Machars SPLMIO accuses govt of ethnic profiling threatens ICC action

The accusations follow statements made on Saturday in the capital Juba by a senior government official, Martin Elia Lomuro, cabinet minister and secretary of the government High-level Standing Committee on peace implementation.

Lomuro, speaking alongside information minister Michael Makuei Lueth stated that nine of the sixteen counties predominantly inhabited by the Nuer ethnic group are “hostile” areas to the government, while seven were deemed “friendly.” The “hostile” categorization was based on the perceived alignment of these areas with the SPLM-IO, which is mainly supported by the Nuer.

Leer county, Machar’s home area, was among those labeled “friendly.”

In a statement issued on Sunday, the group’s acting chairman Oyet Nathaniel Pierino accused the government of “ethnic profiling” of the Nuer community and detailed other grievances regarding the implementation of the peace agreement.

“We are also disappointed to note that, paragraph two (2) of the ‘Strategic Response’ described the Nuer ethnic group as one of the largest in South Sudan inhabiting sixteen (16) Counties, nine (9) of which were considered by the SPLM-IG and security agents as ‘hostile’ and aligned with SPLM/SPLA-IO while the remaining seven (7) Counties are deemed ‘friendly’ as they are perceived to be aligned with the SPLM-IG,” Oyet stated.

In October 2015, an African Union Commission of Inquiry found widespread targeting of Nuer civilians in Juba during the December 2013 outbreak of violence. Oyet stated in his statement that the government’s categorization of Nuer community counties as “hostile” recalls the events of December 2013, the initial phase of the conflict between President Salva Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, and his former deputy Machar, an ethnic Nuer.

“The SPLM/SPLA-IO is not surprised by this ethnic profiling since in December 2013, at the onset of the conflict and as highlighted by ‘the Final Report of the African Union Commission of Inquiry on South Sudan’ of 15th October 2014, paragraph 464, which states that: ‘Juba was subdivided into four operation sectors…paragraph 810, states: ‘…Roadblocks or checkpoints were established all around Juba and house-to-house searches were undertaken by security forces. During this operation, male Nuers were targeted, identified, killed on the spot or gathered in one place and killed,’” Oyet quoted from the AU report.

“We warn and strongly condemn this perpetuation of State Policy of ethnic and tribal profiling, targeting, and cleansing,” he added.

Citing the alleged lack of credible accountability mechanisms within South Sudan, the SPLM-IO announced that it is making consultations for formation of a committee to pursue an intention to pursue justice internationally including filing a case before the ICC.

“The SPLM/SPLA-IO would like to make it known that, in lieu of the absence of competent and credible mechanisms for justice and accountability in South Sudan and pursuant to Chapter Five (5) of the R-ARCSS on Transitional Justice, Accountability, reconciliation and hailing, we are hereby commencing widespread consultation within our structures and other partners with the view of forming a taskforce for the purposes of filing cases of Human Rights Violations, Atrocities, War Crimes, Crimes against Peace, Crimes against Humanity, and Genocides with the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague, and we vow to remain seized of the matter,” he said.

The involvement of ethnic militias has been a key factor in the complexity and perpetuation of South Sudan’s conflict. While these groups have not articulated distinct political objectives, both government and opposition forces have leveraged them for military advantage, exacerbating ethnic divisions during the civil war.

In the context of the Upper Nile fighting, the government has linked the White Army to the command structure of the SPLM-IO. Addressing these accusations, Oyet highlighted the militia’s existence before the December 2013 crisis that ignited the major phase of the county’s first civil war as a nation.

“Paragraph four (4) of the ‘Strategic Response’ regarding the relationship between the SPLM/SPLA-IO and the White Army, we would like to highlight that the White Army existed before the December 2013 crisis,” he said.

“The White Army are armed youth just like any other in South Sudan; Abushok in Baliet County, Agwelek in Fashoda area, the Murle armed youth in Greater Pibor, the armed youth in Eastern, Central, and Western Equatoria States, and the armed youth in Bahr El Ghazel (Mathiang Anyor, Gelweng, Tit-bai, Dut-ku-Beny), etc,” Oyet added, highlighting the prevalence of such community-based armed groups.

While noting the White Army’s past alignment with the SPLM-IO during the 2013-2018 civil war, Oyet stated that their involvement in the initial 2013 violence was a response to government actions in Juba.

“In December 2013, the White Army reacted to the Nuer massacre in Juba by the Government supported by the armed youth from Bahr El Ghazel drawn from Mathiang Anyor, Gelweng, Tit-bai, Dut-ku-Beny. They fought with the combined forces of the SPLA, NSS, Police, Wildlife, Prison, and the UPDF in Jonglei State when they threatened to march to Juba. The SPLM/SPLA-IO was not yet formed at the time. Therefore, the White Army is capable of reacting independently to any situation in their area or elsewhere in the Country,” he stated.

Local residents in Nasir have long experienced friction with the SSPDF, which they accuse of atrocities including rape and looting. In early March, fighting erupted in Nasir, resulting in local youth capturing the SSPDF brigade headquarters in Wec Ayar and killing the commander during a UN evacuation effort. Numerous SSPDF soldiers were either killed or fled the area.

Following this fighting, Gabriel Duop Lam, the SPLA-IO military chief of staff who also serves as the deputy Chief of Defence Forces of the SSPDF as part of the peace implementation, was arrested by security forces. Petroleum Minister Puot Kang Chuol and Peacebuilding Minister Par Kuol, who now leads a faction of the SPLM-IO not widely recognized by the group’s membership, were also arrested, with only Kuol being released a day later.

As tensions escalated, Ugandan forces, who fought alongside Kiir during the 2013-2018 conflict, were subsequently deployed in South Sudan. Ugandan warplanes dropped ethyl acetate, a flammable chemical compound, that caused fires and resulted in dozens of civilian casualties, including the death of a prominent community chief.

Uganda has maintained a military presence and influence in South Sudan with varying justifications over the course of the conflict. Machar was arrested on March 26, days after he wrote to protest the Ugandan army deployment in the country.

Following Machar’s detention, the SPLM-IO accused the SSPDF, supported by the Ugandan air force, of initiating attacks on opposition cantonment sites and bases in Central Equatoria, including areas near Juba.

Oyet also criticized the government’s failure to fully implement the security arrangements outlined in the revitalized peace agreement, which he said had contributed to the recent clashes with the White Army in Nasir and Ulang, both areas under SPLM/SPLA-IO control according to the power-sharing deal.

“Nasir and Ulang are being targeted because they are among the SPLM/SPLA-IO controlled areas notwithstanding the Peace process which allocated Responsibilities Sharing in the Country. The Transitional Security Arrangements, which was to be completed within eight (8) months of the Pre-transitional Period, imposed limitations on the movement and deployment of troops except for the Necessary Unified Forces (NUF) in the Country,” Oyet stated.

“The SSPDF, and affiliated militias of Abushok, Agwelek, and the UPDF contravened the provisions of the Transitional Security Arrangements (TSA) including CoHA 2017, and the Permanent Ceasefire and this was the flashpoint between the SSPDF and the White Army, hence the confrontation,” he added.

sudanspost.com