The SPLM-IO has suspended four senior members for allegedly
supporting SPLM-IG activities aimed at abrogating the R-ARCSS and replacing Dr.
Riek Machar as First Vice President and Chairman of the SPLM-IO.
The four members, in a suspension order issued by the Deputy
Chairman of the SPLM-IO, Oyet Nathaniel, include Stephen Par Kuol, the Minister
of Peacebuilding and member of R-JMEC in the capacity of Secretary General of
the National Transitional Committee (NTC), Agok Makur Kur and Ding Lam,
national members of Parliament; and Luke Thompson Thoan.
“[They] engaged in activities in support of the SPLM-IG to
create disunity in the party and abrogate the R-ARCSS by mobilizing for
replacement of H.E Dr. Riek Machar Teny, First Vice President of the Republic
of South Sudan and the Chairman and Commander in Chief of the SPLM/A-IO” Oyet
charged.
The party suspended the members from the Political Bureau,
Liberation Council, and their roles in government and peace agreement
mechanisms for allegedly supporting SPLM-IG efforts to replace Dr. Machar.
“The aforementioned comrades shall appear before a
disciplinary Committee that shall be constituted in accordance with the basic
documents of the SPLM-IO,” Oyet stated.
The Radio Community could not immediately reach the
suspended members for comment.
The suspension comes amid security and political tensions
following the arrest of Dr. Machar, the First Vice President and Chairman of
the SPLM-IO, along with over 20 of his cadres in connection with the conflict
in Nasir, Upper Nile State, between government forces and the White Army, a
community militia allied with the SPLM-IO.
The clashes have stirred military conflict in the Upper Nile
region and around Juba, causing casualties, property destruction, and
displacement, with many people already crossing into Ethiopia.
In recent days, over 600 of Machar’s forces defected to the
SSPDF under President Kiir, which Machar’s party dismissed as
"opportunistic maneuvers.
Since Dr. Machar was put under house arrest on March 26,
2025, civil society, regional bodies, and the international community have
continued to call for his release, dialogue, and respect for the 2018 peace
agreement. However, all these calls have not been heeded.
IGAD special envoy to South Sudan, Raila Odinga, and the
AU’s Panel of the Wise traveled to Juba to ease tensions and mediate between
Kiir and Machar. They met President Kiir but were denied access to Dr. Riek.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, a long-time ally of Kiir,
is reported by the President's Office to have met with political parties,
including SPLM-IO members, during his two-day state visit last week, despite
the SPLM-IO's earlier refusal to engage in talks in Juba due to safety
concerns.
The members he met and the details of their discussions
regarding the tensions have not been disclosed.
Though Museveni is a guarantor of the 2018 peace agreement,
Uganda’s recent troop deployments supporting the SSPDF to fight the White Army
have drawn criticism, including from Dr. Machar, who has called on the UN to
intervene and withdraw the forces.
The current security and political tension have raised fears of the 2018 peace agreement collapsing, potentially pushing South Sudan back into full-scale civil war if de-escalation and dialogue do not take place.
