> *IT WAS NOT A COUP - SALVA KIIR SHOT HIMSELF IN THE FOOT * > > Peter Adwok Nyaba > > > > Sometimes ago I wrote on the SouthSudanNation website and made the > conclusion that *“the SPLM must be saved from itself lest it plunged the > country into the abyss.*” The events of the last two weeks seem to > vindicate this prophetic statement. South Sudan is on the brink. > > > > The current crisis started last year when Dr. Riek Machar, the SPLM first > vice Chairman, declared his intention to contest for the SPLM Chairmanship > – itself his democratic right, and was soon joined by Pagan Amum the SPLM > Secretary General and Madame Rebecca Nyandeng de Mabior member of the SPLM > Political Bureau. > > > > Instead of taking charge of the emerging situation as the SPLM Chairman > Salva Kiir allowed matters to slide taking their course until the country > was woken up to a presidential decree withdrawing delegated powers from Dr. > Riek Machar. Sooner thereafter more presidential decrees followed > dismissing Dr. Riek Machar as Vice President, dissolving the cabinet and > suspending the SPLM Secretary General and subjecting him to criminal > investigation over corruption charges. > > > > In the intervening period, two opposing trends emerged in the SPLM. The > group in the government and that outside made up of most of the dismissed > ministers and two unconstitutionally dismissed governors of Lakes and Unity > states respectively. Efforts to reconcile the different trends came to > nothing. Finally, Dr. Riek Machar and group called the shots and on > December 6th called a press conference in the SPLM House in whey they > outlined the main differences and called on the SPLM Chairman Salva Kiir > Mayardit to convene the Political Bureau in order to set the agenda for the > anticipated National Liberation Council. Dr Riek Machar also announced the > public rally the group would hold on Saturday December 14th on Dr, John > Garang Memorial Grounds. The SPLM General Secretariat also scheduled that > day for the opening of the session of the National Liberation Council. The > two SPLM groups seem gearing towards a collision. > > > > This prompted the Dinka elders’ and the Church leaders to appeal to the > two sides to postpone both the public rally and the NLC meeting and to give > dialogue between the two a chance in order to reach a consensus on the > contentious issues. Dr. Riek Machar et al acquiesced and released a > statement to that effect. The NLC meeting, however, started as scheduled on > Saturday morning. His Grace Paulino Lokudu Loro, the Catholic Archbishop of > Juba reiterated the appeal the Bishops had made earlier and called for calm > and harmony. > > > > In his opening speech, the SPLM Chairman made no reference to the internal > contradictions that hampered the party functions since March and how to > resolve them amicably. On the contrary, he was bellicose, ignored the > appeal of the Archbishop and deliberately referred to the 1991 split within > the SPLM/SPLA as a reminder. In this context, I quote the following: > > > > *“in the light of the recent development in which some comrades have come > out to challenge my executive decisions, I must warn you that this > behaviour is tantamount to indiscipline, which will take us back to the > days of the 1991 split.”* > > > > Chairman Salva Kiir apparently referred to Dr. Riek Machar ostensibly to > put him in unfavourable light among the membership of the NLC and to > discredit his demands for democratic reforms in the SPLM. This perhaps > prompted Riek, Rebecca Nyandeng, and others to boycott the Sunday meeting > incensing Salva Kiir into a frenzy, which became the most tragic incident > in post war South Sudan. > > > > On Sunday afternoon as the meeting of the NLC was winding up, President > Salva Kiir Mayardit, the Commander in Chief of the SPLA, ordered Major > General Marial Ciennoung, the commander of Tiger Battalion to leave the > meeting venue in Nyakuron back to his H/Qs and to disarm his troops. Marial > went and implemented the orders. However, after dispersing the troops, he > ordered the Dinka elements rearmed. The ensuing argument between him and > his deputy, a Nuer, attracted the attention of some Nuer soldiers who > happened to be nearby. A fistfight ensued between the storekeeper and some > Nuer soldiers. In the confusion, the Nuer soldiers broke into the store and > armed themselves. This was the trigger of the fighting in Juba. It was a > fight between the elements of the same Tiger Battalion, which makes the > presidential guards, that lasted from Sunday night till Monday afternoon. > The rest of the fighting in other parts of Juba, which lasted until > Wednesday was the presidential militia terrorising and butchering the > Nuers, other Dinka elements presumed to be supporters of Riek Machar, > Rebecca Nyandeng and Majak de Agoot. > > > > On Monday, President Salva Kiir called a press conference. Clad in > complete military attire, the President declared