Sudan Tribune

April 4, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - In a rare meeting held with the leadership of Sudanese Communist Party (SCP) on Tuesday, the head of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) pledged t release all the detained opposition members.

Sudanese Communist Party (SCP) secretary-general Mohamed Mukhtar al-Khatib (Al-Sudani)

In a statement released on Wednesday, the SCP Political Bureau said NISS General Director Salah Gosh held a meeting with a delegation from the party leadership including Sidiq Youssef who was called to take part in the meeting, and the detained political secretary Mohamed Mukhtar al-Khatib.

The statement said other leading members - al-Harith Ahmed al-Tom, Sidqi Kablo, Saleh Mahmoud and Ali al-Kenin - took part in the meeting.

Gosh called on the opposition party to participate in the political dialogue and to express their positions freely. He also pledged to ensure freedoms and called them to join the fight against corruption declared by the government.

"Our comrades said that they listened to what the director of the security apparatus said and that the leadership of the party would freely assess the situation," said the SCP Political Bureau.

"Based on the outcome of the meeting, we expect that all the detainees will be released approximately within 48 hours," the statement emphasized.

Last January after a series of protests against the increase of bread prices, the NISS arrests without charges several opposition members particularly from the left forces.

However, Sidiq Youssef and Omer al-Diqair leader of the Sudanese Congress Party have been released for medical reasons.

Following the release of the National Umma Party members, Gosh said the release of the other political detainees depends on their political behaviour.

Darfur Bar Association issued a statement warning against such encounters, stressing the regime "intends to weaken the positions of the national forces and linking with a political compromise the rights of detainees to freedom which is guaranteed by the Constitution and the law".

April 4, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's Minister of Water Resources and Electricity Muataz Musa and his South Sudan's counterpart Sofia Gai have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on water resources.

An oil polluted water section in South Sudan (Credit: Sign for Hope)

The MoU aims to promote and facilitate technical support as well as to develop, protect and utilize the joint water resources between the two countries.

The two ministers agreed to set up a joint technical committee comprised of five members from each side to follow up on the implementation of the MoU.

Following the signing ceremony in Khartoum on Tuesday evening, Musa said the agreement also aims to exchange information and expertise besides conducting joint research and building capacities.

For her part, Gai described the agreement as very important for the two countries, saying it could help to accelerate development in both nations.

She added her government looks forward to cooperating with Sudan for the benefit of the two peoples.

It is noteworthy that the technical support includes the management of water resources, drinking water, sanitation, hydropower, irrigation, drainage and river navigation.

South Sudan seceded from Sudan on July 9th, 2011 following a referendum on whether the semi-autonomous region should remain a part of the country or become independent. 99% of the southern voters chose independence.

In September 2012, both Sudan and South Sudan signed a series of cooperation agreements, which covered oil, citizenship rights, security issues, banking, border trade among others.

In March 2013, the two countries signed an implementation matrix for these cooperation agreements. However, the execution of the agreements didn't go according to the plan.

(ST)

April 4, 2018 (KHARTOUM) The Sudanese government Wednesday renewed its readiness to engage in direct negotiations with Darfur rebels as soon as the African mediation extends an invitation to resume the peace talks.

Head of government delegation for talks for peace in Darfur Amin Hassan Omer speaks to reporters in Addis Ababa on Friday 20 November 2015 (ST Photo)

Sudan's Presidential Envoy for Diplomatic Contact and Negotiation for Darfur Amin Hassan Omer told the semi-official Sudan Media Center (SMC) that the government didn't receive an invitation from the African Union High Implementation Panel (AUHIP) to resume the talks.

He pointed out that the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) call to resume the peace talks within three months wasn't intended for the government but the armed movements.

Omer further said the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) constitutes the basis for any future peace agreement in the region, saying the document is open to accommodate anyone who wishes to join the peace process in Darfur.

In a meeting held on 20 February 2018, the AUPSC said concerned by the “unnecessarily prolonged” process for peace in Darfur and called for a rapid resolution of the 15-year conflict.

The Council further pointed to "the lack of commitment on the part of the non-signatory Darfur armed movements" and urged them to engage discussions with the government on the basis of the DDPD.

It urged mediators to make progress in the resolution of Darfur conflict during the upcoming three months and threatened to sanction those who continue to hinder the ongoing efforts for a lasting peace.

The holdout groups including the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), Sudan Liberation Movement - Minn Minnawi (SLM-MM) refused to sign the DDPD in July 2011 and called to open the framework agreement for talks.

Other groups like the Sudan Liberation Movement - Abdel Wahid (SLM-AW) had declined to join the process and rejected its outcome.

The AUHIP led by former South African President Thabo Mbeki proposed a holistic process to end the armed conflicts and produce political reforms in Sudan

During the year 2015-2016, talks between the government and the SLM-MM and JEM failed to reach a tangible result despite international efforts to bring together the opposition groups and to narrow the gaps between them and the government.

The Sudanese army has been fighting a group of armed movements in Darfur since 2003. UN agencies estimate that over 300,000 people were killed in the conflict and over 2.5 million were displaced.

(ST)

April 4, 2018 (JUBA) - UN Secretary-General António Guterres Wednesday appointed Ethiopian Major General Gebre Adhana Woldezgu as the new Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA).

"Woldezgu succeeds Major General Tesfay Gidey Hailemichael of Ethiopia who will complete his assignment on 23 April 2018," reads a statement released by the UN.

"The Secretary-General is grateful for his tireless dedication and invaluable service and effective leadership of UNISFA," it further said.

