(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The government of South Sudan has promised to hold elections this year despite the ongoing civil war, with the president promising to give rebel leaders an amnesty.
According to a government statement yesterday, elections will be held "at some point between May 1 and July 2015", with President Salva Kiir "determined that the poll is transparent".
"We will hold elections in 2015 as we will not allow our democracy to be held hostage to violence. A budget has been approved and we urge all parties to participate," government spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny said.
The statement said Kiir was "in the process of securing an amnesty for people who have committed crimes against the government", but did not say when a full amnesty to rebel leaders would be granted.
Fighting broke out in South Sudan, the world's youngest nation, in December 2013 when Kiir accused his sacked deputy Riek Machar of attempting a coup.
The fighting in capital Juba set off a cycle of retaliatory massacres across the country, pushing it to the brink of famine.
Government forces loyal to Kiir and rebels loyal to Machar continue to fight, despite ceasefire deals.
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