educate more women in South Sudan about their rights.
14"I am so passionate about young women," she said.
15She hopes to invest some of the prize money in a young women's leadership project that EVE operates.
16Abraham noted that she has always had a desire to support orphans.
17"Part of the award will go towards helping orphans and street children in the South Sudan capital, Juba," she said.
18Abraham has served as a delegate at the South Sudan peace talks in Addis Ababa and Khartoum.
19In 2018, she signed a peace agreement in the Ethiopian capital on behalf of the South Sudan Women Coalition for Peace.
20The coalition includes 50 women's organizations in South Sudan and other countries.
21Abraham said the leaders of South Sudan have been slow to enact important parts of the peace agreement.
22"I am as disappointed as other Sudanese," she said, adding that the agreement has been "reduced to power-sharing."
23People are only paying attention to what positions they can get.
24Abraham said the opposing sides are not talking about the second part of the agreement.
25It requires standards for security enforcement in Juba and other areas.
26She noted that issues in the first part of the agreement have yet to be resolved.
27"We still have challenges in the formations of the legislature, state governments," she said.
28And there are still people who have not been replaced in the states.
29"This is a big challenge," Abraham said.
30I'm Alice Bryant.
1South Sudanese peace activist Rita Martin Lopidia Abraham received the 2020 Women Building Peace Award this week. The award comes from the United States Institute of Peace, a group set up by Congress. The Institute works in support of conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. 2Abraham heads a not-for-profit group called EVE. The organization was formed in 1996. It works to empower women in South Sudan. 3Abraham says her struggle for peace in her country has been difficult. She told VOA she has faced countless threats, even some from men taking part in negotiations. 4"Sometimes when you talk to the parties and you speak truth to power, people seem to misunderstand you," she said. "This is very sad, because at the end of the day, the purpose is for peace. But with the warring parties (in South Sudan), it's not always the case.'' 5The activist will receive $10,000 and be recognized by the Institute during a celebration next year. 6Abraham said she will use part of the money to educate more women in South Sudan about their rights. 7"I am so passionate about young women," she said. She hopes to invest some of the prize money in a young women's leadership project that EVE operates. 8Abraham noted that she has always had a desire to support orphans. "Part of the award will go towards helping orphans and street children in the South Sudan capital, Juba," she said. 9Abraham has served as a delegate at the South Sudan peace talks in Addis Ababa and Khartoum. In 2018, she signed a peace agreement in the Ethiopian capital on behalf of the South Sudan Women Coalition for Peace. The coalition includes 50 women's organizations in South Sudan and other countries. 10Abraham said the leaders of South Sudan have been slow to enact important parts of the peace agreement. 11"I am as disappointed as other Sudanese," she said, adding that the agreement has been "reduced to power-sharing." People are only paying attention to what positions they can get. 12Abraham said the opposing sides are not talking about the second part of the agreement. It requires standards for security enforcement in Juba and other areas. 13She noted that issues in the first part of the agreement have yet to be resolved. 14"We still have challenges in the formations of the legislature, state governments," she said. And there are still people who have not been replaced in the states. "This is a big challenge," Abraham said. 15I'm Alice Bryant. 16John Tanza wrote this story for VOA News. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 17________________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19passionate - adj. having, showing, or expressing strong emotions or beliefs 20orphan - n. a child whose parents are dead 21behalf - n. as a representative of someone 22disappointed - adj. feeling unhappy or displeased because something you hoped for or expected did not happen 23standard - n. a level of quality that is considered acceptable or desirable 24challenge - n. a difficult task or problem