Sep 14, 2021 — To mitigate the SPLM/A-IO Juba-Magenis leadership crisis at the Gawaar community level, the Gawaar Global Community Leadership, which is composed of the leadership of the Gawaar Community Associations in the United States of America, Australia, Canada and Europe met on Saturday, August 7th, 2021, just a few hours after the first fighting broke out between the two SPLA-IO factions in Magenis, to sketch a roadmap for the community.
After a comprehensive analysis, the Gawaar Global Leadership unanimously agreed to convene two emergency meetings:
1. A meeting with the Gawaar Global Peace Committee, and;
2. A General Assembly.
The first emergency meeting was held on the same day, August 7th, 2021, following the leadership meeting, and at least a three-quarter or 75% of the Gawaar Global Peace Committee, a mechanism that is composed of senior advisors, intellectuals and leaders of the Gawaar community in Australia, USA, Canada and Europe, joined the teleconference. After a lengthy deliberation, the Committee proposed and drafted a communique of resolutions that were to be passed by the Gawaar General Assembly – the second emergency meeting that was to follow in one week on August 14, 2021.
Read: the Communique of the Gawaar Global Peace Committee.
As proposed, the General Assembly was convened on August 14, 2021 and a quorum was met. After another lengthy deliberation that lasted six hours, the Gawaar Global Community unanimously approved the draft communique and agreed to implement it with immediate effect. Among the key resolutions, the Gawaar Global Community established the following:
1. That, based on the community’s constitution, the Gawaar Global Community and all its community associations are non-political and non-profit organizations, and therefore, no Gawaar Community Association shall at any time and anywhere take sides in political or military power wrangles.
2. That the community, especially Gawaar youth and other resources, shall not be dragged into another unnecessary war with intention to fit the community against itself or against another community for individual political and/or military interests.
3. That the Gawaar Global Community shall remain neutral in this Juba-Magenis SPLM/A-IO leadership crisis at any cost to maintain the unity and to protect the common interest of the community.
4. That if any leader(s) of the community associations, including the leaders of the Gawaar Global Community, choose to take a stance to support either side, he/she may do so at his/her individual capacity without involving, claiming or mobilizing the community.
5. That any leader(s) who violates these resolutions and/or campaigns for this senseless war will not be supported physically, ideologically and financially by the Gawaar Global Community and its affiliates.
6. That the Leadership of the Gawaar Global Community shall organize separate meetings with the military leaders on both sides in northern Upper Nile, Juba, Ayod, Diel and other parts of South Sudan to disseminate these resolutions;
7. That the Gawaar Global Community Leadership shall hold a teleconference with the leaderships of the Gawaar Community Associations in Africa, especially in South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, Egypt, Uganda and Kenya on September 18, 2021 to deliberate on these resolutions and the overall wellbeing of the community.
In accordance with the above resolutions, the leadership of the Gawaar Global Community held separate meetings with the SPLM/A-IO leaders in Juba and Magenis as follow:
1. Met and briefed Gen. Peter Puok Koang on August 9th, 2021. Lt. Gen. Peter Puok Koang is the former SPLA-IO acting governor of Phou State. We spoke to him in Juba a few days before he was dispatched to Ayod county by the SPLM/A-IO under the umbrella of Dr. Machar.
2. Met and briefed Gen. Diang Latjor on August 30th, 2021. Maj. Gen. Diang Latjor is one of the senior military commanders who are loyal to Dr. Riek Machar in Aumod, Northern Upper Nile. Gen. Diang agreed to relay these resolutions to other senior military leaders from the Gawaar Community who are loyal to Dr. Machar’s SPLM/A-IO faction in northern Upper Nile.
3. Met and briefed Gen. William Gatjiath Deng on September 3rd, 2021. Brig. Gen. William Gatjiath is the former military spokesman of the SPLA-IO and the current acting military spokesperson of the SPLA-IO Kitgwang faction. Gen. Gatjiath agreed to disseminate these resolutions to all the senior military leaders especially from the Gawaar Community who are loyal to 1st. Lt. Gen. Simon Gatwech Dual.
