South Sudan rebel leader 'not under arrest' in Pretoria

South Sudan rebel leader Riek Machar is not under house arrest in the South African capital Pretoria, his spokesman said on Thursday.

Machar’s Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in the Opposition (SPLM-IO) denied all media reports claiming the former first vice president-turned-rebel leader had been held in a bid to stop him from stirring up trouble in the world’s youngest nation.

“The SPLM/SPLA -IO refutes the allegations purporting that the chairman and commander-in-chief is under house arrest,” spokesman Mabior Garang said in a statement mailed to Anadolu Agency on Thursday.

Garang claimed media reports were trying to show Machar in bad light as part of an alleged propaganda campaign sponsored by the regime in Juba.

“The arrest of the chairman and commander-in-chief was just the wishful thinking of the regime in Juba and it would not solve the root causes of the conflict,” he said.

Reports quoting a well-connected regional political consultant said Machar was being held under house arrest near Pretoria with his movements restricted and his phone calls monitored and controlled.

“If he wants to go to the toilet he has to hand over his phone and a guy stands outside the cubicle,” the report claimed.

Machar fled South Sudan three months ago into the Democratic Republic of Congo following clashes in the capital Juba. He later relocated to Khartoum in Sudan and then moved to South Africa in October for treatment.

Last month, he was denied entry into both Ethiopia and Sudan, giving rise to speculation the two regional power houses belonging to an eight-country block in East Africa known as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) had shifted their policy on Machar.

Sudan was widely viewed as a supporter of Machar until last month.

Meanwhile, the South African government also denied claims Machar was under house arrest.

“Dr. Riek Machar is still in South Africa and the South African government is taking care of him, given his profile,” Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry further said they were in constant touch with authorities in South Sudan and the IGAD regarding Machar’s presence in the country.

Residents of Juba, South Sudan’s capital, earlier gave mixed reactions to reports about the alleged incarceration of Machar.

Ayuen John, a student pursuing a master degree in conflict resolution at Kampala International University, said Machar’s alleged house arrest was a good move because it would mitigate the conflict.

Debora Kiden wants South Sudan President Salva Kiir to be forced out of office if he is not willing to implement a peace deal reached with Machar several months back.

The war between Kiir’s mostly ethnic Dinka forces and the rival Nuer led by Machar ran from December 2013 until a peace deal was reached in August last year.

In April, Machar returned to Juba to join a unity government led by Kiir but after fighting broke out between their factions in July he fled the country and was replaced by Taban Deng as first vice president.

Tens of thousands of people were killed and more than two million were displaced during the violence in the country.

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