A recent letter from Riek Machar to Salva Kiir reiterates the rebel leader’s commitment to the Ethiopian-led IGAD peace process rather than the Arusha process alone, according to a copy sent to the press.
The so-called SPLM-in-Government or SPLM-Juba has preferred the Arusha process backed by Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa, whereas Riek Machar’s SPLM-IO boycotted recent meetings of the Arusha tripartite follow-up committee and declined to visit Juba during a visit led by South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Earlier this week the Arusha process took a step forward with the unification of the SPLM-Juba and SPLM-G10 factions. The G10 leading member Pagan Amum was reinstated to his old position as secretary-general in the party under Salva Kiir as chairman.
South Sudan’s government was not party to the deal, which was considered a party affair. The SPLM-IO says that they want a formal peace deal with the government, rather than just a reunification of the ruling party.
“The SPLM re-unification is not a panacea [a complete solution or remedy], its implementation is connected to conclusion of a Peace Agreement addressing the civil war under the IGAD Plus Mediation,” Machar writes in his letter to Kiir.
He also points out that the SPLM-G10 “are not participants in the current civil war,” dowplaying the significance of their merger with the ruling faction.
“Your Excellency, since the failure of the IGAD Mediated Peace Talks in March 6, 2015, Juba Regime has been on military offensive and as such we found it just impossible to send a delegation to Juba to talk about SPLM Re-unification,” he notes.
Nonetheless, the former vice president affirmed that he was ready to continue to particpate in the Arusha process as well as the IGAD process, but he suggested that talks should take place in Arusha rather than Juba.
In the meantime, IGAD Chief Mediator Seyoum Mesfin has announced plans to resume talks between the government and SPLM-IO in Addis Ababa in mid-July. “The mediation decided to prepare a compromise document which we think and believe that all the parties can live with and continue into the establishment of the transitional government of national unity for 30 months,” Seyoum said, as quoted by Reuters.
The new proposed deal would allocate a vice presidential post to the rebels.
Machar’s letter was sent to journalists by SPLM-IO spokesman Mabior Garang yesterday, though it is dated 17 June.