All the parties to the 2018 peace deal unanimously agree that the Tumaini Initiative should align with and complement the agreement and not replace it, according to a leaked document obtained by Radio Tamazuj.
The 11-page brief to President Salva Kiir Mayardit focuses on the discussions between the parties and the government delegation to the Tumaini Initiative in Nairobi, Kenya.
It reveals that the parties to the revitalized peace agreement want the Tumaini Initiative to strengthen existing institutions and not create new structures to maintain “the legitimacy of the Transitional Government of National Unity.”
Regarding the roles and responsibilities created by the Tumaini Consensus, the parties to the 2018 peace agreement agree that the structures and mechanisms contradicting the revitalized agreement must be removed or aligned with the R-ARCSS [Revitalized Agreement]. They include but are not limited to the High-Level Panel (External Guarantor), National Leadership Council, National Implementation Oversight Committee (NIOC), and Security Sector Reform and Oversight Commission (SSROC).
The peace partners, according to the leaked document, agreed to integrate the Tumaini Initiative into the current security sector mechanisms outlined in the revitalized peace agreement, indicating that the Tumaini Initiative proposals should be addressing weaknesses within current structures rather than creating new ones.
The document highlights concerns raised about the lack of leadership involvement before the initialling of the eight Tumaini Initiative protocols in Nairobi. It emphasizes that the Tumaini Consensus must be reviewed to ensure its alignment with the 2018 peace deal.
While the brief emphasizes the urgency to reach an agreement with holdout groups, the peace parties said they need to review all the Tumaini protocols to align them with the R-ARCSS to ensure a “united approach in implementing the R-ARCSS.”
The parties requested an extended meeting of the presidency to review the report of the High-level Committee on the Status of the Roadmap to make a “political decision” on the way forward.
Summary of the minutes
In the summary of the discussions on the Tumaini initiative, Cabinet Affairs Minister Martin Elia Lomuro emphasized that the Tumaini Initiative should align with the R-ARCSS and the roadmap. He said that the slow implementation of the 2018 peace agreement due to financial constraints should not be used to “undermine its achievements.”
Peter Lam Both, the Secretary-General of the ruling SPLM Party, acknowledged the challenges faced in the Nairobi discussions “because the holdout group does not recognize the R-ARCSS.” He stated that the Tumaini Initiative should complement the 2018 peace deal, and any adjustments should strengthen the existing agreement.
According to Lam, the National Leadership Council composition was not clear and the proposed High-Level Panel “compromises the sovereignty of South Sudan thus the Council and the High-Level Panel should be scrapped.”
For his part, SPLM-IO member Puot Kang Chuol said the Tumaini Initiative should focus on implementing existing articles of the revitalized peace agreement rather than creating new ones. He added that Tumaini protocols undermine the governance structures in South Sudan, emphasizing that the Tumaini Initiative should be an annex to the R-ARCSS.
Meanwhile, Vice President Taban Deng Gai emphasized the need for quick agreements with the holdout opposition groups. He stressed that the Tumaini Initiative should not undermine the R-ARCSS and called for the integration of proposed security sector reforms into existing structures to ensure stability.
Vice President Hussein Abdelbagi Akol raised concerns about the lack of leadership involvement in the Tumaini protocols and the unchecked power of the National Leadership Council. He emphasized the need for the Tumaini Initiative to support the R-ARCSS, a point of view echoed by Presidential Advisor Tut Gatuak, Agriculture Minister Josephine Lagu and other senior officials in the meeting.
Gabriel Changson Chang, a leading member of the government delegation to the Nairobi peace talks, emphasized that the Tumaini Initiative aims to support the implementation of the 2018 peace agreement by addressing the gaps and challenges and providing resources.
Michael Makuei Lueth, who is the rapporteur of the government delegation to the Nairobi peace talks, assured that the National Leadership Council will be transparent and accountable. He stressed that South Sudanese are not ready to accept another extension of the transitional period, hence the Tumaini initiative is the only thing that can provide an acceptable extension.
In conclusion, First Vice President Dr Riek Machar called for a unified approach to strengthen frameworks, address weaknesses and ensure lasting peace and stability in South Sudan.
The brief to be submitted to President Kiir was signed by Dr. Martin Elia Lomuro (ITGoNU), Peter Lam Both (ITGoNU), Puot Kang Chuol (SPLM-IO), Josephine Lagu Yanga (SSOA), Albino Akol Atak (OPP) and Isaiah Hakim Garang (FDs).
Nairobi peace talks
South Sudan’s transitional government, the holdout group, and other stakeholders in the Tumaini (Hope) Initiative last month initialed eight protocols.
Kenya has been hosting high-level meetings for South Sudan since 9 May between government representatives and opposition groups who were not part of the 2018 agreement that ended a five-year civil war.
The talks — dubbed Tumaini, Swahili for hope — have recently resulted in a draft agreement proposing to extend the country’s transitional period and postpone the coming election to allow finishing up the country’s constitution and electoral processes, as well as set up constituency borders and a unified security force.
The draft peace agreement creates a national leadership council to provide leadership and guidance to the Joint Defense Board, the National Constitution Review Commission, the National Elections Commission, the Political Parties Council, and other bodies with relevant mandates to the implementation of the Tumaini Framework.
In mid-July, the opposition group, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO), led by First Vice President Riek Machar, pulled out of the Kenya-led peace talks.
Machar, who is a principal of the 2018 peace deal, said the new initiative undermines the existing agreement and the country’s sovereignty.