South Sudan’s Kiir Administration Pressured by US to Release Prisoners for Sake of Peace

The United States has been putting pressure on South Sudan President Salva Kiir to release political prisoners loyal to former vice president, Riek Machar, in a bid to end a civil war. Kiir’s government arrested 11 soldiers and politicians who were accused of attempting to stage a coup following the sacking of Machar.

However, the U.S is pressing for the quick release of the detainees and offered assurances that they would be protected.
Machar has demanded the release of the detainees as a condition for peace talks. “The expeditious release and transfer of all of the detainees would reduce tension and build confidence in an inclusive reconciliation process,” a U.S. State Department official advised reporters.

Seven of the political figures were released on January 29 but four more are still in detention. Machar continues to call for the release of all 11 detainees, a key condition for any negotiations. Speaking in Juba on Monday, US envoy Donald Booth said he hoped the freed detainees would “participate in a constructive manner in the efforts to bring about peace… and resolve the political issues that sparked this conflict”.

In its efforts to ease tensions, South Sudanese Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth indicated that the government had agreed to suspend a planned offensive to recapture the town of Bentui, one of the rebel-held towns. The South Sudan civil war has taken a largely ethnic dimension between the Dinka and Nuer tribes of Kiir and Machar.

According to the United Nations, at least 3.2 million people, more than a quarter of the population, face food shortages as a result of the fighting. In addition, many people have been killed and more than 800,000 have fled their homes since a deadly power struggle between Kiir and Machar. Members of Kiir’s Dinka ethnic group and Machar’s Nuer community have both been targeted.

Source: The Africa Report