1st Lady Ayen organizes fundraising to evacuate citizens in Sudan

South Sudan’s First Lady Mary Ayen Mayardit is organizing a massive full day fundraising to be conducted at Dr. John Garang Mausoleum on May 13, in the Capital Juba from 10: Am in the morning to 5: PM in the evening.

According to the statement seen by The Radio Community from Concern South Sudan organization of the first lady, the fundraising is meant to mobilize resources to help in the evacuation and supporting of of the South Sudanese stranded in Sudan’s war.

“The first lady is confident that full public attendance and support will enable her office to raise adequately needed funds for vulnerable South Sudanese stranded in Sudan,” said Paul Gai Atem, Executive Director of Concern South Sudan organization.

It’s now more than three weeks since the fighting broke out in the Sudanese’s capital Khartoum on April 15, between the two rival military forces led by two generals, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the President of Sudan sovereign council, and his deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, the head of the Rapid Support Forces RSF over a failed planned to reintegrate the RSF forces into Sudan regular army force.

More than 500 people have been killed. Thousands wounded and thousands displaced.

Countries including South Sudan are evacuating their nationals within Sudan and this is not a easy task to a country like South Sudan where the government is not the one evacuating its citizens but fellow concern citizens.

A group of concerned citizens who formed a ‘Call for Emergency evacuation and Reception of South Sudanese Trapped in the Sudan’s war’ have taken a lead to evacuate South Sudanese stranded in Khartoum after the government said it has no plan for evacuation but welcome any initiative.

So far the group has brought out more than 30,000 South Sudanese from the fragile Khartoum and the move by the first lady to organize fundraising is inline with the citizen concerns to see that South Sudanese are helped out of Sudan.

“Responding from her diverse and complementary lived experience, [and with] this current situation [in Sudan], she [first lady] shares her hope to seek immediate solutions and concerns with her South Sudanese citizens, particularly those escaping the escalating Sudan’s war,” Gai said.

“As part of South Sudan national government, citizens and international community response to humanitarian situation of South Sudanese, members of the diplomatic corps and members of the general public [are invited] to attend this fundraising,”

On Friday, the two warring parties agreed to go to Saudi Arabia for talks after several declaration of ceasefire failed.

The first talk to be attempted in Saudi Arabia is being initiated by the United States and the Saudi Arabia.