A legal petition filed by lawyers for detained former Vice President Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel has hit its first brick wall, with South Sudan’s Minister of Justice, Michael Makuei Lueth, rejecting the filing over “disrespectful” language and breaches of official procedure.
In a letter dated March 11, 2026, addressed to Kiirdit & Co. Advocates, Makuei described the March 6 petition as “uncouth” and “unbecoming,” singling out passages in which the lawyers appeared to instruct the ministry directly.
“The petition on its face is written in a disrespectful, impolite and uncouth language that is unbecoming and not acceptable in all standards,” the letter said.
Makuei, a close ally of President Salva Kiir, also said Bol Mel’s legal team had bypassed formal channels by posting the petition on social media immediately after submitting it to the ministry.
The public release, he said, sparked discussions that undermined official procedures and meant “it is no longer in the hands of the Ministry.”
The minister said it would not proceed until the lawyers issued a written apology for the petition’s tone and provided a full account of how the document reached the media and who was responsible.
Bol Mel, a businessman-turned-politician, has been under house arrest since November 12, 2025, after being dismissed as vice president, stripped of his military rank, and expelled from service. His lawyers say he has been held incommunicado without formal charges, access to family, legal counsel, or medical care, which they describe as unlawful detention.
The petition challenges the legality of his detention and calls for either his release or presentation before a court. Copies were also sent to the South Sudan Human Rights Commission and Bol Mel’s family.
Bol Mel’s arrest marked a dramatic fall for a once-powerful figure in South Sudan’s ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM). Observers link his detention to an internal power struggle within the party.
Lawyers also said several of Bol Mel’s assets, including homes and vehicles, were seized without court authorization and warned that his health could deteriorate without proper medical care. They urged the justice minister to ensure authorities either justify his detention or bring him before a court if evidence of a crime exists.
