Leaders of South Sudanese political parties at a press conference on Thursday urged two warring factions of the SPLM/A to return to peace talks in Addis Ababa, while a number of parties’ representatives also rejected the ‘red line’ declared by President Salva Kiir over his own position as president.
Last week in parliament the leader of the SPLM-Juba faction said that he would not accept an agreement that did not maintain him as South Sudan’s president in the new transitional government, which must be formed by mid-August, according to the timetable agreed at the 10 June IGAD Heads of State summit.
Kiir has accused unnamed interests of “intending to constitute a transitional government without me as the elected president,” stressing that his own position is a ‘red line’ and that he will not step down.
Following this declaration, an association of South Sudanese political parties released a statement Thursday saying, “We the people of South Sudan must rise above our individual group and party interests and put the interests of our country above any other considerations.”
The Political Parties Leadership Forum (PPLF), a loose association formed by smaller South Sudanese parties also with the participation of the ruling faction of the SPLM, convened an urgent meeting on Wednesday after peace talks were adjourned in Addis Ababa.
PPLF urged the warring SPLM-Juba and SPLM-IO factions to return to the peace talks, which stalled last week, prompting East African mediators to announce an adjournment pending consultations with the UN Security Council.
Dr Lam Akol, chairman of the SPLM-DC party and head of the delegation of opposition parties invited by mediators to the peace talks, pointed out that for weeks the talks have failed to start. “Until now they have not even agreed on the agenda of the negotiations.”
He blamed the two parties to the conflict for taking more than four months without agreeing to a permanent ceasefire. He said the two parties want to exclude from the negotiations those who are not armed parties to the ongoing conflict.
‘There is no red line’
Garang Thuc Garang Deng, chairman of the PURE party and a member of the PPLF added, “In addition to what was said by Dr. Lam, we as political parties we cannot agree with red lines.”
“There is no red line. This is a negotiation. You say what you have to say, then I’ll say what I have to say, and we’ll agree on the compromise solution. If we put a red line, then it means the problem will not be solved.”
“We say as parties that we will not bring something called a ‘red line’,” Garang said, urging the parties to sit down to negotiate rather than prolonging the conflict.
Moreover, in their communiqué, the 21 political parties forming PPLF stated, “The distasteful situation is due only to power struggling within one of the political parties, which is the SPLM, that had negative pervasive results across the country.”
The parties further urged the two warring factions to honor their commitment to allow active participation of all stakeholders in the peace talks, not only the armed factions. These stakeholders include the non-armed opposition parties, the SPLM-G11, and the clergy and civil society represenatives, who came to the Addis Ababa talks at the invitation of IGAD.
Inclusive talks
At the same press conference, Lam Akol was asked about the complaints by the warring parties about the selection of stakeholders invited by the IGAD mediators. The rebels in particular have accused the IGAD of not being fair in the process for the selection of the stakeholders.
Lam rejected criticisms of the selection of stakeholders, saying, “The two sides should have nothing to do with it (the selection). The government and the rebels have no right to talk about the stakeholders.”
“They can complain but it is not their right, because they have agreed that there should be other stakeholders that can determine their own representation.”
He was referring to the 9 May agreement signed by Salva Kiir, Riek Machar and Prime Minister of Ethiopia Hailemariam Desalegn, which committed the two parties to an ‘inclusive’ political process.
The communiqué by PPLF was signed by Lam Akol for SPLM-DC, James Andrea for SLP, Philip Pallet for SANU, Garang Thuc for PURE, Pascalina Philip for SSDA, Albino John for DUP, Hon. Wilson Lodong Sebit for ANC, Abbas Bullen for UDSF-M, Matthew Mayor for NCP, David William Tut for UDF, Badit Dak Wei for SSDF-Front, and Acuil Malit for SPLM, among others.
Related:
Politics: Salva Kiir says not stepping down (20 June)
Factbox: Factions of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (21 June)