Op-ed, 14^th September 2019

By Laura Nunu (Lauranunu@gmail.com)

The devil in the details of South Sudan war is driven by pride, greed and lust over power and land. Why? Because the unwritten notion among South Sudanese is that: whoever is in power controls the land and its resources; and whoever controls the land and its resources controls the people and their land. And yeah! whoever controls the people and their land is powerful! And being powerful in this case also means, one is above the law. As a result, acting with impunity is seen normal because it expresses ‘being powerful’. This is obviously, the unspoken bitter truth that is in the core of this war, right? If that is the case, is this not indirectly, slavery of the highest order?

So, then the questions that follow: is this not what we had been fighting against in our 50+ years of struggles that took more than 2.5 million lives? Where is us; the so called people of South Sudan who voted overwhelmingly for a country we can finally, call our own? Where is ‘the first class citizenship’ SPLM preached about? What about the idea of taking towns to villages? The truth of the matter is: we are cheated of our votes and all these empty promises died with Dr. John. Salva Kiir in his unfortunate position as president is now the new slave master in SPLM uniform, this time under the slogan of ‘in the name of my tribe’.

As a result, tribalism, nepotism and looting with impunity is another way of empowering himself and his tribe to take control over the country and its people. Dr. Riek who dwelled in the same mentality is seen as a threat due to his/ tribe potential in rally after him to take over South Sudan. And that was exactly how this war played out, power struggle, right? That is why Riek is always accused of being greedy and in hurry because he couldn’t wait for his turn??? That is why both men were able to recruit tribal militias to fight for them. That is why we are polarized along tribal lines and finally, that is why both men are only interested in making ‘positions deal’ other than working for a real peace deal that will unite the people of South Sudan.

But is that all? Why then both men are desperate for power? What about the ethnic cleansing projects? How is it even possible to recruit militia ‘in the name of my tribe’? And why is 1991 campaign in the onset of this war was a relevant song?

The truth is, underneath this power struggle is fear, anger, humiliation, hatred, tribal revenges and grudges of the past histories and events which were not completely resolved. Why, because of long held practices of being above the law, killing with impunity and taking law into one’s own hands; which are seen as exercise of power over others that has become vicious circles.

Then the real questions are: what has that got to do with the rest of us? Why do we have to be part of something that we don’t have a clue about, to begin with? Above all, how can we build a country that we can all call our own when the so called leaders and their supporters have tribal grudges to resolve and are desperate for power because they want to be the ‘new slave masters’ of the people of South Sudan?

On 9/9/2019, we were treated to ‘Breaking News’: the return of Dr. Riek Machar to capital city, Juba!

How is the return of Dr. Riek to Juba relevant to us? In other words, what will it do to the average South Sudanese person? Are we really South Sudanese or bunches of tribes that find themselves in a geographical area, now called South Sudan? Can we really have a country that ‘we all’ can call our own? Is there really unity in our diversity? What is it and what does it really mean to be ‘a South Sudanese of diverse ethnic background’?

At this point I concurred with Albert Einstein who said, “Problems cannot be solved with the same mind set that created them.”

It’s time to look outside the box to put the people first, not the corrupt elites, for true South Sudan NADAFA from impunity and domination by the power hungry tribal elites.

God bless you and God bless the people of South Sudan!

Op-ed, 7^th September 2019

By: Laura Nunu (Lauranunu@gmail.com)   

After five decades of war, suffering and instability, South Sudan seceded from Sudan on July 9^th, 2011. But only after two years of independence, it was plunged into civil war with itself, the most brutal and genocidal and gravest human rights atrocities the world had seen recently. Since the conflict started in December 2013, more than 4 million people have fled their homes, with 2.47 million taking refuge in neighboring countries. Close to 200,000 people are living in six UN “protection of civilians” sites across the country. Seven million people in need of humanitarian assistance, most of them faced acute food shortages (South Sudan, Human Rights Watch 2019).

The question that is in everyone lips is: they are as dark as night, and have just separated from what they called ‘Muslim-Arab domination and discrimination’ then why are they fighting?

To answer this question, we must dig deep into not only the historical struggles of the South Sudanese people, but also deep into the tribal and ethnic power struggles of co-existence as different ethnic groups or nations. But most of the time, the answer given to this question is dismissed as political power struggle in the SPLM party between the President, Salva Kiir and his Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar, leaving the root causes of the problems untouched. And the genocide that resulted from targeting the Nuer tribe at the onset of the conflict is said to be due to groups loyal to the President and his Vice.

Is that really the case? How can a power struggle between two political leaders of one ruling party (SPLM) end up in genocide of innocent civilians along tribal lines?

What had this power struggle to do with innocent men, women and children from Nuer massacred on 15th, 16th and 17th December 2013? And what of the aftermath massacre of Dinka men, women and children in Upper Nile and Bahr El Ghazal?

What about those men, women and children killed in Wau in 2012? What about the men, women and children killed and chased away from their ancestral land of Greater Equatoria, Upper Nile and Bahr El Ghazal? What about all the raping of both male and female some of who are as young as five years of age? Are all these also loyalties of these two men?

What about the land grabbing issues that is evident all over the country? What about all the looting and burning of villages that are common events of this war? What about the tribalism, looting state resources with impunity and dominance of most government institutions by mainly two tribes? What about the recruitment of tribal militias? Are all these events isolated or related? And above all, the million-dollar question is: what is the power struggle all about?

For us to move forward, we need to be persistent and consistent while making progress. As a people, we have made quite tremendous achievements in understanding the issues of our country. Thanks to the technology of 21st century! Together with our global concerned citizens of South Sudan (both inside and outside the country), and others who took our issues into their own hearts, either professionally or personally, self-appointed journalists and presenters of live shows and their committed audiences, grass-roots green Facebook politicians, veteran politicians and all other media outlets, we have arrived to few solid conclusions, which I would like to highlight as follows:

We all now come to a realization that we are cheated of our vote! The South Sudan that we all voted for overwhelming is hijacked by a tribal elites. President Salva Kirr became a tribal chief, using tribal militia to cling to power. Our dream country is turned into a total nightmare of hell on earth.

