South Sudan: Rebels Say Former Detainees May Decide On Joining Either Party
in Conflict
28 JUNE 2014
Addis Ababa - The armed opposition faction of the Sudan People's Liberation
Movement (SPLM in Opposition) has revealed signs of deciding moments by
members of the SPLM former detainees to join either side of the six-month
old political conflict in South Sudan.
On Friday the rebels deputy spokesperson, Mabior Garang de Mabior, announced
there would be a press conference on Monday in the Ethiopian capital, Addis
Ababa, during which at least one member will "take a stand" in signs
suggesting that the former detainees or g-11 begin to dismantle and trickle
in.
While Mabior did not name the politician or those willing to join the rebel
group, there are similar speculations that others may also decide to join
the government, citing recent meetings conducted between president Kiir and
some of these leaders on the sidelines of the IGAD summit last week in Addis
Ababa.
The former detainees have previously preferred to stay neutral or
participate in the talks as the third bloc, despite the fact that they were
politically allied to the former vice president, Riek Machar, in which they
together held the 6 December press conference, accusing President Salva Kiir
of "dictatorial tendencies."
The group includes former SPLM secretary general, Pagan Amum, national
ministers: Deng Alor, John Luk, Kosti Manibe, Gier Chuang, Majak Agot, Madut
Biar, Oyai Deng, Cirino Hiteng; former Lakes state governor, Chol Tong and
Ezekiel Lol, former South Sudanese diplomat to US.
After the 15 December violence, which they all alleged was started by
president Kiir, they were all arrested, counter-allegedly for attempting a
coup with Machar. The rebel leader demanded their release as a precondition
for further negotiations with the government to end the crisis.
They were however subsequently released in two groups of 7 and 4; the latter
due to lack of evidence presented in court.
Upon gaining their freedom, the group has been trying to participate in the
negotiations as a neutral body, but with insignificant impact as their role
is being reduced to consultations with either party or the mediation in
order to sell their views.
In the course of their neutrality position the group also earned criticisms
by South Sudanese rebels and some Kenyan MPs who described them as
"opportunists" and "selfish."
Machar's supporters accuse the g-11 of betrayal over their reluctance to
join the war "imposed on them." They in particular accused the SPLM former
secretary general, Pagan Amum, of allegedly uttering that the killing of the
thousands of the Nuer civilians in Juba did not deserve a war, a remark Amum
dismissed immediately.
Amum in a statement released last May explained their decisions to not joint
the rebels simply means they refuse to be part of the war.
He said that being members of the third bloc does not equate to being
neutral in the current conflict, stressing they are part of the peace talks
and part of any future government that would bring about political reform
within the country.
"Both the government and armed rebels prefer a military solution but we in
the third bloc fully support the IGAD peace process as the best alternative
to the war in our country," wrote Amum, adding "This makes us more than
neutral bystanders: we are not part of the bloodshed, but of the sustainable
solution".
However Amum and his group were accused of playing the "good guys", and plan
to lead the proposed interim government with the support of the
international community.
On 19 June, Salva Kiir rejected any such plans saying that he would not
accept any government without him, the elected president, and accused
unnamed countries of intending to dismantle the newly independent South
Sudan and the ruling SPLM.
"They intend to constitute a transitional government without me as the
elected President. They want to bring somebody of their choice to be the
president of that transitional government. That is a red line," said Kiir.
The expected declaration by the group members to take sides between the
rebels and government, if it happens, is seen as the beginning of their melt
down.