South Sudan holdout opposition alliance reiterates rejection of the revitalized peace agreement

NAIROBI, KENYA – South Sudan holdout opposition alliance, the South Sudan Opposition Movements Alliance (SSOMA) has reiterated its rejection of the revitalized peace agreement signed by the government and a number of opposition groups in September 2018.

The SSOMA is comprising of the South Sudan United Front/Army (SSUF/A) led by former army chief General Paul Malong Awan, Real-SPLM, led by former SPLM Secretary General Pagan Amum and the South Sudan National Democratic Alliance (SSNDA) led by for deputy army chief General Thomas Cirilo.

Pagan and Cirilo were part of the high-level revitalization forum which led to the signing of the revitalized peace agreement but pulled out of talks in Khartoum prior to the signing of the agreement accusing the government of monopolizing the talks as it said mediators were biased toward them.

In a statement on Tuesday, the SSOMA condemned the continuation government violation of the cessation of hostility agreement as it attacks several government positions in the country’s Central Equatoria state saying the government actions threaten the Rome Declaration.

“SSOMA would like to reiterate its strong condemnation of this ongoing violation and attacks against the positions of SSOMA forces. These acts threaten the positive spirit created by the Rome declaration and Resolutions under the auspices of the Community of Sant ‘Egidio,” the statement seen by Sudans Post partly reads.

The group further reiterated its rejection of the revitalized peace agreement saying that the deal have not addressed the root causes of the seven-year-old conflict saying stability isn’t achieved more than one year after its signing in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

“In light of these statements, SSOMA as non-signatory to A-ARCSS which from the onset categorically rejected the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) because it failed to address the fundamental root causes of the conflict, reiterates this position,” the statement said.

“Hence, SSOMA is committed to the Rome Declaration for addressing the root causes of the conflict in South Sudan as well as the Rome Resolution on the COHA and we expect the Government of the Republic of South Sudan to do the same,” it added.

It further “commend and welcome press statement by the Community of Sant’Egidio denouncing the continuing blatant violation of the Cessation of Hostility Agreement CoHA 2017 by the government of the Republic of South Sudan against positions of SSOMA in the recent few weeks; despite the recommitment of SSOMA and the government of the Republic of South Sudan to CoHA 2017 in Rome Resolution.”

“Equally, SSOMA would like to commend and welcome the statements by the European Union, and the United Nations Security Council Penal of Experts on South Sudan report which both shed lights on the weakness, threats, and deliberate impediments to implementation of signed agreements, and urge the need for the government to recommit itself to the creation of the conducive environment for dialogue to push forward the Rome Peace Process.

“Once more, we take this opportunity to assure our supporters and the people of South Sudan that SSOMA is committed to the Rome Peace Process under the auspices of the Community of Sant’Egidio; which is the only hope for a sustainable and durable peace in the Republic of South Sudan.”