2 SPLM-IO members arrested by army in Northern Bahr el Ghazal

JUBA – South Sudan’s main armed opposition group, SPLM-IO, has said that two of its members have been arrested and detained by South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) in the country’s Northern Bahr el Ghazal state, according to a senior member of the group.

Dut Majokdit, a member of the SPLM-IO National Liberation Council (NLC) and close ally to First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny told Sudans Post in an exclusive interview on Thursday night that Deng Akoon Yai and Longar Arou were arrested lasted week by the army’s third infantry division in Northern Bahr el Ghazal and are being detained at Wunyik military headquarters.

“Two of the SPLM-IO members have been arrested in Jac Payam of Aweil North by the SSPDF just because they decided to join the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition under the leadership of Dr. Riek Machar Teny. Now they are being detained by the military at Wunyik military barrack,” Majokdit said from Juba.

The senior opposition official said the two members of the group were arrested in a local market at Jac Payam by ex-National Democratic Movement chief of staff who had abandoned the group under Dr. Lam to join the SSPDF last year.

“They were arrested just in a local market at Jac Payam by a certain self-proclaimed general from the SSPDF called Nicodemus Deng Deng who was chief of staff of the NDM led by Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin before he defect to the SSPDF,” he added.

Majokdit said the government was doing that to scare people in the area from joining the SPLM-IO saying such actions are detrimental to the implementation of the revitalized peace agreement signed in 2018 by the government and the SPLM-IO.

“They are doing this to only scare people from joining the SPLM-IO and to intimidate  our members in order to silent them and not to talk about the SPLM-IO in the statement,” the outspoken opposition official said.

“We urge the Governor of Northern Bhar El Ghazel State Honorable Tong Akeen Ngor and Division 3 commander to free the these SPLM-IO members from detentions because we are implementing the peace agreement as parties to the unity government and no need to arrest members of the SPLM-IO while His Excellency Dr. Riek Machar is the First Vice President of the country,” he added.

“It is time to build and construct complete peace and stability to our bowl ole on Aweil and anywhere in the country and as such we should refrain from threat and work together as peace parties to serve and deliver basic services to the suffering  people as we continue to implement the peace agreement.

“We therefore condemn the arrest and call for their immediate release.”