The new UNISFA head, as the director of Ethiopian defence ministry, participated in the border issues with the neighbouring countries and fully involved in force preparations, planning and deployment of Ethiopian forces for international and regional peacekeeping operations.

Since 2008, he served as the Director of the Ethiopian Ministry of National Defence, he was also a Division Commander (1999-2008) and Mechanized Deputy Division Commander (1995-1998).

The 55-year major-general holds a Master's Degree from the Ethiopian Civil Service University.

The U.N. Security Council on 27 June 2011 approved a resolution authorizing the deployment of 4,200 Ethiopian troops to Sudan's disputed Abyei region for a six-month period.

The UNISFA has the authority to use force in self-defence and to protect civilians and humanitarian aid, but UNISFA mandate does not call to monitor compliance with human rights laws, as most peacekeeping forces do.

(ST)

Aril 4, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese government and two armed groups from Darfur region are expected to meet in Berlin to negotiate a pre-negotiation agreement, Sudan Tribune has learned Wednesday.

Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) leader Girbil Ibrahim told Sudan Tribune that the German government organises a meeting between his movement, the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) and the Government of Sudan on 16 and 17 April.

"The purpose of the meeting is to reach a pre-negotiation agreement".

"If an agreement is struck, it would pave the way for talks on a cessation of hostilities and then we would move on to negotiations on political issues," he stressed.

The armed groups refuse to negotiate a political agreement to end the 15-year conflict in western Sudan region on the basis of the framework agreement of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD).

The parties are expected to strike a deal providing that any political agreement reached in the future would be attached as a supplemental protocol to the framework agreement of July 2011.

This annexe would preserve the DDPD, but at the same time would be considered a new agreement with new parties, mechanisms and timetables.

The meeting would be attended by the head of the joint African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), the Troika countries, the European Union and France.

Germany and the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) signed a deal to facilitated the two-track process for a comprehensive peace agreement in Sudan. Berlin already organised a number of meeting in this respect.

Last February, the Peace and Security Council of the African Union (PSC) urged the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) to make progress in the resolution of Darfur conflict during the upcoming three months.

The SLM-Abdel Wahid is not part of the meeting. The holdout group rejects negotiations with the government before the return of displaced persons to their areas of origin after providing the needed security and compensations.

(ST)

By Stephen Par Kuol

The regionally coordinated policy of isolating the (SPLM/A (IO) since the breakdown of ARCISS on July 8, 2016, was syndicated by subjecting its leader, Dr Riek Machar to indefinite solitary confinement in South Africa. Initially, the publicity of his ordeal was that he was in Pretoria as a guest of the Republic of South Africa. South African authorities later disputed that without disclosing who actually detained him while on a medical visit in that country. To our disbelief and relief, the IGAD Council of Ministers Resolution dated March 26, 2018, has cleared the clouds that Dr Riek Machar was indeed and is still a political detainee of IGAD. The catchword in the wording of that document is “relocation”(not “release”) which could be legally interpreted as a transfer to another indefinite detention in another country chosen by his captors against his will. To anyone connecting the dots, it all makes sense as a manifestation of IGAD's failure to abide by the rule of law and the cardinal ethos that qualify the regional organization to mediate the peace process aiming at resolving the ongoing conflict in South Sudan. Among so many elements of injustice, in this case, the following spectral violations stand out:

1. It goes without first and foremost invoking the basic tenet of the criminal justice that deprivation of human liberty is subject to due process of law. In accordance with that universal standard, even initially lawful detention becomes arbitrary if it is not subject to speedy trial or periodic review. Hence, under the existing international law, the circumstances of Dr Machar's indefinite detention in South Africa contravene Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. That international humanitarian right covenant prohibits inhumane treatments such as kidnapping, indefinite detention, being “disappeared” with no access to court, family or friends all of which depict Dr Machar's ordeal in every jurisdiction under the existing international criminal justice system.

2. Pursuant to Article 9 (a&c) of the Cessation of Hostility Agreement (CoHA) brokered by none other than the IGAD itself, the implementation of the CoHA assigned on December 21, 2017, commences with the unconditional release of all the political detainees. This legally covers Dr Riek Machar as a political detainee of IGAD, which of course includes Kiir's regime. It must also be discerned that the tone of IGAD Council of Ministers Resolution is loaded with discordant prejudice and overt hostility against the person and persona of Dr Riek Machar in violation of Article 4(1) of CoHA, which abhors belligerent or hostile communication during this time of revitalizing ARCISS. This prejudicial tone comes out even louder in the self-incriminating coercion against Dr Machar to unilaterally renounce violence. This infers hostile prejudice portraying Dr Machar as the sole catalyst behind the ongoing violence in South Sudan.

3. Dr Riek Machar has not been formally charged with violation of any law under the IGAD jurisdiction. This makes his detention illegal by all standards of modern criminal law. The technical term for that illegal practice is” false arrest”. The mockery of justice in that political kangaroo court of IGAD is best illustrated by the conditions attached to even the relocation of this political detainee from one confinement to another under the same status. One of those conditions reads: “Riek Machar must renounce violence for IGAD to relocate him to another location to be determined by his self-appointing judges including his erstwhile political enemy( Kiir's regime). Any jurist or student of criminal law can easily discern this case of Dr Machar versus the IGAD as a malicious political persecution vanquished by the victors. It is a spectre of injustice where the victim of violence is arbitrarily victimized and the violent offender (Kiir) who has been an orgy of pogrom and genocide since December 2013 is elevated to the status of a judge to condemn his political enemy to rot in IGAD political jails.

