President Salva Kiir and the chairman of Sudan People’s Liberation Moment (SPLM) has said his patience with the rebels is running out. He said this while addressing the National Liberation Council (NLC) of the SPLM in an extra-ordinary meeting to brief them on the Arusha Agreement signed on 21st January, 2015.
President Salva Kiir and the chairman of Sudan People’s Liberation Moment (SPLM) has said his patience with the rebels is running out. He said this while addressing the National Liberation Council (NLC) of the SPLM in an extra-ordinary meeting to brief them on the Arusha Agreement signed on 21st January, 2015.
The meeting was called by Kiir to scrutinize the Arusha agreement. President Kiir informed the members of the council that the forces of Riek March on Sunday attacked government forces in Gaza, Northern Upper Nile, and that they were repulsed.
“Of course, they did not take the area, and including another small station that was also attacked by them,” he said. “Government forces have now occupied all of the area as well the station they had deserted and there were no casualties.”
He further told the meeting that he receive a phone call from President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, inviting him to the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and African Union Summit.
He said he conveyed his disappointment to President Uhuru, saying that government forces had committed themselves to the cessation of hostilities agreements signed last year, which he claimed have never been respected by Riek Machar’s forces.
“We have been abiding by our commitment not to violate the ceasefire and even after the Arusha agreement,” President Kiir narrated to the council his conversation with President Uhuru. “Our patience is running out. Next time when I come back from Addis Ababa I tell you that any slight attack to our forces, we will not tolerate it anymore.”
He further said he will raise the issue with the IGAD heads of state when they meet in Addis Ababa. Kiir also told the NLC members that he raised the same concern with the Ethiopian foreign minister during his recent visit to Juba.
“Time has come for us to change this initiative, now Riek Machar has taken this initiative since the rainy season started because government tanks are not be able to move,” he narrated to the NLC members.
He claimed that the rebels were taking advantage of the dry season to engage in peace negotiations as they wait for the rainy season to come before they launch their attacks again. He wondered why the international community was not punishing the rebels for violation of cessation of hostilities agreement.
The president was speaking as reports emerged that 11 were killed in Bahr-El-Ghazal over the weekend. Speaking to media, the County Commissioner Maru Adama James said he was in one of the vehicles that were attacked, and he was injured in the attack on Sunday morning. Among the victims were five journalists from Raja FM, including its acting director.
The army has accused Uganda’s Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebel group of being responsible for the ambush in Raja.
Speaking to media from Wau, governor of Western Bahr el Ghazal state Rizik Zachariah said the killing is an act of terrorism and the perpetrators must be brought to book.
He promised his government will follow the attackers and if they are found to be foreign forces, the government of South Sudan will deal with them accordingly, said Zachariah.
SPLA spokesperson Col. Philip Aguer says the weapons and methods used are similar to those witnessed in previous attacks by the terrorist group in Northern Uganda.
The Union of Journalists in South Sudan (UJOSS) extended its condolences to the families of the deceased following the attack.
At the same time, a civil society organization has condemned the killing of the journalists from. Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) says this is a sad moment for the family of journalists in South Sudan and Western Bahr el Ghazal state in particular.
“The month of January is a dark month in the history of South Sudan journalists and media. Taking away the lives of persons by any means counts as human rights atrocities,” says a statement from the organization.
Mr. Edmund Yakani, Executive Director of CEPO said as long as the peace process in Addis Ababa drags on for a long period, the country will keep on losing the lives of innocent citizens such as the journalists who lost their lives senselessly.
“Our warring parties’ leadership should value the lives of our citizens by speeding up the negotiations for peace,” he said.
CEPO says it has registered six cases of journalists’ arbitrary torture and detention. It added that of the cases it had recorded, the latest incident in Western Bahr el Ghazal was the worse.
“CEPO is calling upon the state authorities to provide protection and safety for journalists and respect the freedom of expression,” said Yakani.
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