Some key members of the holdout group cast doubt Tuesday over whether they would participate in a scheduled round of peace talks with the government hosted by the Kenyan government in Nairobi.
A fresh round of peace talks between the Government of South Sudan and the holdout group are scheduled to take place in the Kenyan capital on May 10.
Kenya’s mediation is led by former army commander Lazurus Sumbeiywo, who also mediated the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005 which gave Southern Sudan autonomy and later led to a referendum for independence in 2011.
Two prominent members of the holdout opposition group, who did not join the 2018 peace agreement, now seem to have accepted the Kenyan-led mediation after some months of suspicion.
Delegates of the SSUF/A, led by former army chief Gen. Paul Malong, and Real-SPLM, led by former SPLM Secretary General Pagan Amum, have announced their readiness to participate in the Nairobi peace talks.
However, Emmanuel Ajawin, the leader of the opposition National Democratic Movement-Patriotic Front (NDM-PF), said three members of the holdout group will not participate in the upcoming peace talks in Nairobi, saying some of the concerns they had raised with the mediation team have not been addressed.
“I want to inform the public that these are only two movements that will participate in the talks, Real-SPLM and SSUF/A, and not all members of the opposition umbrella South Sudan Opposition Movements Alliance (SSOMA). NAS leader Gen. Thomas Cirillo, Dr Alex and myself are not part of the Nairobi talks. So, I would like to make it clear,” Ajawin said.
The National Salvation Front (NAS)—the most armed member of the holdout group, has been involved in intermittent clashes with government forces in some parts of the country. It has always claimed that President Salva Kiir Mayardit has never been interested in a peace process that addresses the root causes of the conflict.
According to Ajawin, the three key members of the holdout group maintain that they are not ready to negotiate with the South Sudan government under the Kenyan mediation in Nairobi.
“During our meeting with the mediators in Italy, we requested that the talks be held in Rome under the auspices of Kenya and the Community of Sant’Egidio, and they promised to respond to our request. But we just received a letter of invitation on April 24 asking us to come for pre-talk consultations in Nairobi,” Ajawin said.
“So, we responded to the invitation letter and informed the mediators that we will not be able to participate in the Nairobi talks. We believe that the consultations should have continued until we agree on the venue of the talks,” he added.
According to the NDM-PF leader, the move taken by the Kenyan mediation to exclude some members of the holdout opposition group will not lead to an inclusive peace process in South Sudan.
Reacting to the new development, Edmund Yakani, the Executive Director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), which promotes civil society values, urged the holdout group to take advantage of the Nairobi peace talks, which he said is building on the Rome peace process under the auspices of the Sant’Egidio Community.
“The government of Kenya has demonstrated responsibility for facilitating a genuine political process for resolving the political differences between the government and the holdout group starting on May 10. The talks will hold water or bring real political solutions between the government and the holdout group if all conflicting parties at the negotiation table demonstrate a high level of political maturity and discipline and agree to focus on the actual political issues that created the political instability,” Yakani said.
He added,” The absence of the NAS group led by Gen. Thomas Cirillo and NDM-PF of Emmanuel Ajawin is not healthy in securing absolute political stability in some parts of the country. But attempts to build peace cannot wait for everybody at the same. So, I am urging the two leaders to send their delegates to confirm the spirit of the peace talks for the best interest of showing commitment to peace for the sake of the suffering citizens.”
The civil society activist appealed to the Kenyan-led mediation to work for an inclusive peace process in South Sudan and called on the warring parties to engage in the talks with an open mind.
The mediation team could not immediately be reached for comment.