The leader of the SPLA-IO Kit-Gwang Faction, Gen. Simon Gatwech Dual, has said he is willing to participate in the Tumaini Initiative peace talks mediated by the Government of Kenya.
In December 2023, President Salva Kiir requested President William Ruto of Kenya to take over the mediation lead from the Community of Sant’Egidio in Rome, Italy, saying that the talks with the holdout opposition group had taken long without reaching a solution. The negotiations are meant to bring in opposition groups that did not sign the 2018 revitalized peace agreement.
The talks started in Nairobi on 9 May but halted in July after representatives of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) led by First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar walked out but resumed last week after a newly constituted government delegation arrived in Nairobi.
In an exclusive interview with Radio Tamazuj on Monday, Gen. Gatwech said he has been hearing rumors of his invitation to the talks but that he has not been informed officially.
“I have heard rumors but have not received an official invitation to join the ongoing Tumaini Initiative peace talks in Nairobi,” he stated. “When I get an official invitation, I will go to Nairobi straight away because peace is very important for South Sudan.”
“I could not join the Tumaini Initiative in the past because the situation in Sudan where I am was very difficult but it has now improved and I can move,” Gen. Gatwech added.
Asked if he thinks the talks in Nairobi will deliver peace, Gen Gatwech said “I cannot comment on that until I get there and speak at the talks.”
The opposition groups who are part of the Tumaini Initiative include the Real-Sudan People’s Liberation Movement led by Pagan Amum, the South Sudan United Front led by Paul Malong Awan, the former chief of staff of the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) and the South Sudan People’s Movement/Army (SSPM/A) led by Gen. Stephen Buoy Rolnyang.