SPLM/A as we know of doesn’t exist. They split up into pieces and failed to re-unite. The party Secretary general, Pagan Amum, resignation said it all. There are no functional institutions, as well as legitimate government under Kiir Mayardit. What we have in Juba are self-appointed tribal groups, aka Jieng Council of Elders JCE, operating in the name of ‘my tribe’, politicians who are only representing themselves in a ‘fake’ political party called SPLM and ghost national army which are purely tribal.

The vision of a new Sudan died with Dr. John. Salva Kiir did not adopt that vision because he had different hidden vision and manifesto for South Sudan. The CPA brought to us in ‘a golden plate’ had a very dirty hidden agenda, which turned our dream country into a total nightmare. As such, its implementation failed short of expectations. By creating JCE, Salva Kiir literally, hijacked our country for himself and his tribe. He created tribal hegemony with him as a king. As such, we are back to square one: identity crisis, wars/crimes, and unspeakable human rights violations, lack of development, leading to economic melt down. It will never be an easy ride and possible for Salva Kiir and his JCE regime to scoop only for themselves the collective efforts of 64+ diverse ethnic nations, that are known of their resilience against oppression for at least 50+ years, which caused them more than 3.5 million lives, for oneself and their tribe. Kiir’s JCE plan evilness at its core!

Now that we are back to square one, what next?

To cut the long story short, a lot had happened since 2013. New revolutionary movements had emerged some with their military wings, others are not. At the moment, there are two broad alliance grouping of oppositions: National Alliance for Democracy And Freedom Action (NADAFA) and South Sudan National Democratic Alliance (SSNDA). The latter had joined last week a new alliance with two more groups: Real-Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (R-SPLM) and South Sudan United Front to form South Sudan Oppositions Movements (SSOM). SSOM, the new group of (one existing alliance with other opposition entities) professed to work for genuine change, although they differ in their ways of bringing that change. Each alliance entity or opposition entity in the new formation still retained its identity and independence, and agreed a number of broad principles and objectives for collaboration between them.

We in South Sudan NADAFA have clearly articulated the principles and objectives of the alliance which are premised on the core fundamental human and peoples rights, political, social, cultural and economic rights, and believe that the problem of South Sudan is reflective of our diversity. As such, it cannot be confined to one approach or one school of thought. It requires a holistic approach from all schools of thought in statecraft and state formation principles that we are expected to uphold as blueprints as do our local and global South Sudan NADAFA partners.

No one group of revolutionary movements, civil societies, political parties and others can claim monopoly of ownership or technical know how of bringing a real change to our country. It needs all of us and it will take all of us to bring that change. Why, because we are experts of our own experiences and existence. You cannot talk of life on the streets unless you had lived on those streets or have loved ones living on those streets. You cannot talk of lack of medical facilities without context and knowledge of the real experience our people suffer daily, week in week out in their life or the lives of those in their community with little poor to non-existent health and medical facilities for them to enjoy the minimum expectations of the right to good health.

You cannot talk of poor school unless your children are in those schools, and so on and so fort. And almost all of us got those experiences in one way or another. As such, it is time we do something about it by listening to the voices of our people who are in the heart of it, right now! Our people are speaking and they have spoken many times in many ways but are we listening? What are we doing as groups who claimed to represent them? And even better, how do we amplify those voices to give one clear message?

We in South Sudan NADAFA embrace a bottom up approach of government system where the real power of governance is people driven. We look forward to a real people-centric government of the people, by the people for the people, which derives its authority, power and legitimacy from the people, not from the political elites. As revolutionary movements, we are therefore obligated to listen to our people and echo their voices, unlike Kiir JCE government that only produces Presidential decrees to dictate his agenda and that of his cohorts down our throats with impunity and against the will of the people of South Sudan.

Kiir in his unfortunate position as a President is only interested in issues that sound good to his ears and that only fulfill his/cohorts interest, even if he initiated the approaches. If Kiir were a real President of all the people of South Sudan, he would have avoided this senseless war, which he himself regrets but initiated. He would have adopted and acted on the resolutions of Equatorian Conference 2011, which represented a popular consultation of the people of Equatoria at the time, contrary to his illegal 28-states establishment decree, which had no popular consultation at all, neither in Upper Nile, Equatoria nor in Bahr al Ghazal.

The National Dialogue (which he initiated) made recommendations after consultations to return the country to the former three regions of Southern Sudan under a federal governance system with three regions as federal states. Kiir would have adopted those recommendations to move the country forward but he didn’t.

 The recent regional conferences of Bahr El Ghazal, Upper Nile and Equatoria are designed to give Salva Kiir green light to proceed with imposing his 32 tribal states in South Sudan against the wishes of our people.

At this juncture, we can only appeal to our human consciousness and moral obligation of doing the right thing, every time and anywhere, in our various capacity and ability as South Sudanese as well as parties to alliances. As such, we are calling on the people of South Sudan inside and outside the country to double their efforts in (NADAFA) and cleaning up our regions of Bhar El Ghazal, Upper Nile and Equatoria from Kirr’s tyranny regime of tribalism, nepotism and ruling with impunity.  The opposition needs to ensure that our people do not fall into Kiir’s trap of turning those regional conferences as Trojan horses for imposing the JCE inspired 32-states.

The onus is upon all different revolutionary movements, civil societies and other professional/non-professional groups, locally and internationally to echo and reinforce South Sudan NADAFA for a new beginning to return power back to the people of South Sudan. The onus is on all the opposition groups to amplify the struggle to end impunity, loud and clear, and Kiir Must Go.

For Immediate Release                                                                                                                                       July 17, 2019

The South Sudan National Alliance for Democracy And Freedom Action (NADAFA), a grassroots coalition of like-minded political parties, interest groups and individuals across the world who call for a Federal system based on three autonomous governments representing the peoples of the country’s three regions of Bahr al Ghazal, Upper Nile and Equatoria pays special tribute to Professor Leonzio Angole Onek. As a young adult and student, Professor Onek received a baton from his father, a veteran of the First Sudanese Civil War, also known as the Anyanya Rebellion or Anyanya 1 and others seeking full rights for ordinary South Sudanese. He ran an exceptional race, finished the course and kept the faith until he left us on July 10, 2019 after a short illness in Kenya.

