By Philip Buda Ladu<\/p>\n
Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) has reiterated a call for immediate released of its chairman, First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n South Sudan’s main opposition party made the call as the AU Penal of the Wise are Juba to help de-escalate political tensions.<\/p>\n The main opposition party to the interim unity government further warned that the 2018 Revitalized Peace Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) is on the verge of collapse.<\/p>\n In a press statement released on Thursday, April 3, 2025, SPLM-IO Secretary General, Hon. Regina Joseph Kaba, stated that Dr. Machar was arrested by the SPLM-IG security apparatus on March 26, 2025, in what they deem a \u201ccontinuous violation\u201d of the peace agreement.<\/p>\n The statement seen by this outlet also cited a series of other violations by the SPLM-IG, including the unilateral removal of the Governor of Western Equatoria State in February 2025, the arrest of SPLM\/SPLA (IO) political and military members, and attacks on SPLA-IO cantonment and assembly areas, as well as training centers.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the SPLM-IO highlighted Dr. Machar\u2019s role in de-escalating the conflict in Nasir, where he reportedly assisted in locating and transporting scattered SSPDF soldiers.<\/p>\n They claim he has been \u201cunfairly accused and placed under house arrest by the enemies of peace.\u201d In response to these developments, the SPLM-IO has issued the following demands: Immediate release of Dr. Riek Machar by President Salva Kiir, Release of all detained SPLM\/SPLA (IO) political and military members, Cessation of attacks and bombardments on SPLA-IO cantonment, assembly areas, and training centers by the SPLM-IG.<\/p>\n They also call for, urgent intervention by peace guarantors and regional and international bodies, including IGAD, EAC, AU, the Troika, EU, and UN, to prevent a return to full-scale war.<\/p>\n Furthermore, Machar\u2019s party urges Investigation of the Nasir incident and other violations by the Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (CTSAMVM).<\/p>\n However, the secretary general reaffirmed the SPLM\/SPLA (IO)\u2019s commitment to dialogue and peaceful resolution of the crisis and reiterated the SPLM\/SPLA (IO)\u2019s full commitment to the implementation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement.<\/p>\n As SPLM-IO\u2019s statement signifies a sharp escalation in political tensions in South Sudan, it raises serious concerns about the stability of the fragile peace process.<\/p>\n The fragile peace has been repeatedly threatened by continued distrust and renewed conflict between President Salva Kiir and his longtime rival Riek Machar, straining relations and destabilizing the nation.<\/p>\n Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth, confirmed Machar\u2019s house arrest, during a press conference but cited that the first vice president, the second highest in the country was in conflict with the law thus undergoing investigations.<\/p>\n \u201cDr. Riek Machar was arrested because he is charged, accused of being in conflict with the law,\u201d Makuei stated during a press conference last month, referencing alleged contacts between Machar and his bases that purportedly triggered unrest in March in the Upper Nile region.<\/p>\n To help prevent South Sudan from sliding back into war as warned by the UN, the Head of the UN Mission in South Sudan, Nicholas Haysom, is engaged in intensive high-level political efforts to de-escalate tensions and convince the parties to preserve the fragile 2018 peace deal.<\/p>\n This week, Mr. Haysom met with the African Union Panel of the Wise in Juba, which has been deployed to help the parties find a peaceful solution.<\/p>\n On Thursday, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who is among the guarantors of the 2018 peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war, held closed-door discussions with President Salva Kiir in Juba.<\/p>\n Foreign Affairs Minister Mohammed Abdallah Goc said the South Sudan\u2019s leadership had assured Museveni of its commitment to implement the peace agreement.<\/p>\n The AU Panel of the Wise\u2019s mission in Juba represents a crucial opportunity to de-escalate tensions and prevent a return to widespread conflict in South Sudan and the international community, alongside the South Sudanese citizens, awaits their findings and recommendations with anticipation, hoping for a path toward lasting peace and stability.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Philip Buda Ladu Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) has reiterated a call for immediate released of its chairman, First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny. South Sudan’s main opposition party made the call as the AU Penal of the Wise are Juba to help de-escalate political tensions.[Read More…]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":34561,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[80,79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34560","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","category-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SPLM-IO-Secretary-General-Hon.-Regina-Joseph-Kaba-.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34560","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34560"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34560\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34562,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34560\/revisions\/34562"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34561"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onecitizendaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u201cThe arrest of His Excellency Dr. Riek Machar, who is the SPLM\/SPLA (IO) principal, has put the Agreement on the verge of collapse,\u201d the statement signed by S.G Regina Joseph Kaba warned.<\/p>\n