4. Volumes of records surrounding the ongoing crisis in South Sudan have exonerated Dr Machar as a victim of political violence since December 2013. In pursuit of peace and dialogue with Salva Kiir, Dr Machar has escaped death twice from Salva Kiir who pursued him up to Gadiang in December 2013 and again up to the Grampa Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo in July 2016. Under that the sun, nothing can demonstrate Kiir's violence than those hot pursuits involving drones and warplanes. Yet, nobody is asking Salva Kiir to renounce violence. The records must also be informed that it was Dr Machar who signed the ARCISS first without any reservation and risked his own life to return to Juba under pressure and assurance by the leadership of IGAD-PLUS as guarantors that they would do everything in their power to ensure that ARCISS is implemented to that letter and spirit. Nobody needs to be reminded here that IGAD failed to do its part leading to the collapse of ARCISS. In a betrayal of Dr Machar and the people of South Sudan, IGAD did not only condone the violation of the agreement it brokered but also recognized that junta of Kiir and Taban as TGONU in violation of Article 6 (4) of ARCISS.

5. Despite all the betrayals by the IGAD and the international community, Dr Machar maintained his pursuit for peaceful settlement of the ongoing conflict even in his South African jailhouse and has written several letters to all the well placed regional and world leaders to intervene in the South Sudanese crisis by resuscitating the ARCIS. He continued with his relentless search for peace amidst military offensive by Kiir's regime until the commencement of HRF that he supported and sent high-level delegation under the leadership of his Deputy, Honorable Hennery Odwar in December 2017.

6. Dr Machar was again the first to embark on the full implementation of COHA by instructing his forces to release all POWS and stranded civilians under their custody. This has been done and witnessed by the international organizations concerned including the UNOCHA, International Red Cross and the International Rescue Committee. Kiir failed to reciprocate. The fascist regime has done the gross opposite by executing the POWs and sentencing detainees and abductees to death in violation of Article 6( a&c) of CoHA and the Geneva Convention. To date, the fascist regime has continuously attacked the opposition-held areas obstructing the delivery of the humanitarian relief and causing untold suffering to innocent civilians again in violation of Article 8(1&4) of the CoHA. It was also sensational that the IGAD Council of Ministers expressed “extreme concern on the report submitted by CTSAMM reporting flagrant violations of the CoHA by Kiir's regime during the 61st Extraordinary Meeting of the IGAD Council of Ministers without asking Salva Kiir to renounce violence.

7. During the Phase II of the HLRF peace talks, the SPLM/A (IO) signed the Declaration of Principles (DoP) which Salva Kiir's regime adamantly declined to sign in protest of article 28, which provides for punitive action against the violator and spoilers. This can be easily understood as the regime's audacity to pursue violence and obstruction of the peace process. Again Salva Kiir was not asked to renounce violence and negotiate in good faith. Instead of doing the needful, the IGAD mediating team succumbed to Kiir's intransigence and made the signing of that roadmap document optional.

8. As broadly evidenced by its continued cooperation and collaboration with Kiir's regime, the IGAD has legitimized Kiir's violence by condoning all the war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity committed by Kiir's regime since December 2013. This is policy is pursued in deliberate denial of the crude reality on the ground that the people of South Sudan are currently protected from the genocidal violence of Salva Kiir's regime by the United Nations within their own states capitals and the national capital, Juba where they are confined to POCs of UNIMISS. Furthermore, there is no stronger evidence of Kiir's violence than the testimonies of the refugees and IDPs that have confirmed the ugly truth that Kiir's violence is responsible for refugee and humanitarian crisis in South Sudan. In any case, it is desolate that the IGAD member states hosting the victims of Kiir's violence as refugees have miserably failed to ask this violent warlord to renounce violence.

9. The delicate point this region and the international community keep missing is the cold and bitter truth that the ongoing civil war in South Sudan is a popular armed uprising against the oppressive and genocidal policies of Kiir's ethnocentric regime. So, reducing it to the person of Dr Riek Machar is a public insult to the collective intelligence and the dignity of the people of South Sudan who are humanly obliged to resist Kiir's oppression with Dr Machar in the fences or outside the fences of IGAD jails. If anything, it is Dr Machar's physical participation in the peace process that could bring the light closer to the end of this long dark tunnel of political violence in South Sudan. That is why the region and the world must subscribe to Dr Machar's wisdom that the only sure and practical way to permanently end the ongoing violence is signing and implementing agreements such as COH that the SPLM (IO) has so far implemented. Anything else will only prolong the suffering of the people of South Sudan.

10. Given the mountain of factual evidences presented afore, it is hereby submitted that the judgment in that political kangaroo court of IGAD is fraught with gross violation of international humanitarian and human right law, violation of CoHA, double standards and conflict of interest legally and morally disqualifying the regional organization from its current status as a mediator in the peace process to resolve the ongoing conflict in South Sudan. In the light of this overwhelming credibility crisis, the IGAD must expressly take the following actions to save whatever little credibility it might still have to continue with mediating the peace process in South Sudan: Unconditional release of Dr Riek Machar to freely participate in the peace process, putting Salva Kiir where he belongs as a warring party (not a judge or mediator), holding him responsible for violation of CoHA and obstruction of the peace process since the year 2014 and ask him to renounce violence. With this submission, I rest my case and I look forward to hearing from the IGAD kangaroo court and the verdict in the court of public opinion.