The Anyanya Rebellion that Professor Onek’s father fought in was a conflict between Northern Sudan and Southern Sudan that protracted from 1955 to 1972 when a peace agreement was signed. After a short hiatus from 1972 to 1983, another war broke out again between the two sides and lasted until 2005 when a second agreement was signed which eventually led to Sudan breaking up into two with South Sudan becoming the world’s newest country on July 9, 2011. Two years after South Sudan joined the community of nations and became a sovereign state, conflict erupted within the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army followed by genocide against unarmed civilians and a brutal war that continues unabated.  

Determined that victory was the only option to free the masses of South Sudan from unprecedented cruelty by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army, Professor Onek responded to a clarion call to join the People’s Democratic Movement, which affiliated with the South Sudan National Alliance for Democracy And Freedom Action (NADAFA) and continues to mobilize against tyranny.  NADAFA is deeply saddened about the passing on of Professor Leonzio Angole Onek while continuing to mobilize against the same cruelty that led to his death. The coalition offers profound condolences to Dr. Onek’s family, the people of Magwi, all of Acholiland, the people of Equatoria and the masses of South Sudan who have been robbed of an outstanding campaigner.  Dr. Onek departs at a time when the masses of South Sudan need his academic prowess and impeccable communication skills the most. He will be profoundly missed by NADAFA as it gains momentum in its determination to free the masses of South Sudan from autocracy.  

In addition to being a fearless advocate for the ordinary masses of South Sudan, Dr. Onek will always be remembered for extending a hand in the negotiation and search for peace between the Lord’s Resistance Army and the government of Uganda. He will be greatly missed by former colleagues and students at various universities in Kenya where he taught Biochemistry and the University of Juba where he served with enthusiasm as Dean of Applied and Industrial Sciences before he was falsely accused of being an adversary of the tyrannical government of South Sudan and jailed for an extended period in dreadful conditions without being charged. While in illegal detention, Dr. Onek suffered severe hardship and torture, resulting in ill health. Upon his release from unlawful incarceration, Dr. Onek fled to Kenya where he continued advocating on behalf of his suffering people of South Sudan until his untimely demise on July 10, 2019 a few hours after the 8^th anniversary of the South Sudan independence he, his father and others sacrificed so much to attain.    

South Sudan NADAFA mourns the loss of a hero who spent a substantial part of his life finding solutions for peace in South Sudan and looking out for the welfare of his suffering people. A personification of extraordinary brilliance, NADAFA will be hard pressed to find someone of Dr. Onek’s caliber but his spirit lives on in the people he touched during his time in this temporary world. South Sudan NADAFA takes this opportunity to thank Professor Onek’s family, his wife Judith Kassara Okumu and her children in Kenya and his wife Angela and her children in the United Kingdom and other family members for the privilege of sharing Dr. Onek as a friend, colleague and avid advocate for peace, justice and fairness.

Rest in eternal peace now Dr. Onek, as NADAFA receives your baton and commits to keeping your candle burning until the masses of South Sudan cross the finish line in fulfilment of our shared conviction about power belonging to the people and not to the elites.

Farewell Professor Leonzio Angole Onek!

For Immediate release                                                                                                                                       July 10^th, 2019

The People’s Democratic Movement (PDM) is extremely saddened to offer its sincere and deeply heartfelt condolences to the family of late Dr. Leonzio Angole Onek who suddenly died on 10^th July 2019 after a short illness. PDM offers its condolences to the people of South Sudan, and to his immediate Acholi and Equatoria communities. He will be remembered as a great scholar, a seasoned politician, above all a faithful husband and a loving father.

Dr. Leonzio Angole Onek was born and bred in ladit Onek’s family of the South Sudanese Acholi community in Magwi. He was a distinctive and distinguished academician of his generation. He first taught Biochemistry at Kenyan universities before returning home to his native country after the signing of the Comprehension Peace Agreement in 2005.

However, he came to prominence during the search for peace in Uganda between the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government army the UPDF. As the Chairman of the Equatoria Civic Fund, he spearheaded peace talks between the warring parties. This was not only one of his noble gestures and contributions to peace, but the truth was that Dr Onek was much more concerned about the plight of his people and his home town of Magwi, which was part of Torit County. Most parts of Northern Uganda neighbouring Magwi were the battlefields between the LRA and UPDF. The region was at the same time a frontline between the battling Khartoum forces and the SPLA. This region saw a lot of suffering, especially between 1999 and 2005.  

In 2006 Pax Christi chose and delegated Dr Onek to mediate between the LRA and the UPDF. The peace efforts involved the government of South Sudan as a co mediator, but it collapsed because of mistrust between the parties to the conflict.

When peace came to South Sudan, Prof Dr. Onek returned to the regional capital Juba and joined the University of Juba as the Dean of the Applied and Industrial Sciences. Following the outbreak of War between the government and Dr. Riak Machar’s protection forces in 2016, Dr. Onek was falsely accused of supporting Dr. Machar and was subsequently jailed by the National Security Service of South Sudan (NSS). He was only later released without any charges laid on him on December 7, 2016, when his health had deteriorated badly. After his release from detention, he fled to Nairobi, where he had lived with family until his untimely and sudden death from ill health.

While in Nairobi, conscious of the plight of his people back home and in the region, who are suffering horrors of war as IDPs and as refugees in camps in neighbouring Uganda and Kenya, Dr. Onek offered to contribute to the peace process mediated by IGAD in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. He joined and represented the Peoples’ Democratic Movement (PDM) and became the Movement’s Head of Delegation to the first talks in the Khartoum leg where he mediated part of the peace process on Security arrangements.

Unfortunately, the talks failed and PDM did not support the Khartoum Declaration of Agreement that culminated into signing of the so-called Khartoum Peace Agreement.

It is worth noting that Dr Onek, like other people of conscience, did his uttermost best to genuinely contribute to the peace efforts, even as he still vividly remembered the harshness of the war behind bars for false accusations in Juba.

