Yauyau denies involvement in UN attack, says “ready” for peace
April 10, 2013 (JUBA) – David Yauyau, the leader of a rebel group in South Sudan’s Jonglei state has denied that his group was responsible for an attack on a United Nations convoy, which left at least 12 people, including five Indian soldiers and seven civilians, dead on Tuesday.
“We have always expressed sincere desire and readiness to discuss the way to resolve issues of our concerns with the SPLM government in Juba but the problem is that the other side does not believe in dialogue. They have always talked of their intentions to flush us out, forgetting that the war with Sudan was not won through a barrel of gun. There were negotiations”, Yauyau said on Wednesday.
However, South Sudan’s information minister on Thursday dismissed the rebels’ claims as untrue, saying Yauyau and his group were only trying to get out of the problem.
“What else would you expect him [Yauyau] to say?. They are simply trying to get out of a problem occurred”, Barnaba Marial told a media briefing in the capital, Juba.
He stressed that South Sudan government was committed to peace with the rebels and that’s why it signed last year’s ceasefire, which Yauyau failed to honour.
“If Yauyau believes in peace, why did he abandon the peace deal with government and return to the bush?” he asked.
The rebel leader also denied that armed elements loyal to him were involved in the attack, saying his group is not at war with the UN.
“We made our position very clear in the statement we released yesterday when we learned that we have been implicated in the attack which occurred in area which is completely not under our control. The United Nations [Mission] in South Sudan is free to conduct [an] investigation into the killings. We will provide support to do their work. Actually we recognise and appreciate the work of the United Nations in protection of the civilians which is also what our forces do”, Yauyau told Sudan Tribune.
The rebel leader said his group was ready to negotiate a deal with the government, on condition that international actors are involved in the negotiation processes. He put down demands he would want to be met for him and his men to lay down arms and accept negotiation with the government outside the country.
“One of the issues we have raised with different groups who have approached us including political leaders from Jonglei is the issue of security of our people. We told them we are not against disarmament but it must be done in a way that does not make others become vulnerable, especially those who have been disarmed in the first instance. Our people accepted to voluntarily surrender their weapons but what happened, they became victim of the project. Their houses were burned, thousands were killed. This shows that the disarmament was a deliberate exercise against our people. It was cleansing. They wanted to wipe out our people from existing”, he explained in an exclusive interview with Sudan Tribune on Wednesday.
Yauyau, a former theologian turned politician before becoming a rebel, said negotiations with the government must be mediated by independent international actors and the venue must equally be decided by them and not the government or those with influential contacts with the Juba government.
“A part from the security issues and the venue, the government should commit itself to resolving this conflict by listening to the people and not otherwise. Political leaders must be involved in the negotiation processes. The civil society, the faith based groups, the media, youth and women must participate.”
“The people are talking about accountability and the transparency. The government must make it position clear on those it has accused to have taken public funds. They must be held accountable. The system of governance must be clearly defined. The type of government we want. Majority of our people want parliamentary type of government with decentralisation policy. They also want presidential term and age limit. The powers of the president must be clearly defined. These are some of the issues we have raised several times with those who have approached us and we will continue to raise them with concerned actors”, he said.
The spokesperson of the movement, Colonel Peter Konyi Kubrin also denied that the group was involved in the killing of UN peacekeeping forces in Jonglei.
“The incident took place in an area entirely under the control of the government forces. If there is anything, they should answer what happened. This incident is like the last year attack on the United Nations peacekeepers on similar mission when they were attacked by the same group. It was the SPLA which brought down the UN aircraft”, Kubrin explained.
The SPLA mistakenly shot down a UN helicopter in December last year, killing its four Russian crew. South Sudan accuses neighbouring Sudan of backing Yauyau, an allegation denied by all parties.
Kubrin described, in a press release, the accusations incriminating his group were “blatantly unfounded”, claiming the allegations were designed by the government to tarnish of their forces.
The rebel leader says his group is fighting to build and consolidate the independence of public institutions to safeguard application of the rule of law, fundamental freedoms and equality in the country irrespective of region, tribes or gender. He called on the United Nations to launch investigation to establish truth of what happened.
Phillip Aguer, the spokesperson of the South Sudanese army (SPLA), denied the military was in involved, pointing fingers at forces loyal to Yauau. He reiterated that his troops know the UN mission in the country has a mandate which provides support to the government.
“It is a common sense that such malicious acts are always carried out by criminals. The groups loyal to David Yauyau have definitely carried out this attack. They have been launching ambushes in that area even on the SPLA for about six months now”, Aguer told reporters Wednesday.
David Yauyau first rebelled after he failed to become the Jonglei MP for Gumuruk in 2010. He later accepted an amnesty by South Sudan’s president in 2011, but rebelled again in April 2012.
(ST)