A delegation of the SPLM 'Group of Ten', who were detained by President Kiir in late 2013 to early 2014 before being released to Kenya, returned to South Sudan on Monday accompanied by South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Ramaphosa was joined by Abdurahman Kinana, the Secretary-General of Tanzania’s ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi. They served as guarantors of the safety of the former political prisoners.

“Today is a big day for peace in South Sudan. We have brought five of its outstanding sons back home. We have brought them home as part of the process of making sure we restore peace once again in this country, said Ramaphosa.

The five SPLM-G10 leaders visiting Juba currently are Deng Alor, John Luk, Kosti Manibe, Madut Biar and Cirino Hiteng. They are expected to meet President Kiir on Tuesday together with Ramaphosa and Kinana, before returning to Nairobi.

According to Ramaphosa, they will also meet with other SPLM leaders either from he Political Bureau or the Liberation Council. He said the visit was “part of a first phase of moving toward a reunification of the SPLM,” saying he wanted to ensure the reunification of the country's ruling party.

The SPLM 'G10' include several former ministers, the party's former secretary-general and the former governor of Lakes State. They do not control any armed forces on the ground in South Sudan's conflict but were influential voices in the ruling party and government before being sent into exile.

Ramaphosa also pointed out that the main SPLM breakaway group (SPLM-IO) did not participate in the initiative to return to Juba. “What is missing here is the SPLM-in-Opposition,” he said, noting that he had invited the rebel group's leader Riek Machar to a high-level meeting in Arusha to discuss his possible return to the Arusha process.

The foreign minister of Ethiopia was also present in Juba during this visit. Ramaphosa said that his presence was a sign that the IGAD and Arusha processes are “complementary.”

Head of the SPLM-G10 delegation Deng Alor said that they wanted to salvage and reunite the ruling party SPLM. “It is a historical movement, a historical party. It can't be allowed to die. No one can accept it. We in the SPLM Leaders, we feel that SPLM has to be rescued equally in the way that we are trying to rescue South Sudan, because we can't allow this history to go to the dust bin.”

Deng Alor continued, “It is about the future of the people, it is about the vision that we developed when we were struggling under our leader John Garang, and that vision cannot be allowed to die. We have to rescue the vision as well.”

He noted that they would meet the Salva Kiir to discuss the reunification of SPLM and the issue of the war. Alor said that his group are not in favor of continuing the war. He also warned about the economic situation, saying, “A total collapse of South Sudan is bad for everybody.”