South Sudanese reactions to peace talks after multiple breakdown
August 14, 2015 (JUBA) – South Sudan’s peace talks in neighbouring Ethiopia have drawn different reactions among South Sudanese ordinary citizens and government officials, with some expressing scepticism about whether the two main warring sides would meet the 17 August deadline set by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) which mediates between the parties.
Deputy minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, Peter Bashir Gbandi, who leads the government’s formed security committee, expressed commitment of the government to continue to negotiate in good faith with the armed opposition leadership under the former vice president, Riek Machar, calling on the rebels to reciprocate in order to a reach a deal by the end of the week.
“Our team has done everything possible within our capacity to try to resolve the contentious issues. We have shown strong and keen interest to ending this senseless war which has brought too much suffering and pain, because it is the commitment of the government to bring peace to the country,” said Gbandi.
The leading member of the negotiating team of president Salva Kiir claimed that Juba had given concessions since negotiations began with the rebels and hoped that the rebels and other groups in the negotiations could do the same and bring peace.
The official explained key negotiators representing different groups in the expanded IGAD-Plus peace talks on Thursday unsuccessfully revisited contentious issues on security arrangements in the proposed compromise agreement.
“No agreement was reached. Once again the government, former detainees and the SPLM/A in opposition security committee members met on Thursday in the presence of experts on security to try and iron out contentious issues but no consensus was reached. The talks have been left to the two principals to see if they can overcome the difficulties because they are the ones with ultimate decision to make on these issues,” he explained.
Multiple opposition and former detainee officials have also confirmed that one week negotiations involving all the sides to the conflict have not made significant progress, despite mounting regional and international pressure on them to reach the final peace deal before the end of the month.
The rebels, including their leader, Riek Machar himself, have criticized the revised version of the IGAD proposal which they said had abandoned key provisions in favour of the view of the government.
The revised version, according to the rebel officials, reneged on demilitarization of the national capital, Juba, extension of power sharing to the ten states except only in the national institutions.
The new changes leave the responsibility of providing protection and security in the national capital in the hands of four army chiefs of staff drawn from neighbouring Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia and Sudan.
In reacting to the new proposal, leading civil society member, Ajak Deng, said Friday IGAD should allow the warring parties to negotiate before coming out with revised version.
“IGAD should have waited the outcome of the negotiation between president Kiir and Riek Machar. The mediators should not have come up with the new proposal. Who knows, may be the principals will have a change of heart and reach consensus on some areas which their negotiators could not resolve,” said Deng.
“Coming out with another proposal is the weakness of the IGAD and [it] is why the two parties have not until this moment been able to sign a peace agreement because instead of allowing them to engage themselves, they come up with new proposal in the middle of negotiation,” he added, while referring to a meeting this week in Kampala by four regional leaders.
He said it was not right for the “confusing” approach that complicated the whole process especially at a time when a peace agreement was about to be reached.
However, South Sudanese government on Friday announced that president Salva Kiir will not travel to Addis Ababa for direct negotiation with the rebel leader Machar, adding that the government was pulling out from the talks.
(ST)