The author is the head of the SPLM (IO) Legal Team to the High Revitalization Forum in Addis-Ababa. He can be reached at kuolpar@yahoo.com

March 31, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The quadripartite committee between Sudan and Egypt would meet in Khartoum in April, said the Egyptian Ambassador to Khartoum Osama Shaltout

Sudan's FM Ibrahim Ghandour (L) meets with his Egyptian counterpart Samih Shoukri in Cairo on January 9, 2016 (Photo released by the Sudanese FM)

Following a meeting held on the sidelines of the African Union summit in Addis Ababa in January, President Omer al-Bashir and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi discussed the tensions between the two courtiers and agreed to form a quadripartite committee to develop a roadmap to restore the relationship to the right track.

The quadripartite committee including the foreign ministers and heads of intelligence from both countries met last February in Cairo and agreed on a number of technical measures to diffuse the tensions.

The Egyptian envoy to Sudan told the semi-official Sudan Media Center (SMC) on Saturday that the meeting comes within the framework of the political and security consultations between Khartoum and Cairo.

He pointed out that the meeting of the quadripartite committee in Cairo had discussed bilateral relations and ways to address all outstanding issues between the two countries.

The tumultuous relations between Sudan and Egypt experienced last December a new crisis over media attacks against al-Bashir after a visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Sudan. Also, Sudan accused Egypt and Eritrea of supporting rebel groups to attack Kassala state on the eastern border.

But the main differences remain the dispute over the border triangle area of Halayeb and the construction of Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam that Sudan backs.

(ST)

March 31, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The Liberation and Justice Party (LJP) has demanded the African mediation to set a time limit for the resumption of the Darfur peace talks.

Tadjadine Bechir Niam (File Photo)

The LJP, which is led by Bahar Idriss Abu Garda, is one of two factions of the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) which signed the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) in July 2011. The other faction, National Liberation and Justice Party (NLJP) is chaired by Tijani al-Sissi.

The semi-official Sudan Media Center (SMC) has quoted the LJP spokesperson Taj al-Din Bashir Niam as saying the armed struggle has become useless and the arms bearers have no option but to join the negotiating table.

He called on the African mediation to set a date to bring the armed movements and the government to a new round of talks soon, saying there are indications that the rebels would resort to peace.

Niam pointed out to the success of the disarmament campaign in Darfur and the return of the refugees and IDPs, saying the region is witnessing unprecedented climate of social peace.

The LJP spokesperson further underscored that the success of the peace talks in Darfur is the responsibility of all parties to the conflict.

The African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) is brokering comprehensive peace talks to end the war and achieve democratic reforms in Sudan.

The two-track process comprises the Sudanese government and opposition forces including the armed groups in Darfur and the Two Areas.

The government and the opposition Sudan Call alliance including the armed groups signed in March and August 2016 the Roadmap Agreement brokered by the AUHIP including several steps towards their participation in a national constitutional process inside Sudan.

Doha brokered the Darfur peace negotiations resulted in the signing of the DDPD by the Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) in July 2011. JEM which had initiated the process rejected the deal.

Three rebel movements including SLM-MM led by Minnawi Minnawi, Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) led by Gibril Ibrahim and SLM-AW led by Abdel-Wahid al-Nour didn't join the DDPD.

JEM and SLM-MM call for opening the document for negotiations, saying some issues were ignored or not fairly treated, but Khartoum rejects such request.

In their last meeting from 9 to 14 August 2016 under the auspices of the African Union, the government, JEM and SLM-MM discussed the signing of a cessation of hostilities agreement and a humanitarian access agreement.

However, the parties diverged on the location sites of rebel fighters and mechanisms for the monitoring of humanitarian assistance. Also, the two groups raised the release of their prisoners from the Sudanese jails and the need to open the DDPD for discussions.

SLM-AW, however, is not part of the African Union-mediated peace talks. The rebel group rejects negotiating a peace agreement with Khartoum government unless the government militias are disarmed and displaced civilians return to their original areas.

UN agencies estimate that over 300,000 people were killed in Darfur conflict since 2003, and over 2.5 million were displaced.

(ST)

March 30, 2018 (JUBA) - The armed opposition, SPLM-IO, denied issuing threats to wage "endless war" after the IGAD conditional decision to terminate the confinement of the group's leader in South Africa.

South Sudan's First Vice President, Riek Machar, calling for reconciliation and forgiveness at St. Thomas Parish, Juba, 29 May, 2016 (ST Photo)

Last Monday, the IGAd Council of Ministers decided to end the confinement of the armed opposition leader Riek Machar in South Africa "on conditions that ensure he will renounce violence and not obstruct the peace process and he is allowed to relocate to any country outside the region and is not neighbouring South Sudan".

Even if the decision was taken against the will of Juba government, it was seen by the supporters of the rebel group as unfair and frustrating because they believe that the regional community give more consideration to Juba in its decisions and they have always to pay the price.

There were reports by some media that a rebel official called Mawwil rejected the decision and vowed to carry out "endless war" in the country after describing the IGAD leader as "Kiir agents".

"The SPLM/SPLA (IO) wishes to emphasize that we did not issue any statement threatening to wage war. The intention behind the fabricated information is to categorise the Peoples' movement as the party inciting violence and obstructing the peace process," said a statement released by the SPLM (IO) director of information and public relations.

The rebel official further renewed the group "full commitment to the peace process and to a negotiated settlement as the sole means to end the conflict in the country".

The SPLM-IO signed a cessation of hostilities agreement with the South Sudanese government on 21 December 2017. The IGAD, African Union supported by the Troika countries said they would impose sanctions on any party that breaches the deal.