4. Resolved to reach out to all senior stakeholders who are yet to be reached by the Gawaar Global Community leadership on both sides,
5. Agreed to remain seized by these resolutions!
Leadership Crisis in Sudan
After these undisputed provisions, the Gawaar Global Community learned with profound sadness that the Gawaar Community Association in Khartoum, Sudan, under the leadership of Pal Doar Pouch and his deputy Lony Nhial had succumbed to its own leadership crisis and began to trade in community positions for personal gains.
On September 3rd, 2021, the deputy chairman of the Gawaar Community Association in Sudan, Mr. Lony Nhial, youth leader Diang Geng Chan and a few elders declared their loyalty to the Kitgwang faction. According to their group photos, there were sixteen people in total, mostly elders, plus the camerperson. This was announced on social media (Facebook) a few hours later, on the same day, September 3rd, 2021 by the spokesman of the Kitgwang faction, Brig. Gen. William Gatjiath, as the position of the “Gawar Community in Sudan” despite many visible ambiguities in their declaration.
To mitigate further escalation of this internal crisis, the Gawaar Global Leadership swiftly organized emergency meetings with Lony Nhial, Pal Doar Puoch and Gen. William Gatjiath Deng. The three meetings were held separately but consecutively within 24 hours on September 3rd and 4th, respectively.
Despite lengthy accusations, with each representative defending his position, the three representatives agreed to put community interest above individuals’ interest, and that is:
1. The Gawaar Community Association in Sudan is a non-political, non-military and non-profit organization, and must remain as stated!
2. The Gawaar Community Association in Sudan shall not be divided behind individuals and be fitted against itself to defend individual(s) or sub-community interests whether in Khartoum, Ayod, Juba or anywhere else.
3. Called on the leadership of the Gawaar Community in Khartoum, Sudan, to hold a meeting forthwith to reunite the community and disown individuals’ politicking of the community’s interest.
Indictable Violation of the Constitution
Although the chairman, Pal Doar Puoch, fully agreed, regretted his earlier position that divided the community and promised to hold a meeting ASAP, the Gawaar Global Leadership was dismayed to learn that Mr. Chairman did the opposite in a complete violation of the terms he agreed to uphold!
In a complete negligence and violation of the Gawaar community’s constitution, Mr. Pal Doar Pouch, held a political rally-type meeting under the banner of the Gawaar Community Association in Khartoum, Sudan, in collaboration with the SPLM/A-IO mainstream and invited politicians, military generals, security attachees and leaders from other communities who are loyal to Dr. Machar on phone or in person. This puts a sharp blade of division among the Gawaar Community, not only in Khartoum, Sudan, but anywhere else whose recupersions may cause or inflict death and/or agony among innocent Gawaar people in Sudan and Ayod county.
Condemnations and Way Forward
In response to this unprecedented violation of the Gawaar community constitution, the Gawaar Global Community condemns both declarations from the chairman, Pal Doar Puoch, his deputy, Lony Nhial, and the youth Chairperson in the strongest terms possible and called on the three leaders to:
1. Work out a mechanism to reunite the community in Sudan with immediate effect or;
2. Vacate their leadership positions to a committee that will reunite and transition the community to a new leadership that will put community interest above individuals’ and sectarian interests.
Conclusion,
The Gawaar Global Community reiterates that no one individual’s interest is above the community interest and therefore, no one individual community leader, politician or military general will drag the community into a senseless conflict against itself or against any other community, never again!
The Gawaar Community remains a sanctuary to all her citizens regardless of individuals’ socio-political and economic status, or any other form of divides and achievements, and therefore, any individual(s) who stand(s) to divide the community along these lines is/are a threat to the founding principle of the Gawaar Community, Gawär Marɛ Kärɔa, and must be unanimously condemned by all members of Gawaar Community of all walks of life to consolidate and sustain the unity and collective interest of the Gawaar community as a whole.
Signed by,
Deng Elijah,
President of the Gawaar Global Community, and;
Chairperson of the Gawaar Community Association in Canada,
Rebecca Nyareat Mar Bol,
Deputy President of the Gawaar Global Community, and;
Chairperson of the Gawaar Community Association in Australia,
Mach Biel Nyak,
Secretary General of the Gawaar Global Community, and;
Chairperson of the Gawaar Community Association in the USA.
- All Gawaar Community Associations’ leaderships,
- The SPLM/A-IO Leadership under the First Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar,
- The SPLM/A-IO Leadership under 1st. Lt. Gen. Simon Gatwech Dual,
- All Ayod County leaderships
