South Sudan’s fragile transition is once again on the brink. The government’s decision to place First Vice-President Riek Machar and several senior officials of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) on criminal charges — including treason, murder, and terrorism — risks dragging the country back into the abyss it has struggled for over a decade to escape.
The Justice Ministry insists that the charges send a strong message that no one is above the law. Yet the timing, scope, and political profile of those accused suggest that the law is being wielded not as a neutral instrument of justice, but as a weapon to weaken rivals and consolidate power.