it was a coup and that the > loyal forces has crushed it and were now pursuing the remnants The linkage > of the fighting among the presidential guards to an attempted coup against > the state carried by the president’s press briefing makes an incredibly > clumsy story. The absurdity of the coup story comes out clearly, with the > deployment of the presidential militia hailing mainly from Warrap and > Northern Bahr el Ghazal, who indeed are the killings of unarmed Nuers > soldiers, civilians including women and children in Juba, on the > presumption that they were Riek Machar’s supporters, that Salva Kiir > inadvertently is pushing the country to the brink. > > > > In Juba, many innocent Nuers, some of them government official, members of > the NLC, but the majority are civilians women, youths, students and persons > from other ethnicities have been executed either in their own houses or are > taken under guise of being arrested and killed in ghost houses run by the > National Security and Intelligence Service elements in the town. Their > bodies buried in several mass-graves secretly by night. Many people, > including the Hon. Speaker of the National Legislative Assembly, whose > children missed death by a whisker having been saved by a Dinka woman MP > shocked by the killings in the neighbourhood, have run to the UNMISS > compound for protection. Many Nuers have left their homes and have gone to > UNMISS or are hiding in the hotels in Juba. In Jonglei, Upper Nile and > Unity states reprisals against elements of the Dinka nationality have been > reported targeting those hailing from Bahr el Ghazal. In Warrap state those > who were calling for the removal of Governor Nyandeng have been branded > coup plotters linked to Dr. Riek Machar. > > > > There is a direct link between the events now unfolding and Salva Kiir’s > power perceptions. When he toured the four states of Bahr el Ghazal in > September, Salva Kiir made hate speeches against his former deputy Dr. Riek > Machar and the former ministers. In Akon, his hometown, speaking in Dinka, > which SSTV aired, Salva had this to say, *“…look, this power which I have > belongs to you. You fought and died for it… now some people want to snatch > it from me… we you accept it?”* “*Aci ba gam”* meaning we will not > accept, shouted the people back. It was in this context of retaining power > that he ordered Paul Malong Awan to recruit and bring to Juba three > thousand young men, which now constitutes his presidential guards. > > The developments in the last few days now reveal President Kiir’s > principle objective of recruiting guards from his home turf. This was the > cause of unease in the SPLA top brass. In anger, the Army’s Chief of > General Staff took his annual leave and travelled to his family in > Australia. Upon their passing out and as if to acquaint them with the > different parts of Juba, the commander ordered these troops to undertake > manual tasks of cleaning the streets and neighbourhoods of Juba. No one > suspected these militia troops were indeed reconnoitring and marking the > centres of major concentration of the Nuer ethnic group. They have been > dressed the attire of the National Security and Intelligence Service forces > and they now have put this knowledge of the areas to use. They are the ones > who now carry weapons and roam the different parts of the city killing > Nuers, Dinka marked like Nuers and others. > > > > Now putting together the pieces, a clearer picture begins to emerge. > President Salva has been planning to forestall any democratic reforms in > and institutionalization of power relations in the SPLM soon after July 23 > rd when he dissolved the cabinet and dismissed Riek Machar. The > recruitment of presidential militia from Warrap was to send home the > message that power belonged to the people of Warrap and so they should > protect it. The story of the coup was just a stratagem to cover his > rejection of the appeal by the Church leaders and Dinka elders, and a ploy > to arrest Riek Machar and close the chapter of dissent against his > leadership. The arrest of the former ministers was also to accelerate their > removal from the government houses they are occupying in Hai Amarat. It is > a very simplistic but dangerous game. In a matter of a few hours, Salva > Kiir succeeded to erode the social capital that bounded together our people > for centuries. > > > > Now Salva Kiir has come up with another story that it was not a coup > attempt but that Dr. Riek and others had wanted to exploit the fighting in > the Tiger Battalion for their political ambitions. Salva Kiir has shot > himself in the foot. This is incredible, President Kiir who on Monday was > on TV screens worldwide announcing that his forces had crushed an attempt > coup is now saying that it was not a coup. Who again will ever believe > Salva Kiir, the president of the Republic of South Sudan? God save South > Sudan!!!! > > >
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