Speaking to Radio France International on 26 March, Machar's wife leading figure of the armed opposition Angelina Teny said the IGAD decision was, in fact, a transfer "from one prison to another".

"We don't know what crime he has committed that justifies him being kept for a year and a half without charge," she added.

Teny further called for more neutrality from the regional body adding it was a necessary condition to achieve a lasting peace in South Sudan.

(ST)

March 30, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan and South Sudan from 19 to 23 March completed the marking of two border crossing corridors between the two countries in line with the Cooperation Agreement signed in September 2012.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) which is tasked with the support f the Cooperation Agreement implementation said the demarcation done by the African Border Corridor Programme Technical Team (AUBP-TT) together with the Sudan South Sudan Joint Technical Border Corridor Committee (JTBCC).

The demarcation includes, for the time been, four crossing points of the Safe Demilitarized Buffer Zone (SDBZ) between Sudan and South Sudan.

"The marking of crossing points was completed at the Heglig-Bentiu and Al Sumayyah corridors. The Team marked the entry and exit points of the northern and southern limits of the SDBZ," said the UNISFA.

"However, only the North outer limit point was marked at the third crossing point, Kosti Renk, as the Team was denied access to the Southern part by the South Sudanese governor of the area. The Team needed clarification for the fourth crossing point at the El Rodom el Buram-Tumasaha-Raja".

The two countries in a meeting held at the level of the Joint Political and Security Mechanism (JPSM) on 4 February agreed to finalize the activation of the buffer zone between Sudan and South Sudan and decided to withdraw any remaining troops by the end of February.

The meeting further agreed to begin the Phase 1 of the border crossing corridors and the establishment of customs and immigration check-points.

the two countries agreed in April 2013 to open 10 crossing points on the border so as to improve trade and movement between the two neighbouring countries.

But the process had been delayed by the issue of 14 Mile Area which delayed the activation of the buffer zone because the Malwal Dinka refused that the disputed area be part of the SDBZ.

Also, South Sudanese information minister and chairman of the South Sudan border demarcation committee Michael Makuei said the insecurity due to the presence of Sudanese rebels on the border contributed to delay the process.

(ST)

March 30, 2018 (JUBA) - The Opposition SPLM-IO called for urgent regional and international pressures on the South Sudanese government to allow the death-sentenced spokesperson of the group leader James Gadet Dak access to necessary medical care and family visits. to which he is entitled under international human rights law.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune on Friday SPLM (IO) Director of Information and Public Relations Puok, Both Baluang said Dak is currently sick and has been suffering from High blood pressure and Typhoid/Malaria.

Riek Machar's spokesperson has been denied access to doctors, medication or visitation rights and "other harsh treatments during nights by the regime security operatives in Juba", further said the statement.

"The SPLM/SPLA (IO) condemns in the strongest words such barbaric and terroristic act, Which amounted to a flagrant violation of human rights. The movement, therefore, calls on the IGAD, AU, Troika and the UN for rapid intervention in order to spare James Gatdet's Life."

On 13 February, a South Sudanese special court sentenced Dak to death by hanging for treason. He had unlawfully detained by the Kenyan authorities and transferred from Kenya to South Sudan in November 2016.

Amnesty International called to quash the death sentence on Dak pointing he had no legal representation for more than a month.

"The South Sudanese government should immediately establish an official moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing this cruel and inhuman penalty," said Sarah Jackson, Amnesty International's Deputy Regional Director for East Africa.

(ST)

March 30, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese-Dutch political consultation committee has met in Khartoum and discussed a number of economic and political issues of common concern including illegal migration and human trafficking.

Sudan's foreign ministry building in Khartoum (SUNA)

The Sudanese side was headed by the Director-General for the American and European Affairs at Sudan's Foreign Ministry Mohamed Issa while the Dutch side was headed by the Director-General for Political Affairs at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs Andre Haspels.

Director of the European Department at Sudan's Foreign Ministry Khalid Musa told reporters following the meeting in that Sudan requested the Netherlands support at the international forums.

He added Sudan demanded the Netherlands to support its stances at the UN Security Council and particularly regarding the hybrid peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) and the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA).

“Sudan plays a significant role in combating illegal migration which makes the European side demands more cooperation and effectiveness from Sudan,” he said

The Sudanese diplomat pointed out that the two sides signed an air transport agreement which allows the provision of air services in both countries, saying they expect the Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM) to resume its operations in Sudan soon.

It is noteworthy that the KLM had stopped its flights to Khartoum in 2013 due to a high cost of operations.

After a ten-year hiatus, the political committee between Sudan and the Netherlands resumed its meetings in February 2016.

At the first meeting, the committee discussed political relations and how Amsterdam could help Sudan to cancel its foreign debt.

(ST)

March 30, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Government of South Kordofan State Friday said more than 1500 residents have returned from the rebel-held areas to their original villages in the state.

The semi-official Sudan Media Center (SMC) has quoted the commissioner of humanitarian aid in South Kordofan Zahra Nadir Faris as saying dozens of families mostly children, women and the elderly have returned to their villages of origin.

She pointed out that her commission in cooperation with the federal Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC) provided shelter and foodstuff for the returnees.

Faris called for further coordination between her commission and aid groups to provide assistance for the growing numbers of returnees.

The Sudanese army has been fighting the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) rebels in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan, also known as the Two Areas since 2011.

The SPLM-N is now divided into two factions: one led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu and the other led by Malik Agar. The rift emerged last year over the right of self-determination and other organisational issues.

