Khartoum, Sudan
October 1,2021—The delegation of South Sudanese lawmakers representing the main armed opposition group under the FVP Dr. Riek Machar Teny has cancelled their preplanned visit to refugee camps in Sudan’s White Nile State after being informed of rejection.
Since last month, a delegation of MPs, tasked by Dr. Machar to lead peace and reconciliation to reconcile communities in neighboring Sudan following the recent disintegration of the SPLA-IO in Norther Upper Nile, has been touring Khartoum; however, their plans seem to have hit a dead end in their latest attempts to tour the refugee camps in Sudan.
In a statement extended to Nyamilepedia, Dr Kuong Dak, a member of South Sudan’s parliament representing Machar’s SPLM-IO, says they visited numerous refugee camps in Sudan but they had to call-off a planned visit to Al-Ridais and Khor Al-Waral camps in White Nile State after Gen. Johnson Olony warned the camp leaders not to allow Machar’s delegation to visit them.
“We spoke with the camp leader there and they prepared themselves to receive us. But on the day we were ready to visit the camps, they called us and said Gen. Johnson Olony rejected our visit to the camps, so we could not go there,” The opposition Parliamentarian Dak told Radio Tamazuj.
In the same story, John Orach, a member of the South Sudan Council of States representing Machar’s SPLM-IO considered their journey to Sudan as” vital ” especially after fighting between factions of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-In Opposition (SPLA-IO).
MP Orbach accused the unnamed officials of disseminating baseless information about their recent visit to the refugee camps in White Nile State.
“Some people spread baseless information that we were carrying money to bribe refugees in the camps, but that’s not true. We have brothers, sisters and mothers there in the camps, so we just wanted to disseminate peace messages there,” he said.