Espen Barth Eide, Norwegian Foreign Minister and Ambassadors to Kenya and South Sudan, addressed the ongoing Sudan Peace talks dubbed Tumaini Initiative in Nairobi.
South Sudan’s holdout groups are forming a coalition to raise their stakes in the talks in Nairobi, hoping for a better bargain.
The groups who have been participating in the Nairobi-mediated dialogue known as Tumaini Initiative, say they are consolidating their demands ahead of planned resumption of talks scheduled for January 15, even though there are signs the sessions may yet be delayed.
The holdout groups are so-called because they had stayed off the peace deal in 2018, which helped form the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU).
At Tumaini, they have been operating under the umbrella of the South Sudan Opposition Movements Alliance (Ssoma). And now they have adopted a new name: United People’s Alliance (UPA), roping in new members since January 9.
According to Dr Cirino Hiteny, a member of the Tumaini Implementation Committee, the unification of opposition groups, including Ssoma factions, signals a collective commitment to addressing the root causes of South Sudan’s political instability and humanitarian crises.
The UPA declaration was signed by Pagan Amum, leader of the Real-SPLM, Gen Paul Malong, a former military chief in South Sudan and now leader of South Sudan United Front (SSUF), South Sudan United National Alliance (Ssuna) led by Gen Stephen Buay, and the National Salvation Front-Revolutionary Command Council (NAS-RCC), led by Gen Mario Loku Thomas Jada.
“Our motherland is in danger of disintegration; it is collapsing into chaos and disorder as a direct result of leadership failure,” the group said in their statement.
The group timed their announcement to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) on January 9, 2005 — which eventually led to the independence of South Sudan from Sudan in July 2011.
The Salva Kiir side of the government has been suspicious of Tumaini Initiative even though the President himself reached out to his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto to help broker a deal.
Our motherland is in danger of disintegration; it is collapsing into chaos and disorder as a direct result of leadership failure
The move means Tumaini mediators, led by Kenya’s Lt-Gen (Rtd) Lazarus Sumbeiywo, will have to adopt a new name for those negotiating with the government when the talks expected to resume on January 15.
It was unclear whether this decision will reopen talks on closed agenda items, which parties had initialled.
The government delegation kicked off controversy last year after demanding a reopening of the eight protocol areas deemed completed. They then walked out of talks on December 14.
“The formation of UPA strengthens the opposition’s bargaining power in peace negotiations by presenting a united front. This unity is essential for meaningful dialogue with the government and the realisation of sustainable peace,” Dr Hiteny said.
The TGoNU side has often argued that the Nairobi forum creates a parallel peace agreement to the one mediated by regional bloc, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad), allowing the holdout groups new bargaining powers in the coalition. They also believe the talks are imposed by the donors, mainly Troika — UK, US and Norway.
John Andruga Duku, a former South Sudan ambassador to China, wondered why the donors are keen to sponsor many civil society groups to take part in the Tumaini talks and yet they are not a party to the conflict.
“It raises questions about why those who have refused to support the implementation of the 2018 peace agreement are willing to keep a delegation of civil society in Nairobi indefinitely,” Mr Duku said.
The lingering suspicions led the government to change the entire delegation that had earlier initialled eight protocols with the opposition in Nairobi.
The UPA is now calling on all the people of South Sudan, opposition parties and stakeholders to unite and intensify the struggle to achieve peace and good governance using all means possible to end the suffering of the people and the political instability blamed on the current regime in Juba.
“Our people are yearning for peace while the corrupt regime in Juba keeps obstructing peace and holding on to power illegitimately through several senseless extensions,” UPA said.
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