“Peace can only be achieved through dialogue”

“Seeing the local situation is a humbling experience. In South Sudan people need to focus on sheer survival, while we in Central Europe tend to get worked up over first world problems.” Meinolf Schlotmann is not being over-dramatic, he simply knows what he is talking about. He has been the Police Commissioner of the UNMISS UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan since August 2025. The 61-year-old’s job is to coordinate around 1,500 police officers from various nations who are supporting the local police with advice and training, as well as in their everyday duties. “We are trying to help as best we can, given the catastrophic humanitarian situation,” Mr Schlotmann says. 
 

Great suffering of the civilian population 

Since becoming independent in 2011, South Sudan has been affected by recurring incidents of violence and a lack of political stability. At the heart of all of this is the power struggle between the supporters of President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar. In addition to that, there are armed conflicts between different groups and militias, who are usually competing for land, influence and resources. The 2018 peace agreement was meant to put an end to the civil war and to encourage reforms. However, its implementation was flawed and fighting keeps flaring up time and again. “All of this causes great suffering for the civilian population that is affected by violence, displacement, uncertainty and hunger. As a father I am particularly touched by the fate of these children,” Mr Schlotmann says.

Building trust through police work 

The UNMISS mandate comprises four pillars: protection of civilians, ensuring suitable conditions for humanitarian assistance, supporting the peace process and promotion of human rights. Since 2011, Germany has been actively involved across all levels of the UNMISS peacekeeping mission through civilian, military and police involvement. “Police work forms the connection between our protection mandate and the trust we aim to build through our daily direct contact with people,” Meinolf Schlotmann says.  

It is a challenging mission: “It starts with food and the climate, there’s a wide range of health risks, and then there are cultural differences, too, of course,” says the Police Commissioner, who has many years of experience from missions in Somalia, Mali, Afghanistan, Darfur and Kosovo. However, he thinks of this as an opportunity: “Those different perspectives are fascinating, we are learning a lot from each other and are finding solutions together.”  

Meinolf Schlotmann is very concerned about the current trend to turn away from multilateralism and theUN funding crisis. Regarding the future of South Sudan, the Police Commissioner is convinced that: “Peace can only be achieved through dialogue. It is hard work, but there is no alternative.”