Despite all the challenges he faced, Prof. Onek’s commitments were to bring peace and welfare to his people. His contributions over the years from student days and throughout his distinguished career amply testify to that. Dr Onek was a humble peace lover, though he staunchly resisted the failed policies of the government in Juba. Prof. Leonzio Onek had unflinching faith in his pen, which he deployed most effectively to fight against the unlawful regime in Juba and its divisive policies. His intellectual faculties and charisma were a potent and most effective tool to advance democracy and freedom of his people.

Though, his recent sudden and unexpected ill-health lead to his early untimely demise, Dr. Onek’s spirit was never broken down.  The illness, which he finally succumbed to far and away from home, snatched a true and loyal patriot from us. He swallowed all the bitterness of respected Professors being needlessly humiliated in the country, and left the country because of unworthy treatment and humiliation by his own country’s rulers, who do not value education or those highly qualified and endowed with knowledgeable and expertise to serve the strategic interest of their country from a position of leadership.

Professor Onek is survived by his wife Judith Kassara Okumu with her children in Kenya and his wife Angela Onek and her children in the United Kingdom.

PDM is without sufficient words and feeling to express our loss of irreplaceable talent, leader and finest of educated men in our country, and who possessed immense intellect, integrity and honourable demeanour, and served his country with unparalleled distinction and conviction.

Professor Leo Agole Onek, comrade in struggle, May Your Soul Rest in Eternal Peace. PDM shall carry your ambition and aspirations to make your people free from tyranny and oppression.

Dr. Hakim Dario,

Chair, People’s Democratic Movement (PDM)

press@pdm-rss.org

PRESS RELEASE – PRESIDENT SALVA KIIR MUST GO

Monday, May 2019-05-20

South Sudan National Alliance for Democracy And Freedom Action (NADAFA) are extremely outraged and saddened of the extra-judicial execution of Human Rights lawyer Samuel Dong Luak and Humanitarian Affairs Committee Chairperson of SPLM-IO, Aggrey Idri Ezbon by the government of South Sudan on 30th January 2017 as revealed by the UN Panel of Experts report. Both men had been granted refugee status in Kenya but were kidnapped and handed over to South Sudan National Security Service agents who took them back to South Sudan and executed them by firing squad.

South Sudan NADAFA condemns in the strongest terms possible the unprecedented state sponsored perpetration of terrorist actions across international borders by President Kiir’s illegitimate government aided by Kenyan agents, and suspected involvement of First Vice President Taban Deng Gai in the crime planned and executed by state agents at senior government level. The abduction of refugees from Kenya by Salva Kiir’s Government, is further proven by Mr. Marko Lokidor, who was also later kidnapped from Kakuma refugee camp by Kenya security agents, transported and handed over to security agents under Governor Louis Lobong of Namorungang State. Mr. Marko Lokidor was kept in National Security detention centre in Juba, so called Blue House, until he was only recently released under terms of the R-ARCSS 2018. 

These acts by Kenya and South Sudan Government security agents are a gross abuse of basic human rights against innocent political opponents and a violation of the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, international law and treaties. 

South Sudan NADAFA therefore equally condemns the Government of Kenya for its failure to observe the UN Convention’s core principle, which asserts that a refugee should not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom. According to this international law, States are expected to ensure that the rights of refugees are respected and protected. 

South Sudan NADAFA, calls upon the UN and International Human Rights bodies to condemn Kenya’s role in the removal from Kenya and return to South Sudan of Aggrey Idri and Samuel Dong where they were detained in the hands of the Government of South Sudan in Juba and later murdered in cold blood in Luri, at the site of Salva Kiir’s Presidential complex. The South Sudan and Kenyan Governments, as evidence exist, cannot deny the abduction of Mr. Marko Lokidor as evidence and handing him over to Juba in similar circumstances.

The state commission or aiding of acts of abduction and kidnapping, handing over conventional refugees to a government that is known to murder political opponents, Kenya bears full responsibility and obligations for accountability under international law for the lives lost, and together with Salva Kiir’s Government are criminally liable before international law.

South Sudan NADAFA calls upon the people of South Sudan to join us in demanding for President Salva Kiir to step down together with his National Security Service to be held accountable for their murder of Aggrey Idri Ezbon and Samuel Dong Luak, including atrocities committed against innocent civilians before and after the 2013 debacle that triggered the 5 years long civil war in the country.  

South Sudan NADAFA calls upon the United States Government, and President Donald Trump in particular, TROIKA and UNSEC to hold Salva Kiir and his entire government responsible for acts of extra judicial execution against innocent citizens in South Sudan. PRESIDENT SALVA KIIR MUST GO, and cannot be trusted with making-peace and leadership of South Sudan at this time, he is unfit to lead any peace agreements to which he is a signatory. NADAFA calls on his entire illegitimate government to resign with immediate effect to allow for a new inclusive peace process which puts the people first and shares power not between SPLM elites but between the peoples of South Sudan based on the three regions of Upper Nile, Equatoria and Bahr el Ghazal in a federal system during the transitional period.

South Sudan NADAFA condemns President Salva Kiir for paying the US firm Gainful Solutions Inc. 3.7 USD million to obstruct establishment of the Hybrid Court for South Sudan and thus pervert the course of justice as proposed under the terms of the R-ARCSS. President Salva Kiir actions demonstrated that his illegitimate government can’t be trusted to lead and implement peace in letter and spirit. The entire world now knows that His Holy See Pope Francis kissed the feet of a Head of State who cannot be trusted with leading peace and justice in South Sudan but doing the opposite, to obstruct and undermine the course of justice.

South Sudan NADAFA calls upon the UNSEC, TROIKA, the AU, IGAD and international community to name South Sudan President Salva Kiir peace spoiler.  We join the masses of our people and youth to demand that President Salva Kiir Must Go.

South Sudan NADAFA calls for a UN appointed special envoy for South Sudan to re-negotiate the R-ARCSS for power sharing between the people, to make it people-centric, not elites-centric in its current form, and such that the constitution making process by South Sudanese people for South Sudan should come first, and which process should lead free and fair elections.