Before the PSLM-N split, the Sudanese government and the Movement held 12 rounds of talks but they failed to reach a peace agreement.

Also, during the recent round of talks from 1 to 3 February, the Sudanese government and SPLM-N al-Hilu failed to reach a cessation of hostilities agreement.

The African mediation delinked the ceasefire and the humanitarian access and focused at this round only on the cessation of hostilities agreement.

However, differences between the sides emerged when Khartoum proposed that the cessation of hostilities be a step towards a permanent ceasefire and humanitarian access.

For its part, the SPLM-N al-Hilu said they want this agreement to be limited to the security arrangement, pointing they are not ready for the political process.

Also, on the humanitarian issue, they reiterated that they want the emergency relief to be delivered from outside Sudan.

(ST)

March 30, 2018 (JUBA) - South Sudanese government Friday warned it would conduct elections to avoid illegitimacy and power vacuum if peace revitalizations talks with the opposition groups fail to reach a deal.

Salva Kiir casts his vote in the 2010 elections.

A South Sudanese presidential adviser blamed the armed groups for obstructing the political process the IGAD is mediating to settle the more than four-years crisis in the country.

“The rebels are intransigent because the American sanctions have emboldened them. We know they are not going to engage in good faith in the next round of talks because they think the present government, the mandate of the transitional government of national unity expires in August," Tor Deng Mawien Presidential Adviser on Decentralization and Intergovernmental linkage told Sudan Tribune on Friday.

Mawien further predicted that the opposition would not sign a peace agreement and until August and then they will say that the "government is illegitimate and then go around the region and the world preaching it".

That will not happen. If the current efforts, including the revitalization process, fail to culminate into a new arrangement, the government will conduct elections”, he said.

In line with the 2015 peace agreement

Last Wednesday the First Vice President Taban Deng Gai said the gap between government and the opposition on security arrangements and power-sharing remains wide

"The gap between what the government proposes as the way to resolving the current situation and what the opposition is proposing is huge and wide. It is difficult to close," said Taban Deng Gai

The parties to the revitalization process are expected to meet next April to discuss a series of proposals the mediation will submit based on the positions of the two sides during the talks last February.

The presidential adviser reiterated the commitment of the government to end the war adding that any U.S.-instigated sanctions would exacerbate the situation if they are implemented.

Washington, the protector and close supporter of the young nation, now is accused by the South Sudanese officials of backing the opposition groups and

(ST)

March 29, 2018 (JUBA) – The President of the Lebanese-based telecom operator (Vivacell), Pierre Fattouch is in South Sudan for talks with government, a day after authorities shut down the company.

Chairman of Vivacell mobile network, Pierre Fattouch (Photo by John Agou)

Fattouch is seeking to end a dispute with the Juba government over the $60 million tax the mobile operator reportedly owes government.

The National Communications Authority (NCA) said Vivacell failed to pay over $60 million taxes since its inception, prompting its closure.

The Director-General of the regulatory body, Lado Wani Kenyi said they made some progress in the talks, but gave no details.

In a statement issued last week, the mobile operator, said it was working with the country's authorities to resolve the current impasse.

"We are expeditiously working with the relevant authorities to have the matter resolved and we are confident that our operations shall continue across the country,” Vivacell said in a 21 March statement.

Owned by the Lebanon-based Fattouch Investment Group, Vivacell launched its Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) network in February 2009. By early 2011, however, the mobile operator said it had achieved network coverage in all South Sudan's 10 state capitals, and along main roads from Juba to Yei and Bor.

South Sudan currently has two other mobile phone operators, MTN and Zain, with reportedly less than 4 million subscribers.

(ST)

March 29, 2018 (WASHINGTON) – The European Union (EU) should more clearly and consistently assert leadership and develop much-needed financial leverage that could support a truly reinvigorated peace process in South Sudan, a country “hijacked by corrupt elites and marred by brutal conflict and urgent humanitarian crises”, the U.S-based advocacy group (Enough Project) said in a new report.

The High Level Revitalization Forum (HLRF) at the African Union Hall, Addis Ababa (Getty)

Entitled “EuroPressure: EU Financial Leverage for Impact in South Sudan,” the report says the EU's principal answers to the South Sudan crisis have been financial aid and humanitarian support, rather than a comprehensive approach with meaningful leverage to drive change.

Brad Brooks-Rubin and Jonathan Benton jointly authored the report.

Last year alone, the EU reportedly provided over 350 million euros in aid to South Sudan, focusing particularly on assistance to South Sudan's neighbours facing serious challenges related to caring for the over 2 million refugees, who have crossed the border for safety.

In addition, however, the United Kingdom plays a leading role in international diplomacy on South Sudan through its place in the “Troika” (along with Norway and the United States), and a number of EU member states also play critical roles in providing development assistance and support to South Sudan and the broader region.

The reports urges a modernized approach, including financial leverage and associated incentives, the likes of which have never been used by the EU with respect to conflicts in sub-Saharan Africa, to demonstrate to violent kleptocrats in South Sudan who are bent on violence and corruption that leverage exists to stop them.

“The international community is slowly developing an evolving strategy of applying pressures to the spoilers of the South Sudanese peace process and those whose networks are profiting from diversion of oil wealth and other resources,” said Brooks-Rubin, co-author and Managing Director at the Enough Project and The Sentry.

He added, “The tide is shifting, and clear action by the European Union can press this effort forward and provide negotiators with real leverage to start to bring about real change in South Sudan.”

