October 3rd 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – South Sudan’s main armed opposition group led by the country’s former first vice president Dr. Riek Machar Teny has accused the government of President Salva Kiir Mayardit of ceasefire violation in the country’s Maiwut County.
In a letter addressed to the Chairperson of Revitalized Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC), General Augustino Njoroge, the group said the government was intentionally violating the agreement in Maiwut County of Upper Nile state.
“I am writing to bring to your attention the flagrant and systematic violations of the Revitalized Agreement by the Incumbent TGNU in Maiwut County,” the letter signed by Machar’s deputy, Hendry Odwar and seen by Nyamilepedia partly reads.
The group signed with the government a Cessation of Hostility Agreement (CoHA) in December 2017 and a permanent ceasefire agreement in Khartoum in June 2018.
“The Incumbent TGNU has since August, 2019 engaged in systematic violations of the text and spirit Of the Agreement unabated,” the letter said.
“This campaign is aimed at undermining the Permanent Ceasefire declared in September, 2018,” it added.
Odwar said in the letter that due to the government anti-peace actions, a cantonment site for the main armed opposition group has never been operationalized leaving a government militia still occupying the site.
“But due to the government hostilities in the area, Turuw cantonment site has never been operationalized. In fact the government militias attacked and now effectively occupy the site,” the letter said.
“The AJMCC and JMCT deployed in Maiwut have since failed to discharge their mandate due to intimidations threats to their lives and denial of access to Turuw cantonment site,” the letter added.
Further in August, as part of mobilization and recruitment drive by the government, the leadership of SPLMA-IO was shocked and outraged by the conduct of the National Security and Intelligent Service to recruit and fly some SPLMA-IO officers from Khartoum to Juba and airlifted them upon arrival to Maiwut County to destabilize the area.
The letter further accused the government of airlifting a group of disgruntled SPLA-IO generals to the Upper Nile county for the aim of destabilizing the area citing General Ochan who defected to the government in September.
“The latest plan to destabilize Maiwut was announced by the government on 25/9/2019. Maj, Gen. Ochan Puot, who was sewing SPLA-IO martial disciplinary procedure, was announced by the government spokesperson and the Minister of Information to have defected to the government,” the letter said.
Odwar said the government has since occupied SPLA-IO and civilian areas recently occupied by the main armed opposition group saying the actions violates the ceasefire agreement and the revitalized peace agreement.
