South Sudan dispatches military commanders for ceasefire workshop

September 11, 2015 (JUBA) - South Sudanese government, led by president Salva Kiir, announced on Friday it was dispatching senior military commanders to participate in a ceasefire and transitional security arrangement workshop expected to be held in Addis Ababa, capital of neighbouring Ethiopia, over the weekend.

This came hours after the armed opposition faction or SPLM/A-IO, led by former vice- president, Riek Machar, confirmed that their senior officers had already arrived at the workshop venue in Addis Ababa, waiting for the government’s team to kick off the discussions on Saturday.

The government’s military team also left for Addis Ababa on Friday and the two teams under the auspices of the East African regional body, IGAD, are expected to start the workshop on Saturday.

South Sudanese army chief of general staff, Paul Malong Awan, on Friday said the selection of the military officers designated for the training was done long time ago and have been ready since to participate at the workshop.

The office of the IGAD mediation team released a program explaining that the workshop will be attended by military commanders representing the government and the armed opposition forces.

Initially it was scheduled to be held between 5 and 8 August, 2015, but it was postponed at the behest of the opposition leadership, citing necessity for holding leadership meeting to ratify the peace agreement itself as a prerequisite for implementation of the deal in accordance with the provisions in the agreement.

South Sudan’s parliament and national liberation council of the opposition faction ratified the peace deal on Thursday in Juba and Pagak, respectively.

The opposition group further unanimously nominated their chairman and commander-in-chief, Riek Machar, to take the position of the first vice president as created in the accord. He will also command a separate army for at least one and a half years into the transitional period until security sector reforms and unification of the two forces were completed.

The military workshop program showed that participants from the two warring parties will discuss full implementation of the permanent ceasefire and disengagement of forces as well as the establishment of demilitarized zones, withdrawal of foreign forces, disarmament of non-state actors, such as Sudanese rebels in South Sudan and the ceasefire monitoring mechanism.

They will also determine the size of presidential guards for the two leaders, size and composition of the joint police to be deployed in Juba, Bor, Malakal, Bentiu, etc, as well as the size and composition of forces that will be protecting barracks, bases and warehouses in the national capital.

Each side will have a 15-member team including four senior military commanders, bringing the total number to 30. Some of the members who attend the workshop will be participating in the other monitoring mechanisms that will be set up per the peace deal.

The two parties during the three months of pre-transitional period will implement other provisions including amendment of the transitional constitution, 2011, in order to incorporate the peace agreement, among others.

A transitional government of national unity is expected to be formed by the end of November or beginning of December.

(ST)