A faction of the South Sudan Opposition Movements Alliance (SSOMA) on Thursday said they are not part of the Kenya High-level Mediation for South Sudan because the venue is not safe and their demand to have the talks continue in Rome with the Community Sant’Egidio as co-mediators was not even given the courtesy of a reply among other reasons.

The SSOMA faction that snubbed the Nairobi talks comprises the National Salvation Front (NAS) of Gen. Thomas Cirillo Sawaka, the National Democratic Movement - Patriotic Front (NDM-PF) led by Amb. Emmanuel Ajawin and the South Sudan National Movement for Change (SSNMC) led by Alex Yatta Lukadi, all of whom did not sign the 2018 revitalized peace agreement.

In a missive signed by the group’s Secretary General and leader of the NDM-PF, Emmanuel Ajawin, sent to Radio Tamazuj explaining their position on the current Kenyan Peace Mediation, SSOMA said it dedicated four years to peaceful political engagement with the Transitional Government in Rome, Italy, under the auspices of Community Sant’Egidio.

“SSOMA would like to clarify to its members, the people of South Sudan, and the members of the International Community that it is not a participant in the Kenyan peace mediation process. Demonstrating its commitment to peaceful resolution of conflict in South Sudan, SSOMA has dedicated four years to peaceful political engagement with the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity (R-TGoNU) in Rome, Italy, under the auspices of Community Sant’Egidio. The engagement culminated in the signing of the Rome Declaration on 13th January 2020; Rome Resolution on Monitoring and Verification on 17th March 2020; and Declaration of Principles (DoP) - which was partially concluded,” the statement read in part. “The Rome Initiative is a credible process that provides an environment for free, open, and transparent discussions devoid of any coercion or intimidation. However, it should be noted that the Rome Initiative dragged on for long because the government was intransigent, deployed delaying tactics, and obstructed discussions about the root causes of the conflict in South Sudan.”

The group said the last meeting between SSOMA and the R-TGoNU delegation in Rome in March 2023 was when the two sides differed on the agenda.

“The government delegation expressed their interest to continue the negotiations on security and humanitarian issues while SSOMA presented the concept of the Roundtable Conference as the appropriate framework to bring all stakeholders to find solutions to the ROOT causes of the conflict in South Sudan. The idea is to open political space for all South Sudanese to participate as legitimate stakeholders in the search for peace in South Sudan. The R-TGONU delegation rejected SSOMA’s way-forward approach and requested to adjourn the meeting as they demanded to return home for consultations. They also requested that SSOMA should write a detailed report about the concept of the “Roundtable Conference” and share it with them and Community Sant’Egidio,” SSOMA explained. “While SSOMA was waiting for a notice from Sant’Egidio about the resumption of talks, SSOMA was shocked to learn on 26 December 2023 from social media about the unilateral decision of President Salva Kiir transferring the mediation process to President William Ruto of Kenya with Nairobi as the venue. Juba seems to want a venue and environment where the opposition will be intimidated, coerced, and forced to sign a flawed agreement as was the case with the R-ARCSS in 2018 in Khartoum, Sudan.”

According to the statement, on 5 January 2024, the SSOMA leadership received a communication from President Ruto on this new development. SSOMA responded to President Ruto by letters dated 17 January 2024 and 13 March 2024 - stating the position of SSOMA on the Kenyan peace mediation, requesting a pre-mediation consultation in Rome, Italy. On 22 March 2024, President Ruto responded to SSOMA’s two letters and agreed to send the Kenyan delegation to meet SSOMA in Rome.

“On 13 April 2024, a SSOMA delegation and members of the Kenyan mediation team met in Rome, where they discussed two issues: First, SSOMA’s demand for co-mediation between Sant’Egidio and Kenya; Second, SSOMA reiterated that Rome must be the venue. The Kenyan delegation resolved to return to Kenya to consult with the Lead Mediator, H.E. President Ruto,” SSOMA stated. “On 22 April 2024, Gen. Lazaros Sumbeiywo sent SSOMA a letter to attend the “South Sudan Mediation Process” – and two more letters on mediation details, totally oblivious to SSOMA’s submission in Rome.

On the question of venue and security, SSOMA holds that Kenya is not a conducive environment to host South Sudan peace process, the statement read.

“Many sons of South Sudan were abducted from Kenya soil and handed over to the regime in Juba; for example, Mr. James Gatdet Dak was abducted from Nairobi on 3 November 2016, taken to South Sudan, and was later freed after intensive International Pressure. Mr. Dong Samuel Luak was abducted from Nairobi on 23 January 2017, taken to South Sudan, and brutally killed. Mr. Aggrey Ezbon Idri was abducted from Nairobi on 24 January 2017, taken to South Sudan, and killed by the regime security. On 31 December 2017, an Opposition Governor, Honorable Marko Lokidor Loshapio was also abducted from the Refugee Camp in Northern Kenya and taken to Juba, tortured and later freed after International pressure; and Mr. Morris Mabior Awirjok Bak was abducted from his house in Nairobi on 4 February 2023 by armed Kenyan police in uniform and handed over to South Sudan’s National Security,” the SSOMA missive argued. “With this narrative in mind, the SSOMA delegation as well as South Sudanese who live in Kenya are traumatized and psychologically affected by these incidences. SSOMA concluded that Kenya is not a suitable venue for a credible peace mediation process.”

According to the holdout group, during their pre-consultation meeting with the Kenyan mediation team, their documents: Mediation Framework Agreement and South Sudan Roadmap showed that the current mediation is not to discuss the root causes of the conflict but to find modalities to implement the R-ARCSS.

“SSOMA concludes that the mediation is simply to mobilize the opposition and facilitate their transfer to Juba so that the government can renew its tenure in office. This has come out clearly in some of the speeches in the launch of the Kenyan Mediation today,” the missive stated. “Since the mediation is anchored on the implementation of the flawed R-ARCSS which SSOMA rejected because it does not address the root causes of the conflict in the country, SSOMA therefore shall not be participating in the Kenyan mediation.”

“SSOMA is not ready to abandon the Rome Initiative, given the fact that it has committed itself to the peace process for the last four years under Community Sant’Egidio as a response to His Holiness Pope Francis who pleaded for peace and stability in South Sudan. SSOMA wishes President William Ruto’s Kenyan mediation all the best,” it added.

The outfit said it is committed and ready for a peaceful dialogue to resolve the root causes of the conflict in South Sudan through a Roundtable Conference.

Such is designed to bring all South Sudanese stakeholders together to address the root causes of the South Sudan conflict and find suitable for them,” the statement concluded. “All this would aim at laying a strong foundation for social justice, unity, good governance, Rule of Law and development as the bases for lasting and sustainable peace.”