Machar discusses South Sudan peace with President Zuma
February 18, 2016 (PRETORIA) – South Sudan’s First Vice President designate, Riek Machar, has held a meeting with the South African President, Jacob Zuma, on Thursday in Pretoria, his spokesman has said.
“The First Vice President designate and Chairman and Commander-in-Chief of the SPLM/SPLA (IO), Dr Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon, has on Thursday met the South African President, H.E. Jacob Zuma, in Pretoria,” James Gatdet Dak, press secretary of the opposition leader, confirmed to Sudan Tribune.
The two leaders, he said, discussed the implementation of the peace agreement signed by warring parties in South Sudan.
Dak said the meeting dwelled on the challenges faced in the implementation of the peace deal, particularly the demilitarization of the national capital, Juba, and transportation of the opposition forces to Juba in accordance with the security arrangements.
In accordance with the peace agreement, the government is supposed to withdraw its excess forces and camp them 25km from Juba.
A joint police and military force of about 8,000 would be deployed in Juba, with the SPLA-IO contributing 1,500 police and 1,410 military categories. The rest would come from the government.
He also added that states security arrangements to deploy joint police forces in Bentiu, Bor, Malakal and other towns was also discussed.
However, there has been delay in the implementation due to lack of resources to transport the opposition forces to Juba as well as establish camps 25km away for the withdrawn forces from the capital and provide them with shelter, food, water and medical care.
The two leaders also touched base on the Arusha reunification process of the ruling SPLM party and the need for further process to achieve reunification between its factions.
The opposition leader’s spokesman further said the leadership commended the recent statement from the Group Partner of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) after their meeting in Nairobi on Thursday, which called for demilitarization of the capital and transportation of opposition forces to Juba.
He said the leadership is committed to the implementation of the peace agreement and Machar would return to Juba as soon as possible to form a transitional government should the joint forces be transported and deployed in Juba.
The mission to Pretoria is the third regional tour by Machar in a month after visiting Kampala, Uganda, and Cairo, Egypt, where he met with the heads of state of those countries to discuss peace in South Sudan.
(ST)