South Sudan President Urges Rebel Chief To Join Unity Government
Muhammad Irfan Published April 20, 2019 | 06:11 PM
South Sudan President Salva Kiir on Saturday urged opposition leader Riek Machar to return home "urgently" to help form a government of national unity
A failure by the former vice president to do so would destroy any hope for peace in the war-torn country, he said.
"Even now, it's not too late," Kiir told reporters. "I am inviting Dr. Riek Machar to urgently return to Juba so that we can work together to expedite the process of forming the revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity".
A peace deal signed by the parties of the country's six-year-old conflict calls for the formation of a government of national unity on May 12.
Machar, who is a signatory of the agreement, on Thursday asked for a delay of six months, saying it was not safe for him to return to Juba. According to leaders of his party he is in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital.
Machar "will not come to Juba without security arrangements," said Puot Kang Chol, representing Machar's SPLM-IO rebel group at the National Pre-transitional Committee (NPTC), the body charged with implementing the peace agreement.
But Kiir said that "we should hold the interest of our people above and beyond any personal fears, resentments and interests.
"Any delay to the formation of the government would crush the hopes of our people for peace," he warned.
Machar fled Juba in 2016 under fire from Kiir's troops after a previous peace deal fell apart, prompting clashes between both men's forces.
The September peace deal has ended most of the fighting, but progress towards a unified army and the security of the capital have been slow.
The deal is the latest effort to end years of conflict between both men that has plunged their country into a civil war marked by atrocities, including murder and rape, motivated by ethnic differences.
Predominantly Christian, South Sudan is the world's youngest country, gaining its independence from Sudan in 2011 after 22 years of conflict.
Kiir and Machar were allies in the struggle for statehood, but their subsequent rivalry turned into war from December 2013.
The government has asked foreign donors to fund much of its $285-million budget to implement the peace deal. But diplomats say it has yet to take important budgetary steps and improve transparency.
Kiir spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny told Eye Radio this week that other opposition figures were already in Juba, and this should tell Machar "that his security will be taken care of while the government is formed".
Related Topics
Recent Stories
Mired in crisis, Boeing reports another loss
Session Awarding Ceremony 2024 held at Cadet College Muzaffarabad
Austrian ski great Hirscher to make comeback under Dutch flag
Pakistan, Japan agrees to convene 'Economic Policy Dialogue'
FM Dar conveys deepest sympathy on torrential rains devastation in UAE
Spain PM Sanchez says weighing resignation after wife's graft probe
Tennis: ATP/WTA Madrid Open results - 1st update
Long-lost Klimt portrait auctioned off for 30 mn euros
Osaka seals first win on clay since 2022 in Madrid
Earthquake jolts Karachi
Sindh minister orders operation after attack on police in Ghotki
TikTok to fight US ban law in courts
More Stories From World
-
Football: English Championship table
5 hours ago -
Time for 'democratic transition' in Venezuela: opposition candidate to AFP
6 hours ago -
Spain's Pedro Sanchez : a risk-taker with a flair for survival
6 hours ago -
Football: French Ligue 1 table
6 hours ago -
Nadal will only play French Open if he can 'compete well'
6 hours ago -
Ukraine, Israel, TikTok: the massive aid package before US Congress
6 hours ago
-
TikTok to fight US ban law in courts
7 hours ago -
Football: French Ligue 1 results
7 hours ago -
Spain PM Sanchez says weighing resignation after wife's graft probe
8 hours ago -
Long-lost Klimt portrait auctioned off for 30 mn euros
8 hours ago -
TikTok to fight US ban law in courts
8 hours ago -
Anger among Ukrainians in Poland as Kyiv halts passport renewals
8 hours ago