Dr. Hakim Dario,

For

South Sudan NADAFA

press@pdm-rss.org

Salva Kirr and his cohorts scooped the ownership of our collective liberation struggles and the country we all equally voted for, for themselves in the name of ‘my tribe’. He divided us along tribal lines and favoured his tribe above all tribes. He dismisses and appoints people with impunity at his will and the will of his jce advisors. He wiped our people out of their villages and put his tribal militias in them in the fake name of ‘security’. He killed and rapped innocent civilians, including women and children and camp them up in the middle of the capital city and other cities in the name of ‘rebel supporters’. He assimilated our lands to his tribal villages in the fake claim of ‘popular demand’. He signed fake peace in the name of ‘unity’. And he is selling out our country and its people in the fake ideas of ‘development’. Salva kirr is a failed president. He has failed the people of South Sudan miserably. His government broke down long time ago when his party broke down into pieces. He has no legitimate constitution other than his presidential degrees. He has no functional institutions, other than his jce advisors. He has no functional parliaments other than his bribed loyalists. He doesn’t know how to govern, he only knows how to rule by being above the law. Salva Kirr is an illegitimate president, running illegitimate government! He is not our president. He does not represent us.  Salva Kirr must go! He and his government must go!

If you believe on the above facts and want unity in our diversity, this is OUR UNITY IN OUR DIVERSITY. This is our uniting point, irrespective of our political affiliations. This is our uniting point, irrespective of where we come from and what tribes we belong to. This is our uniting point if we are all still dreaming of a better new South Sudan that will accommodate and prosper all South Sudanese. Otherwise, forget it!

Is this really too much to ask?

Why should we beg someone for our God given rights? Are we really asking too much? Why do we all have to suffer globally because of one man and his cohorts who find themselves in government positions? Why do we have to suffer if we know ‘we the people of South Sudan’ have the ultimate power to determine our destiny? Why do we have to be a laughing stoke because somebody wants to be a laughing stoke? Why do we want to die in a failure government because someone has failed to government?

Is this really about our tribe? Why do we have to lie because we want Salva Kirr to stay in power? Why do we want Salva Kirr to stay in power if we are all suffering? And why are we scared of Salva Kirr to go if we are all suffering for the same reasons?

Salva Kirr is an illegitimate president, running an illegitimate government! He is not our president, he doesn’t represent us! He and his cohorts must go! He and his cohorts belong to prison, they must go!

By Laura Nunu,

Laura.nunu@gmail.com

By Laura Nunu

For the first time in the history of our time, the pope, his holiness Pope Francis, knelt down to kiss the feet of our so-called leaders. This sparked mixed reactions around the Globe. Some are skeptic; others are humbled while few like me are puzzled trying to get their head around it.

Why would the Pope do that? What message is he trying to send us, South Sudanese, and the world at large? What could that really mean?

Yes, Pope Francis is known for his humility and devotion in following Christ in his duty as the head of the Vatican City and the Holy See. But for his holiness to knell down and kissed the feet of our so-called leaders who had caused worst atrocities known to humanity is something someone like me cannot take lightly. Who is this man and why did he do that?

In my opinion, the clue to this last question is in why Pope chose to be called Pope Francis after Saint Francis of Assisi. If you know Saint Francis of Assisi, then you might have come across his famous prayer, which said:

A prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.

“O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love; for it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are

born to eternal life.” Amen.

Comparing this prayer with Pope speech on that day, then the message becomes clearer. I quoted few paragraphs but the full speech is included at the end of this article. Putting all this together, here is my take:

1. Pope Francis has taken upon himself our sins pleading on our behalf to show God’s Unconditional Love to sinners if they are willing to repent.

Let me explain. Yes, I know Jesus is the only Son of God who took upon Himself the sins of the world to save us all. So, there is no way a mortal human being like the pope can do that to us again. But if we are all true followers of Jesus Christ as we claimed to be, we won’t need people like the pope, bishops, priests and pastors around the world teaching us about Christ. Christianity would have been living the path of Christ in letter and spirits. The world would have been a better place than it is now and evil would have been significantly reduced. But since this is not the case, having people like the pope is still significant to our world and bishops, priests and pastors are still needed more than ever. As such, some people went as far as making business out of it taking the advantage of our spiritual desperations.

To understand the bold statement I made above, you must understand the role of the pope and what he represents. The Vatican City and the Holy See in the leadership of the Pope represents the highest moral authority of God righteousness as in the Christian/Catholic faith in the world.

The Catholic Church in the leadership of the Pope, like in other churches, the devoted their entire life for generations to generations in the teachings and guidance of the Holy Bible. But what makes Catholic Church unique from the other Christian churches is the high level of organizations and hierarchy of power, which of course, attracts a lot of critics. Even if most governments, especially in the western world, avoid inclusions of religion in their ruling system due to diversity of religions around the globe, morality in our ethics and jurisdiction has its basis in spirituality. In our modern world, that basis can still be traced back to the Judea Christian faith in which the Catholic Church is very significant. This means, Christian moral authority in regards to none ethical acts and injustice around the globe is equally very significant of which, the Catholic Church in the leadership of the Pope is not an exception. As a result, the initiative taken by the Archbishop of Canterbury, His Grace Justin Welby, who conceived this initiative, with the former Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Very Reverend John Chalmers is in place. But then, why would Pope Francis kneel down to kiss the feet of our so-called leaders?

Pope Francis is a very unique Pope. He is known by his humility and his devotion to serve the poor. He chose to be called Pope Francis because he wants to be seen and remembered as someone who embodies the legacy of Saint Francis of Assisi. He wants to be God’s true instrument of peace; wherethere is hatred, he will sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. He did that by his significant gesture of showing God’s love and mercy to those who had caused the worst atrocity known to humanity. He spent the first two paragraphs of his speech speaking to them about peace, which is far beyond the peace they signed that is at the verge of breaking down. The real peace of God, as Jesus Christ showed it to His apostles and the world at large. He explained to them that it is the peace that requires sacrifice and commitment from leaders of nations and it is something they must pursue. He said:

“for peace is the fundamental condition for ensuring the rights of each individual and the integral development of an entire people. Jesus Christ, whom God the Father sent into the world as the Prince of Peace, gave us the model to follow. Through his own sacrifice and obedience, he bestowed his peace on the world.

