A/HRC/18/2 573. The delegation reiterated the commitment of South Sudan as a new country to the international system, to promote and protect human rights and its willingness to cooperate with the Human Rights Council. Moreover, the administration had embarked on laying the foundations of the rule of law by means of strategies to make law enforcement agencies more professional and respectful of human rights. 574. The delegation therefore called for technical support and capacity-building in human rights education and promotion, and in the establishment of mechanisms for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms. 575. After the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, an autonomous Government had been formed in South Sudan. Since then, it had started to build up its administration and institutions of governance. Of these, the South Sudan Human Rights Commission had been empowered by a constitutional mandate to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms, to systematically monitor the human rights situation across the country, and to identify and investigate human rights violations. The Commission was making its presence felt and known to the Government and the general public. It had also started to establish its presence across the territory of South Sudan. 576. Concerning issues raised in the report on the violation of human rights in South Sudan, including inter-communal violence, the fighting between the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and the rebel groups, and the abuses perpetrated by the security forces of South Sudan, the delegation made the observations below. 577. The Government of South Sudan was not involved in any incident of human rights violations related to all the cases mentioned in the report. 578. The main causes of inter-communal violence in some parts of the country were poverty, cattle rustling and the spread of weapons in the wake of the long civil war. To address this problem, the Government had started to disarm communities and to organize peace meetings among them. The Government was also encouraging citizens to coexist peacefully. 579. The security forces, as an institution, did not violate human rights. The national army, the SPLA and police services were well known for their respect of human rights, because prisoners of war captured during the battles of liberation struggle had been handed over after the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, something that was rare in civil wars. 580. The individuals in the security forces who had committed crimes violating human rights on their own personal capacity were being investigated and brought promptly to justice. 581. To bring an end to the wars being waged by the rebel groups against the SPLA, which was fighting in self-defence, the Government had declared a general amnesty in the country, and the President had called upon all the rebel leaders to lay down their arms and accept dialogue with the Government to find a solution to their differences. Some of the rebel groups had accepted the offer, and negotiations were ongoing to integrate them into the Government. 582. The Government of South Sudan had devised strategies to foster peace and security in the country as a means to enhance development and to alleviate the poverty affecting South Sudanese people. The Government had also devised ways to foster culture, pluralism and tolerance. It had moved towards a more inclusive, democratic, transparent and accountable Government that respected and protected the fundamental rights of people. 583. Despite not yet having acceded to the key international human rights treaties and conventions, South Sudan had articulated in its Constitution provisions of the Convention GE.12-17756 165