South Sudan: Riek Machar Announces South Sudan 'Resistance' Movement
By John Tanza, 4 February 2014
South Sudan's former vice president says he has formed a "resistance" group
that will fight the government to ensure democracy and good governance in
the war-battered country.
"We decided to organize a resistance against the regime," Machar told VOA in
a telephone interview from an undisclosed location.
"So, yes, if you heard troops in Upper Nile, in Jonglei, in Unity States, in
Equatoria saying what I am saying, yes, we are now an organized resistance
against the regime," said Machar.
The resistance group, called the SPLM/SPLA -- an amalgam of the name of the
ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and the South Sudanese army
-- wants to see democracy, pluralism, free elections and good governance
take hold in South Sudan, Machar said.
Riek Machar announces South Sudan resistance movement
Machar went into hiding in mid-December when President Salva Kiir accused
his former deputy of mounting a failed coup against him, which the
government said kicked off weeks of bloodletting across the country.
Machar has denied trying to oust the president in a coup. In his interview
with VOA, he insisted that he and others in the ruling SPLM merely wanted to
democratize the party.
"The struggle in the SPLM is a struggle of people who want the SPLM to be a
democratic movement," he said.
Machar was fired from his post of vice president in July, when Kiir
reshuffled his entire cabinet. Since then, the former vice president has
been a vocal critic of Kiir, saying he has "dictatorial tendencies" and
vowing to challenge him for the leadership of the SPLM ahead of general
elections in 2015.
But he said he did not launch his resistance movement in order to better
position himself for a run for the presidency.
Riek Machar on running for president of South Sudan
Machar invited the 11 SPLM leaders who were detained when the unrest broke
out to join his resistance movement against Kiir.
Seven of the 11 have been released, under the terms of a peace agreement
signed 11 days ago by the two sides in South Sudan's conflict. But the
government said it has enough evidence to charge the four other detainees
and three more political leaders who fled when the fighting broke out --
including Machar -- with treason.
Machar said that he wants an end to the fighting in South Sudan so that the
country can focus on much-needed development. But Kiir has forced his hand,
and is forcing war on the people, he said.
"I myself am tired of war... I share the views of people who say, 'We do not
want any more war. We want our people to reconcile. We want our people to
develop and catch up with the rest of the world.' But Kiir Mayardit is
forcing this on us... Therefore, the people have the right to resist,"
Machar told VOA.
Riek Machar: "Kiir is forcing this on us."
Foreign observers have described the peace deal signed by the two warring
sides as shaky, and a spokesman for Machar said Monday that government
forces violated the agreement over the weekend when they attacked Machar's
hometown in Unity state and other towns held by the anti-government forces.
Talks to reconcile the warring factions in South Sudan are due to resume on
February 7th.
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Received on Tue Feb 04 2014 - 12:21:56 EST