That is why, from the moment of his birth, the choir of angels sang the heavenly hymn:

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased”, (Lk 2:14).

What joy it would bring, were all the South Sudanese people to raise with one voice the song that echoes that of the angels:

“O God, we praise and glorify you for your grace on South Sudan, land of great abundance; uphold us in peace and harmony” (first verse of the South Sudan national anthem).

How I wish that the voices of the entire human family could join that heavenly choir in singing glory to God and working for peace among all men and women! And what that could mean to the people of South Sudan.

What Pope Francis literally did was pleading to our so called leaders on behave of the people of South Sudan in their yearning for real peace after long devastating sufferings. He showed them God, in His Love and Mercy, gives second chance if they are willing to take it. As a leader, he showed them the sacrifice, commitment and humility that are requested of them and what it would mean to the entire people of South Sudan and to the world at large. He literally and actually begged them to go beyond themselves for the sake of the country and its people, to find that space within them and bring real peace to the people of South Sudan. But did they really get it?

2. Pope Francis warned our leaders about the righteousness of God and His special place for the poor and the oppressed.

Now, I am not a theologian and I have not been to any Bible schools or courses other than my upbringing in a Catholic family and schools during my early years of life. That being said, after tasting the bitterness and sweetness of life like anybody, I find myself getting back to the basis of life, in which my Christian/Catholic faith is in its centre. Like some of you, I was struggling with the idea: how can a God that is Unconditionally Loving be also a God of Justice? The simple Sunday school answer is: Because He gave us freedom of choice in choosing and doing the right thing. As simple as it is, this is the whole code to the entire human ethics and morality!

Knowing our limits as human beings to how far we can go in our roles as co-creators in the entire universe of which we are part of and called our home is the key to all the none ethical and injustice roles we play and can be accountable to. Putting this in the context of South Sudan, it also means, killing fellow human beings so that we cling to power as long as we want and wiping people away from their ancestral areas so that we can occupy their villages in the name of ‘my tribe’ is inhumane and unethical, whether we are Christian or not, Atheist or Theist, Gnostic or Agnostic.

And if you are a true Christian, THIS IS THE LINE YOU CANNOT SIMPLY CROSS, because you know better. Which imply, you are now playing god in deciding who lives and dies, what tribes/people have rights to existence and not, and which place can be occupied by who and how! Whether you are taken to ICC or not, God’s justice will eventually prevail. Why, because you have crossed the line. God is watching and hearing the cries of His people and He has special place for the poor and the oppressed. How? Check the Holy Bible!

Pope Francis made this clear to our leaders when he talked of “the gaze of God and the gaze of the people”. 

He highlighted the core points in the whole dichotomy of Unconditional Love and Justice. God’s Unconditional Love is real and abundant to everyone who is willing to receive it. It is the LOVE that binds everything together and keeps it as a whole, in a perfect harmony with each other. You can either choose to be part of it or not. In choosing to be part of it, it requires moving away from your personal egos of pride, greed or lust to embrace the whole. And if you choose not to be part of it, you automatically choose to be opposite to it. Which means, putting yourself into the justice that the whole requires. This is my understanding of these deep meanings.

Another part of this deep understanding is knowing our responsibilities. My understanding of the phrase “God created us in His image” means God grants us the responsibility of being co-creators in His universe. Because, as far as I am concerned, we are the only race/animal kingdoms with the enormous responsibilities of recreating or destroying this beautiful universe with our diverse God given talents. If we choose to recreate it with God’s inspirational ideas, it benefits the whole, but if we choose to only satisfy our personal egos of pride, greed, lust, lies or hypocrisy, it destroys the whole. As such, we are not aimless collection of dusts; we are co-creators of the entire universe with diverse/specific roles to fulfil. That equally means, we are responsible in our entire God’s given talents and duties to do the right thing or face justices. Therefore, we shall be held accountable to our individual’s as well as our collective responsibilities, period.

3. What does all this mean?

When Papa Francis spoke of the gaze of the people, he differentiated it from the gaze of God. He said, “God’s gaze is especially directed to you; it is a look that offers you peace”. This means, our relationship with our God is indeed personal as well as intimate.

And he continued saying: “Yet there is another gaze directed to you: is the gaze of your people, and it expresses their ardent desire for justice, reconciliation and peace. At this moment, I want to assure all your fellow citizens of my spiritual closeness, especially the refugees and the sick, who have remained in the country with great expectations and with bated breath, awaiting the outcome of this historic day. I am certain that they are accompanying this meeting with great hope and fervent prayer. Noah waited for the dove to bring him an olive branch to show the end of the flood and the beginning of a new era of peace between God and man (cf. Gen 8:11). In the same way, your people are awaiting your return to your country, the reconciliation of all its members, and a new era of peace and prosperity for all.

As the retreat concludes, reflecting on this important event and asking the question: ‘what does all this mean?’ depends on who you are asking. For some people, it means absolutely nothing. It has no impact on them and it is not of any significance to their life. Some critics went as far as giving their racial and superiority/inferiority complex views about it.

But to the ordinary citizens of South Sudan, who are in the depth of suffering grinding their teeth in pain, we are deeply grateful for his holiness, Papa Francis, in acknowledging our pain and pleading on our behalf for real peace to come to South Sudan. We are equally grateful for his holiness in hearing our cries and holding us in his prayers assuring us of God’s Righteousness. Last but not least, we are indeed very grateful for his holiness and his team in organizing this historic event and renewing our faith and showing us God’s Love and Grace that is real and abundance to all of us, only if we are willing to take it. What a timing retreat to give us hope when all hope is gone, to remember us, when everyone seems to forget about us, to bring us close to God when God seems to be very far away. Thank you papa Francis and thank you Archbishop of Canterbury, His Grace Justin Welby, who conceived this initiative, and thank you to the former Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Very Reverend John Chalmers and thank you to all the retreat team both locally and internationally. May God bless each and every one of you abundantly and may His wisdom and guidance shine through all of you, Amen.

And to those critics I will say, in a moral world such as ours, you cannot escape justice. Whether you like it or not, there is no moral justice above God’s Righteousness. Know this and you will be fine.