Early this month, the EU said it was ready to impose an arms embargo on South Sudan if its warring parties do not immediately cease hostilities and continue ignoring ongoing peace talks.

The threat of an arms embargo came a day after the United States on circulated a draft United Nations Security Council resolution that threatens to impose an arms embargo on South Sudan and to take "all appropriate measures" against those blocking its peace efforts.

“The European Union and its member states have led many elements of the evolving international architecture devoted to combating corruption and conflict around the world,” said Benton, report co-author and Operations Director at The Sentry in the report.

“There is now a clear opportunity for the EU to build on this leadership and apply new financial pressures to the crisis in South Sudan, where grand corruption is driving so much of the humanitarian crisis that Europe is spending hundreds of millions of euros every year to ease,” he added.

Meanwhile, the report lays out short, medium, and long term tools that the EU can deploy as part of a thoughtful and coordinated strategy to help end the crisis and suffering in war-torn South Sudan.

Among the measures, it says, are designating for sanctions key spoilers of the peace process and their business networks.

“Sanctions placed on only a few individuals and that lack enforcement are ineffective,” the report, adding that “Sanctions measures must impact not only individuals, but also their networks”.

Also, the EU has been urged to engage neighboring government by putting pressure on the key countries in the region, notably the financial intelligence units, central banks, and ministries of foreign affairs in Uganda and Kenya to monitor funds got from South Sudan.

The advocacy group further recommended “Imposing sectoral-based restrictive measures on economic sectors that are under the control of certain political and military elites, such as the extractive industries, banking, and transport sectors”.

Now in its fifth year, the conflict in South Sudan has left tens of thousands of people dead, more 2 million displaced and half of the population at threat of facing severe starvation, aid agencies say. A recent report by the United Nations and South Sudan government said up to 150,000 people could slip into severe famine this year.

(ST)

March 29, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Thursday called for observations by international bodies and experts on the legal questions raised by Jordan over the case of Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir.

Fatou Bensouda, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), briefs the Security Council at a meeting on the situation in Darfur (UN Photo)

Last December, the Hague-based court accused Jordan, which is a party to the Rome Statute of the ICC, of failing to comply with its obligations under the Rome Statute and decided to refer the case Security Council.

On 12 March 2018, Jordan appealed this decision.

Al-Bashir, who is wanted by the ICC on charges of genocide and war crimes, had attended an Arab League summit in Amman in March 2017.

The ICC Appeals Chamber is "inviting the United Nations, the African Union, the European Union, the League of Arab States and the Organization of American States to submit observations by 16 July 2018 on the legal questions raised by Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in its appeal".

In the same way, the Appeals Chamber invited States parties to the ICC Rome Statute and Professors of International Law to submit observations by first requesting leave to submit said observations by no later than 30 April 2018.

The Security Council has the power to sanction Jordan for a failure to cooperate with the ICC. However the 15-members body has so far not acted on court referrals.

To justify its call for observations, the ICC Appeals Chamber said it "noted that the legal matters raised by the appeal of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan against Pre-Trial Chamber II's decision of 11 December 2017 in the Al Bashir case may have implications beyond that case".

Jordan and several countries that refused to enforce al-Bashir's arrest warrant say that heads of states have an immunity they have to respect otherwise his arrest would be a violation to the international law.

Observers agree that Al-Bashir's case is posing a big challenge for the war crimes tribunal which is a relatively recent international institution that entered into force in July 2002.

The ICC issued two arrest warrants against al-Bashir in 2009 and 2010 for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide committed in Darfur.

However, al-Bashir denied the allegations and accused the court of being political. He has continued to travel freely in Africa, Arab countries and Asia, defying the ICC arrest warrants.

(ST)

March 29, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North led Malik Agar (SPLM-N Agar) Thursday renewed its commitment to "a unilateral ceasefire declaration and to stop internal fighting between comrades" in the Blue Nile State.

The pledges were made by the SPLA-N Agar chief of staff Gen Ahmed al-Omda during a three-day inspection tour of his troops in Tamfona, Alrom, Malken, Goz-Aljamamat and Ollo areas from 25-to28 March, said a statement extended by the group's spokesperson Mubarak Ardol.

During the past months, the group issued several statements accusing their former comrades of the SPLM-N led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu of attacking their positions in the troubled state, an accusation the latter denies. But independent sources confirmed the clashes between the two factions after a split within the group occurred in April 2017.

Gen al-Omda "appreciated the commitment of the Movement's forces to the directives of SPLM/A leadership to protect the civilians, a unilateral cease-fire and cessation of internal fighting between the comrades," said the statement.

"We must constantly direct the gun to the joint enemy of the Bashir government," al-Omda said, adding "We had hoped that there would be a positive response from our comrades in the other side towards this announcement, but we did not get it. Nevertheless, we will remain committed to what the chairman proclaimed".

Earlier this month, But Sila Moussi Kenji, SPLM-N al-Hilu Secretary of organizational and political affairs denied attacks on Agar forces saying they "have no positions in the whole (SPLM-N controlled) areas in the Blue Nile State".

Also, Gen Stephen Ahmed, SPLA-N al Hilu Deputy Chief of Staff, in a video posted on the Facebook, accused Agar attacking civilians supporting their faction last July, adding they are "in a self-defence situation".

Al-Omda said they welcome the mediation of the UN special envoy for Sudan and South Sudan who proposed a cessation of hostilities.

He also said their fighters are present in the Blue Nile starts in Jebel Klgo which is parallel to the state capital Ed Damazin to Ollo and Tanfona areas south-west of the state.

