GENEVA, 4 March 2013 (ICMC) – Bishop Emeritus Paride Taban from South Sudan was named winner of a United Nations peace prize this year in recognition of his efforts to build trust among warring communities in the conflict-torn region.

Bishop Emeritus Taban last week received the 2013 prize from UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon for his work at the Holy Trinity Peace Village in Kuron, in the east of South Sudan. Created in 2005, the village brings together people from different tribes and faiths who have been in conflict for years.

The Sergio Vieira de Mello Prize is awarded to a person, community or institution having made an exceptional contribution to reconciliation of communities or groups in conflict, by encouraging dialogue and international cooperation to achieve peace and security.

"The fact that this village is now seen as an example of reconciliation and peace will encourage other communities to follow a similar approach in other areas of conflict in South Sudan and beyond," said Laurent Vieira de Mello, President of the foundation and eldest son of the late Sergio Vieira de Mello.

Created by Bishop Emeritus Taban and built as a response to the Sudan wars and the on-going tensions in the country, the Kuron peace village strives to promote peaceful relations within the community by encouraging socialization between the 24 different tribes living in the village. Among the tools used to empower the community and show that people of different faiths can live together peacefully, the Peace Villages offers formal education to both adults and over 1,100 boys and girls, provides specialized training in water sanitation and agriculture sustainability, organizes team sports, and offers health clinics.

The award includes a sum of 4,000 euros to facilitate these peace building efforts. The ceremony was held on 1 March in Geneva, Switzerland.

 The longstanding conflicts in Sudan began with the first Sudanese civil war, which took place from 1955 to 1972 between inhabitants of the northern part of Sudan and the southern Sudan region, the latter wanting regional autonomy and representation. Seen as a continuation of the unresolved tensions from the first war, the second Sudanese civil war began in 1983 and lasted for 22 years. Roughly two and half million people died as a result of these conflicts, which also resulted in the displacement of more than four million people in South Sudan.

The signing of the North/South Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005 officially ended the second civil war but was in fact short-lived as conflicts are still ongoing between the now separate Sudan and South Sudan.

As tribute to de Mello’s legacy of promoting multilateral solutions towards challenging global crises, the award was created to honour his longstanding devotion to the ideals of the United Nations following his death in the Canal Hotel Bombing in Iraq on 19 August 2003.

Vanessa Matyas, ICMC Communications Desk in Geneva/lb