4. What is the way forward?

If you are like me, who is deeply touched by this retreat, you will expect radical changes even if not immediately. But what happened next, only two weeks after the event, is enough to tell you where we are heading.

First, the former vice president, Dr. Riek Machar appealed for the Khartoum peace agreement to be extended by six months because obviously, they are behind the schedule with critical steps not being put into place. You would expect this could be an opportunity for making this fake peace real and inclusive putting people of South Sudan in the centre of it. But president Kirr and his government refused, even if they were the very people crying for lack of funds to implement the peace agreement. And they declared to form unity government on the 12^th May with or without Dr. Machar. Which makes me ask: what is the definition of this unity government since Dr. Riek is the main signatory to this agreement? After facing the harsh reality, they realized extension is inevitable. But we are yet to hear what that could exactly mean?

Second, president Kirr never made any public statement about the retreat and continue with business as usual signing eight million contracts with UAE for housemaids, which angered many citizens.

Third, Reuter’s world news published an article on 29 April saying that South Sudan has hired U.S lobbyists to help it reverse U.S. sanctions and stop the establishment of the court meant to prosecute war crimes. Under the contract, signed on April 2 and published on the U.S. Justice Department website, South Sudan’s government agreed to pay California-based Gainful Solutions $3.7 million over two years.

Last but not least, radiotamzuj.org on 1^st May published ‘the UN expert report released on April, 30 2019 by the UN Panel of Experts on South Sudan mandated by the UN Security Council in 2018 confirming Aggrey Idri and Dong Samuel Luak were executed by Internal Security Bureau agents at the Luri facility on 30 January 2017, on orders from the commander of the National Security Service training and detention facilities in Luri, the commander of the National Security Service Central Division and, ultimately, Lieutenant General Akol Koor Kuc ‘

And the most annoying news in all of this is the minister of information Michael Makuei, denied this very truth saying that they are not involved and had nothing to do with the death of these two gentlemen. Now, my question is the title of this article: Do we really get it?

In conclusion, I would like to say that this war has gone beyond the borders of South Sudan. Indeed, we are not entity of our own, living in a separate world. We are citizens of the world. We are piece and parcel of global diversity united in our humanity. And that humanity exists on the moral values of respect, care and justice. As creations of the Same One God, who created all of us in His own image, we have the right to exist whether we are black, white, yellow, purple and all the colours we are yet to see of human beings. In this same colourful diversity is also our diverse culture, which has created more meanings in our way of interactions and relations with each other. No tribe is above any tribe and no culture is above any culture. Every single tribe and culture has the rights to exist and co-exist as long as it is in line with the moral basics of global human values of respect, care and justice, period.

As soon as there is respect for existence or co-existence, there is equally a sense of care and responsibility for each other in which justice dwells. For none of these values exists in isolation, they co-exist in relations to each other exchanging roles. That is why we are ‘our brothers keepers’.

To Salva Kirr and his cohorts, thank you for awakening the truth in us. Without the cruel pains and sufferings you have caused us, we would still be living in denial thinking life is good and rosy. We would have forgotten our responsibilities of being co-creators in a moral world that requests respect, care and justices, especially after those long-sufferings. But again, you brought us face to face with the truth, questioning our sufferings as well, as our existence once more. Asking God the same questions we had been asking all a long: why God? What have we done to deserve this? Why do we need to undergo this cruelty again?

We entrusted you with our lives and whole existence, thinking that this is all about us. We though that irrespective of our cultural differences in our tribes, since we suffered together, bled together and even died together, we would arise above it all and embrace ourselves as brothers and sisters of a country, which we could finally call our own. Little did we know that we are cheated of our vote?  Little did we know that we would vote for another slavery, this time, under one of our own. Little did we know that ‘the self determination’ that was brought to us in a golden plate had a hidden nightmare agenda, little did we know that this whole struggle had nothing to do with us but with your dream of a tribal kingdom! Irrespective of all this, we would not regret a bit of it and we will not lament over a spill milk! It was a legitimate decision and we did the right thing.

Now that this has become all about you and your tribe, who scooped the ownership of our collective liberation struggles and the country we all equally voted for, we are going to liberate our land and ourselves from you. One thing that escapes your short memory is the resilience of the South Sudanese people. We had done it with Egypt, we did it with Sudan and we shall do it with you.

You are experts on ‘divide and rule tactics’. You will divide and unite us at will as long as it serves you well. But this time, the game is still the same but there is change of rules, which is ‘ on our own terms’. Since you have divided us along tribal lines, so shall it be! The only thing that can bring us together is our unity in our humanity, nothing less and nothing more. You cannot put gun on our heads and say: UNITE! You cannot force us to any short-cut unity under any fake peace. Unity is the essence of which we are made. We are created by ONE God who created all of us in His own image, as diverse as we are. We are the global diversity of unity in our humanity based on respect, care and justice. And Peace is who we really are. For the truth Peace of God exist in each and every one of us. We only need to find a place for it in our lives. You don’t preach to us peace, we will know it if it is there or not. It is in the reflections of our common moral values in our integrations and interrelationships with each other. Peace is not what you said, it is what you do and in so doing: ‘they shall be known by their deeds’ If you want peace, work for justice as Emmanuel kembe said in one of his songs.

By Laura Nunu

You can reached her at lauranunu@gmail.com

PRESS RELEASE

Friday, May 2019-05-03

Members of the South Sudan National Alliance for Democracy And Freedom Action (NADAFA) are extremely outraged and saddened to learn of the extra-judicial execution of Human Rights lawyer Samuel Dong Luak and Humanitarian Affairs Committee Chairperson of SPLM-IO, Aggrey Idri Ezbon by the government of South Sudan on 30th January 2017. Both men had been granted refugee status in Kenya but were handed over to South Sudan National Security Service agents who took them back to South Sudan and executed them by firing squad. South Sudan NADAFA condemns in the strongest terms possible the unprecedented state sponsored perpetration of terrorist actions across international borders by President Kiir’s illegitimate government aided by Kenyan agents, his illegitimate First Vice President Taban Deng Gai and their cohorts. It is gross abuse of basic human rights against innocent political opponents and a violation of the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, international law and treaties.