The statement said the military leader briefed the fighters about the recent Sudan Call meetings in Paris and declared his support to its decisions.

He told the fighters that the Sudan Call is a civil alliance that has nothing to do with the armed struggle.

"We must not confuse between the mechanisms, everyone works in line with its requirements and tools in order to achieve the common goal of overthrowing the regime and bringing a comprehensive change," he said.

The Sudan Call has formed a mediation panel including members from outside the opposition umbrella and addressed a letter to the leaders of the two factions to reconcile the two groups and end the fighting between them.

(ST)

By Antonio Bior Manyal

Having carefully read the Ambassador Telar Ring Deng open letter to Hon Ezekiel L Gatkuoth, here is my quick comment.

While fully agreeing with Amb Telar for the purpose of his visit to Khartoum, visiting his late father-in-law Gen. Andrew Makur Thou (RIP), while lying on a hospital bed. It is a known fact in any culture that when your family member is seriously sick anywhere, you attempt within the possible to visit him/her. It should have been quite acceptable and going without any question, that this was the purpose of Telar's visit to Khartoum.

If that was not the case, why could Amb Telar not visit Sudan earlier? I believe the timing speaks volumes and appears to validate his (Telar) reasoning.

Observers here in Juba seem to feel that, the Honourable Minister prefers to be a source of any rumour circulating here. This does not appear to match his image and responsibilities.

I would finally recommend that it will serve no good to the person of the Hon Minister nor to the great public and the country to propagate rumours, which in turn could ignite conflict and discord in our society. Let us start to seek ways for reconciliation as peace and stability appear to be around the corner.

God bless South Sudan.

By Sirir Gabriel

Michelle Grace Phiri a 19-year-old university student from Malawi who is also an active member of the Youth Action Movement (YAM) in her country, and advocate against Child Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM) once said that in Malawi, their leaders kept telling them that Youth are the Leaders of Tomorrow. But when Does Tomorrow Start is what puzzles her….

The same culture is very much practice in South Sudan, African Countries, Asians Countries and elsewhere in the whole world.

So, my brother Woje Justine, Warmongers, Dictators and Corrupt officials will always in different occasions sing the old song that ‘The youths are the leaders of tomorrow. This saying has been there for ages in a Political arena and that`s suspended me in a rare magnitude whether if that's true in its real sense.

Perhaps, it might be true but in my opinion, I am very much okay with saying it the other way round: The youths are the leaders of today‘. Meanwhile, it may be, whether the leaders of today or tomorrow, all that matters the most is the desire for a difference from the past.

This is the time; indeed it is for us (youths) to mark the eve of the long-awaited tomorrow for the youths to realize their position of leadership in the Country, South Sudan. Generations comes and go but upon the present lies a higher expectation.

Born and raised in South Sudan, I have indeed witnessed the series of leadership our country experienced in the last few years. It has the highest influx of unprepared politicians in Africa, with an abundant wealth of natural resources. From our Oil reserves, historical sites, Wildlife amongst others, yet it is swallowed by the forces of Kleptocratic.
Coming to the point, Min. Makuei Lueth said `There is no way you take away without learning from us, first you must acquire the experience from us first.`

Minister Makuei was responding to Woje Justine a youth representative who boldly calls for leadership handover to youth citing that the Country ruling party has failed to run the affairs of the nation.

If we reminisce the famous catchword `Youth are the leaders of tomorrow ` made by our leaders of yesteryears who are still gluttonously clinging on to the baton of power, we wonder when exactly is the future going to pull in for the youths.

At this Juncture, Hon. Makuei will only make fool of himself about promising tomorrow for youth and in turn, he and his likes are busy like bees making sure that`s tomorrow is never realized.

Ya Junubin…. Honestly, what would youths of South Sudan learn from Michael Makuei Lueth?

Since 2013 till presences, children in South Sudan have been endowed in work of art guns design in particular, war tanks which they made out of mud/clays instead of doing their homework and reading books. Isn't this undeniable experience Makuei Lueth shall left behind?

Moreover, Youth are idly sipping tea under the hottest sun in Juba city as a result of unemployment. Hunger strikes them with no mercy and the government kept preaching through their own state media that all is okay. As the sun goes to sleep, the government-sponsored Unit of the Unknown Gunmen terrorize them as they struggle to sleep with empty stomachs Youths Must wake up and join the fight for reforms and freedom.

Regrettably, this has robbed the youths of their perspective, their aptitude and responsibility to be the leaders of today, consequently subjecting them to a status of submissiveness, clumsiness and gross inconsistency towards promoting state development and efficiency.

Finally, I stumble on the theme very significant at this point in our history when our youths barely observe treasured communal ethics. Let it be promptly pointed out that every Country needs its youth. The reasons are that youths seize ceaseless energy, enthusiasm and revolutionary thoughts among others and are, therefore, vivacious actors of social change. It is for these reasons that they are also branded as “partners of today.” I like to tell our youths that it is better to learn how to be effective partners today so that they can truly assume the role of effective leaders tomorrow. In our national history, youths who subjected themselves to leadership mentorship rose to be true leaders of the nation. We can mention Manawa Peter Gatkuoth, Mabior Garang, Wol Thompson, Puot Kang Chol, Peter Oyoyo Kleto, Manase Zindo amongst others.

Sirir Gabriel is a Media Consultant, Freelance Writer and SPLM –IO Youth League Spokesman Contact him via sirirgabrielyiei3@gmail.com