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Juba protests UN sanctions against three ministers

Thursday May 31 2018
makuei

Under UN sanctions South Sudan Government Spokesman and Information minister Michael Makuei. FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

By JOSEPH ODUHA

The South Sudan government has protested the blacklisting of its three ministers by the UN Security Council (UNSC) over claims of fuelling violence.

In a letter to UNSC on Thursday, Juba decried the enlisting of its Defence minister Gen Kuol Manyang Juuk, Dr Elia Lomoro of Cabinet Affairs and Mr Michael Makuei of Information, saying the sanctions against them, would undermine the peace in the war-torn state.

The sanctions against the trio were spearheaded by the US, which Juba accuses of seeking a regime change.

“It is clear the US is seeking a regime change in South Sudan.

The success

“This is now the fourth time the US has intervened to undermine the success of the revitalisation forum and the entire peace process in South Sudan. In December 2017, the US released a totally unwarranted press statement hurling sanctions threat mainly aimed at government ministers and arrogantly declaring the leadership of Juba an 'unfit partner'," the letter reads.

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It also accused the leaders of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) and the Ceasefire Transitional Security Arrangements Mechanism and Monitoring (CTSAMM) and the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission of giving false reports on South Sudan to the US and UNSC.

Military support

“It is very important to make the point here that the US sanctions proposal will have a major challenge to the operations of CTSAMM, JMEC, UNMISS, UNOCHA and the related humanitarian agencies because the three blacklisted ministers were directly responsible for their work in South Sudan,” the further reads.

Juba has also accused leading rebel commander Thomas Cirilo of feeding the US with false report of the government providing military support to the Sudanese rebel groups to attack Pagak in the Upper Nile State recently.

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