South Sudan’s main opposition party dismissed President Salva Kiir’s call for dialogue on Thursday, warning the country risks sliding back into civil war.
Pal Mai Deng, spokesperson for the SPLM-IO opposition, demanded the release of detained political and military leaders to prove Kiir’s sincerity about peace talks. During Wednesday’s parliamentary reopening, Kiir appealed for unity and reconciliation, insisting the “doors of peace remain open” despite stalled negotiations.
“The suffering of our people must not be prolonged by the continued rejection of dialogue,” Kiir urged, seeking to revive a fragile peace. Tensions remain high after Vice President Riek Machar, Kiir’s former rival, was placed under house arrest following March attacks on army bases.
Several opposition members fled into exile, fearing further arrests and military crackdowns targeting the SPLM-IO and Nuer civilians. South Sudan’s 2018 peace agreement ended a brutal five-year civil war that claimed nearly 400,000 lives amid clashes between Kiir and Machar loyalists.
Deng called Kiir’s appeal “paradoxical and insincere,” citing ongoing military campaigns against opposition forces and indiscriminate killings of civilians. Civil society group CEPO warned Machar’s detention has destabilized the government of national unity, making dialogue increasingly unrealistic.
Edmund Yakani, CEPO’s Executive Director, said Machar’s absence left the government unbalanced, complicating the country’s fragile peace efforts. Last month, the United Nations warned the 2018 peace deal teetered on collapse due to escalating violence and political repression.
Yasmin Sooka, chair of the UN’s Human Rights Commission in South Sudan, described the crisis as pushing the agreement to the “brink of irrelevance.” As South Sudan stands at a precarious crossroads, voices of peace struggle against the shadow of returning conflict.
