24 July 2018
Greetings from UPDM to all South Sudanese wherever you are; my name is Jacqueline Ikang. I am a South Sudanese, and a member of UPDM.
- To introduce our group, UPDM is the only opposition party that defines itself as the servant of the people of South Sudan. Our team has been monitoring the negotiations in Addis Ababa since the crisis began in 2013. Recently we have seen that the talks have taken a dangerous turn.
- Following a secret agreement between Omar al Bashir of Sudan and Museveni of Uganda, they have put forward proposals last month in Khartoum and Kampala and now want our leaders to sign in Khartoum this week.
The Khartoum/Entebbe agreement that is to be signed on the 26th of July 2018 is bad for South Sudan for the following reasons:
i) Khartoum is not the right mediator for lasting peace because Omar el Bashir is not impartial. On the other hand Salva Kiir’s government has no legitimacy to sign an agreement on your behalf, as his term in office is over, and the people of South Sudan were not consulted in the recent extension passed by parliament.
ii) Now that Omar el Bashir has signed an agreement with Salva Kiir to assume the management of your resources, Khartoum wants to Keep President Kiir in power and avoid any democratic elections.
iii) This agreement allows the government of Salva Kiir to auction off our resources in return for holding on to power against the will of the people.
iv) What is also alarming is that the Kiir/Bashir/Museveni agreement allows Sudan and Uganda to deploy their Armies in our country to protect the resources for them to exploit.
v) The five vice Presidents that Salva Kiir, Omar Bashir and Museveni agreed will accommodate the very people who created the conflict in the first place and shielding them from the hybrid court to face justice.
We owe it to our heroes to value our country, to use its resources wisely and to join the community of nations.
It is essential to know, that you are not alone in rejecting this agreement. Friends of South Sudan have issued statements saying they will not fund this peace agreement because they do not think it will deliver peace to you. The UNSC also stands with the people and have recently passed an arms embargo to stop more guns and bullets from killing our families.
While these are small but essential steps, the big step is for us to take. Together, we must continue to resist for our rights and freedoms and to go back to our homes, grow food, send our children to school and live in peace.
We pray that God gives you patience, strength and support to resist because the end is in sight and we will win this battle.
Thank you for your support and God bless you, and God bless South Sudan.
Signed
For UPDM
External Affairs and Communications
For all comments and queries, please send an email to: contact@updm-rss.org or visit our website: https://updm-rss.org