South Sudan NADAFA equally condemns the Government of Kenya for its failure to observe the Convention’s core principle which asserts that a refugee should not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom. According to the legislation, States are expected to ensure that the rights of refugees are respected and protected.  Consequently, members of the alliance are perturbed by Kenya’s role in the removal from Kenya and return to South Sudan of Aggrey Idri and Samuel Dong where they were detained in the hands of the Government of South Sudan in Juba and later murdered in cold blood. The alliance is reliably informed that the murder was ordered by illegitimate First Vice President Taban Deng Gai and it took place in Luri, at the site of Salva Kiir’s Presidential complex with his encouragement. By aiding the criminally liable commission of acts of abduction and kidnapping, handing over conventional refugees to a government that is known to murder political opponents, Kenya has demonstrated lack of cooperation in fulfilling its obligations under international law.

South Sudan NADAFA expresses its profound condolences to the families of Aggrey Idri Ezbon and Samuel Dong Luak and calls for the criminally liable illegitimate President Salva Kiir’s Government and his National Security Service to be held accountable for their murder and for similar atrocities committed against innocent civilians before and after the 2013 debacle that triggered the 5 years long civil war in the country.  South Sudan NADAFA holds Salva Kiir and his entire government responsible for acts of extra judicial execution against the two patriots. They bear collective responsibility in violating with flagrant impunity all international laws and state obligations to legal due process. By his actions of anarchy and lack of legitimacy to the presidency of South Sudan, Salva Kiir is unfit to lead any peace agreements to which he is a signatory. NADAFA calls on his entire illegitimate government to resign with immediate effect to allow for a new inclusive peace process which puts the people first and shares power not between SPLM elites but between the peoples of South Sudan based on the three regions of Upper Nile, Equatoria and Bahr el Ghazal in a federal system during the transitional period.

South Sudan NADAFA maintains that by paying the US firm Gainful Solutions Inc. 3.7 USD million to obstruct justice under the terms of the R-ARCSS, Salva Kiir has demonstrated that his illegitimate government cannot be trusted to lead and implement peace in letter and spirit. The entire world now knows that His Holy See Pope Francis kissed the feet of a Head of State who cannot be trusted with leading peace and justice in South Sudan but doing the opposite, to obstruct and undermine the course of justice.

The Alliance is appalled by the fact that the Troika, AU, IGAD and UNSEC have refused to name the illegitimate president of South Sudan as the peace spoiler. South Sudan NADAFA calls on the African Union to adhere to its own charter by protecting human and people’s rights and holding its members Kenya and South Sudan liable for crimes against humanity and for contravening pertinent charters of the African Union. Failure to hold these countries accountable will set a bad precedent and cause the African Union to lose credibility in the community of Nations.  South Sudan NADAFA joins the masses of South Sudan in demanding that illegitimate president Salva Kiir must go so that the masses can take charge of the country under a new UN appointed special envoy for South Sudan in order that they can re-arrange the R-ARCSS, make it people-centric and by-pass the elites. South Sudan NADAFA demands that the constitution making process should come first and it should be made by South Sudanese people for South Sudan which process should include free and fair elections as an integral part.

Dr. Hakim Dario,

For

press@pdm-rss.org

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The People’s Democratic Movement is very saddened by the passing on of the world renown and veteran journalist, Hon Alfred Taban Logune. He died on 27^th April 2019, after a long illness in Kampala Uganda.

The people of South Sudan are indebted to Alfred’s life and career as a journalist. He dedicated most of life time in serving freedom of thought and of expression as well as his inspiring conscience to speak for truth in his country. In doing so, he used the might of his pen and paper for the world and the public’s right to be informed.  Our country needed to have him and his un-mistakenly courageous voice to lead, inform and educate the people, how and why the almighty pen was essential and integral part of their struggle for human dignity, liberation and freedom – in a protracted struggle spanning decades against oppression and oppressors in whatever form or colour.

From his early journalism as a reporter for the ubiquitous BBC World Service, to Khartoum Monitor, English language daily, which became a synonym for resistance to the brutal repression of the National Islamic Front in the then Sudan. Alfred Taban took it all in his stride, fearlessly, unbroken, unperturbed by constant detentions in NIF’s jails, courts and infamous ghost houses. All that did not diminish nor deter his mighty pen in the battles against the oppressors and propelled him to international acclaim.

Alfred Taban’s head start, gain and lead for free media that became his trademark, lit the noble fight for freedom of expression which served his peoples’ right to know and to be informed in the old Sudan by free and independent media. It was the precursor out of which need the Association for Media Development in South Sudan (AMDISS) was born.  This umbrella organisation was founded in August 2003 by Khartoum Monitor daily, Gurtong, South Sudan Review, South Sudan Post, Sudan Radio Service, and Sudan Mirror daily.  It was during Alfred Taban’s time as the Chairman of AMDISS that the media legislation bills in South Sudan were passed into Acts of Parliament; namely the South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation Act, 2013, the Access to Information Act 2013, and the Media Authority Act, 2013.

Hon Alfred Taban did not just fight and resisted oppressors with his mighty pen, he also offered solutions for best practice international media standards to his country.  Through his contributions Alfred Taban created the space for democratic transformation in South Sudan by his support for building the legal environment for protection and enjoyment of freedom of thought and expression, and the development of independent media and journalism in our nascent state. A state that soon afterwards persecuted and detained him, as the new SPLM dictators turned on him too, like the NCP regime did in the old Sudan.

Alfred fought a good fight till his passing on last week. His deeds are unparalleled and unmatched. Though his life has now come to an abrupt end, it was a life that celebrated and taught whole generations and our country the need to build a strong nation that respects and enjoys human rights, justice and accountability to its fullest extent. He will always be remembered as a patriot, who was ready to make sacrifices to protect fundamental freedoms and human rights from abuse by all oppressors, including those in our own nation in South Sudan.

Our thoughts and heart felt condolences to Alfred Taban’s family, his community and the entire people of South Sudan who knew him as their unforgettable hero. May his soul rest in peace.