Nov 18, 2021 — South Sudan President, Salva Kiir Mayardit, has hinted during the today’s meeting with the delegation of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) led by H.E Mr. Daung Dinh Quy , Permanent Representative of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the United Nations, that he plans to buy off guns from civilians if they continue to resist his disarmament orders.
Speaking to the the UNSC delegation, president Kiir took the side of the armed civilians saying that they have a reason to resist his voluntary disarmament.
According to president Kiir, the armed civilians bought their guns with their own money and therefore, the government will consider a business approach in which the government will offer money to armed civilians to give up their guns.
“H.E President Salva Kiir Mayardit told the UN delegation that since the civilians are resisting on voluntary disarmament exercise due to the facts that they used their money during the conflict to buy those guns, he is thinking for an idea for the government to offer buying off those guns from the civilians as a means of encouraging voluntary disarmament from the citizens to collect those guns from the civilians and destroy them.” Read part of the summary report by the office of the president.
South Sudan has tried to disarm youth several times in the last 15 years; however, the youth refused to be disarmed and in most cases they resorted to fighting the national army.
In some cases when the disarmament turns violent, the youth defeat the armed forces, overrun their barracks and sometimes even kill the commanding generals.
Although president Kiir plans to destroy the illegally obtained weapons, once the government buys them off from civilians, president Kiir tells the UNSC that the main reason the unified force is not being graduated is due to lack of weapons.
“H.E. president Salva Kiir Mayardit also told the UN delegation that the forces are trained and are in the cantonment sites ready for the graduation but there are challenges hindering the graduation of the unified forces, no basic equipment that makes a soldier complete as a soldier but he has already given instructions for his team to arrange and organise the graduation process of the unified force.” Read part of the summary report from President Kiir’s office.Â
