June 4, 2020 (Nyamilepedia) – South Sudan businessman Kerbino Wol who was detained in 2018 by the National Security Service (NSS) for allegedly working to overthrow the government of President Salva Kiir Mayardit has formed a new rebel group.
Wol told VOA’s South Sudan in Focus this evening that he and many others in the country have formed the “7th October Movement” saying it was named after a day in which detainees at the Blue House which is also the NSS headquarters, took over the facility.
“We are the 7th of October Movement which has been formed in South Sudan and today it is a very historical day in South Sudan,” Wol said.
“The teams behind this group are young people of South Sudan that have finally been awakened by the suppression, the injustice and the failure of the leadership in the country. So they have taken the lead to liberate themselves from the oppression and the poor leadership in the country,” he added.
He further said that the group was diverse that it “is very inclusive and made up of all South Sudanese who have been affected by the failure of the leadership in this country.”
Wol was a prominent businessman who was arrested by the National Security Service in April 2018 and was – two years later – sentenced to 15 years in prison for charges of terrorism, insurgency and spying.
He was charged under article 57 of the National Security Act and articles 67-80-72-79 of the penal code.
The prominent businessman was eventually released from detention in January 2020 as part of the revitalized peace agreement which provided for the release of all political detainees from various centers in the country.
