JUBA – South Sudan’s main armed opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) on Tuesday suspended its participation in key security mechanisms, citing the detention of its officials, escalating violence, and the presence of Ugandan troops, deepening a political crisis in the country.
The move follows weeks of rising tensions, characterized by fighting in Nasir County of Upper Nile State between the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) and the White Army, a Nuer youth militia that was allied with the SPLM-IO during the 2013-2018 civil war, and the arrest of senior SPLM-IO figures, such as petroleum minister Puot Kang Chuol and SPLA-IO chief of staff Gen. Gabriel Duop Lam.
The government also carried out airstrikes on Nasir on Sunday night, killing at least 15 people, including a local sub-chief.
On Monday, information minister and government spokesman Michael Makuei Lueth announced in Juba that the government had revoked the immunity of detained opposition officials, declared war against the White Army, and issued a warning for civilians to evacuate Nasir
In a statement on Tuesday, SPLM-IO deputy chairman Oyet Nathaniel Pierino said the group had immediately suspended its participation in the Joint Defense Board (JDB), High-Level Political Committee (HLPC), Joint Military Ceasefire Committee (JMCC), and Joint Transitional Security Committee (JTSC) until the release of the detainees. He cited the detentions against SPLM-IO officials in Juba, the deployment of the Ugandan People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) in the country.
In a statement this morning, SPLM-IO deputy chairman Oyet Nathaniel Pierino said the group had immediately suspended its participation in the Joint Defense Board (JDB), High-Level Political Committee (HLPC), Joint Military Ceasefire Committee (JMCC), and Joint Transitional Security Committee (JTSC), demanding the release of detained officials and citing the presence of Ugandan forces.
“Consequent to the press statement by Hon. Michael Makuei Lueth, the Minister of Information of the Government of South Sudan regarding the continuous provocative illegal Detention of SPLM/SPLA-IO Political Detainees, Hon. Puot Kang Chol, the Minister of Petroleum and Deputy Chairman of High Level Political Committee, Gen. Gabriel Duop Lam, Deputy CDF and Co-Chair of JDB, Hon. Gatwech Lam Puoch (MP), Camilo Gatmai Kel and 19 others, Hon. Makuei also confirmed the presence of Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF), a military force of an IGAD Partner State, and made a relentless Ethnic Profiling of one of the 64 constitutive nationalities that comprised South Sudan, the Nuer community,” the statement reads.
These mechanisms, established under the revitalized peace agreement, play a crucial role in its implementation. The SPLM-IO is a key signatory to the revitalized peace agreement and its withdrawal threatens the ceasefire and security arrangements by weakening coordination efforts and increasing the risk of renewed clashes.
It also disrupts political dialogue within key committees essential for governance reforms, undermines oversight mechanisms that foster trust among peace partners, and risks reducing international diplomatic engagement, further weakening pressure on parties to uphold the agreement.
The opposition statement said it had conducted a thorough assessment of the political and security environment in the country, and consulted widely before making the decision, and expressed deep concerns over the credibility and composition of the joint security mechanisms.
“After a thorough assessment of the credibility and composition of the Mechanisms, Political and Security environment of the Peace Implementation Mechanisms, and after wide consultation, all the participation of the members of the said Security and Political mechanisms is hereby frozen with immediate effect until all the SPLM/SPLA-IO Political Detainees are unconditionally released,” the statement said.
“The Members of the said Mechanism shall only attend RJMEC Plenary Sessions to affirm the unconditional release of their colleagues. We hold the SPLM-IG their security apparatus responsible for the safety and life of all detainees,” it added.
The statement condemned the arrest and detention of peace mediators and humanitarian workers, calling it a practice of “brutal totalitarian regimes.” The group argued that the detention of signatories to the revitalized peace agreement threatened its very existence.
“Harassment, Arrest and Detention of peace makers, peace mediators, peace messengers, humanitarian workers, journalists, have been a practice of brutal totalitarian regimes which have been banned internationally under customary international Humanitarian law,” it said.
“This act shall never be tolerated in South Sudan under any circumstance. The act of arresting and detaining a Signatory to the R-ARCSS and the ongoing political witch-hunts continue to threaten the very essence and the existence of the Revitalized Agreement,” it added.
The SPLM-IO also criticized the government’s handling of community vigilante groups, accusing it of ethnic profiling and failing to protect citizens. They called for international intervention to protect civilians.
“We also state clearly that the failure by the government of South Sudan to provide protection to life and property to all citizens of South Sudan has resulted in proliferation and establishment of community vigilantes including Tit-bai, Gel-weng, Agwelek, Abushok, White army, monyamiji, Arrow Boys, etc. Profiling the White army and declaring war by mobilizing state political, military and diplomatic machinery is tantamount to further a ‘state policy of targeting members of a group’. We call upon the African Union, United Nations, Troika, European Union and IGAD Partners Forum and the C5 Countries to protect civilians in South Sudan and reject the call by the government spokesperson to profile an ethnic group, and we also call upon you to visit the African Union Commission Report on South Sudan (The Obasanjo Report) and hold the government and individual committing atrocities and Human Rights Violations in South Sudan to account,” the statement said.
The presence of Ugandan troops in South Sudan further heightened tensions, the SPLM-IO said, viewing it as a sign of impending conflict. The group, in the statement, expressed concerns about the safety of their members and leaders.
“Last but not least, the invitation and the presence of Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) in the Country depicts a men’s rea (intention) and preparation for war. Their deployment around the country complicates the geopolitical situation of South Sudan and tantamount to a declaration of War on the peace partners and the people of South Sudan by the two governments,” it said.
“In light of the foregoing, South Sudan and Juba in particular are increasingly unsafe for the members of the opposition, and the Chairman and Commander In Chief of the SPLM/SPLA-IO, who has been placed under political witch-hunts and confinement and this is further raising tension and anxiety around the Country,” it added.
