November 27th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – South Sudan army commander General Stephen Buay Rolnyang has been released this morning after more than one year in prison, family sources told the Nyamilepedia from the capital Juba.
General Rolnyang was arrested in May 2018 following fighting in Mayom between his guards a huge force belong to militia commander General Mathew Puljang Top.’
He was accused of defecting to opposition groups and rebellion against the state.
Last month, he was sentenced to one year in prison beginning from the time he was arrested. He was also stripped of his rank and then dismissed from active South Sudan army service.
Buay has protested the ruling saying it was politically motivated and was pursued by senior politicians and military generals from his hometown Mayom County.
His lawyer has maintained that the experienced military commander who was the deputy commander of SPLA fifth infantry division in Western Bahr el-Ghazal state was innocent.
Speaking to Nyamilepedia on Wednesday, Kerbino Gatkuoy who is a relative said General Buay was released this morning without giving more details.
“Gen Stephen Buay [has been] released from detention today 27/11/2019,” he told the Nyamilepedia in an email.
Gatkuoy said Buay has been demoted from the rank of Major General to private and dismissed from the South Sudan active military service. He has already served the one year he was sentenced too.
“The bad news is he has been demoted from the rank of Maj. Gen. To private and dismissed him from SSPDF to ordinary citizen,” he said. “….the General Court Martial sitting at Bilpam [this morning] dismissed Maj Gen Buay from active service and stripped him to the rank of private.”
