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UNITED NATIONS, June 25-- The UN envoy for South Sudan said Tuesday that the South Sudanese's desire for peace is palpable and urged the country's politicians to respond to it. UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for South Sudan David Shearer told the Security Council that "the desire for peace is palpable and there is a fierce aversion to any renewal of fighting." The strong desire for peace is echoed in results of a Perception Survey carried out by UNMISS, the UN peacekeeping mission that Shearer leads in the country. While the survey, which interviewed 2,400 people in 10 locations, exposed shocking impact of the conflict -- 79 percent of the interviewed reported members of their family had been killed; the same proportion reported family members forced to flee violence, it showed 89 percent of the interviewed believe there will be lasting peace by the end of this year. Shearer also noted that since the peace agreement was signed in September, more than 110 rapprochements have occurred in communities around the country. However, the UN envoy said the pace of dialogue and peacebuilding at the grassroots level is moving much faster than amongst the elites negotiating nationally, thus urging South Sudanese politicians to "listen to the mood of the people and follow the lead set by these local communities." Particularly, he pointed to the sluggish security reform and unification of armed forces, as well as the lack of regular face-to-face meetings between South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar. | 
