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Tuesday, August 18, 2015
South Sudan President Salva Kiir threw a wrench in the peace process aimed at ending the civil war that the country has descended into. Kiir declined to sign a peace deal proposed by regional leaders on August 17, saying he required more time.
Government troops and rebel troops loyal to the country’s former vice president, Riek Machar, have been battling it out since December 2013. The conflict has reopened the ethnic divide in the country.
Kiir apparently needs two more weeks before signing the peace accord, according to mediator Seyoum Mesfin of the IGAD, the East African bloc leading the talks. Machar, on the other hand, had no issues with signing the peace deal. Machar said he was satisfied with the agreement.
“We do not have any reservations on the ceasefire. We have no reason to continue fighting,” he told reporters. “There is no reason why he (Kiir) requested for more time. He has got a good agreement.”
Seyoum was quoted as saying, “In the next 15 days, the government will come back to Addis Ababa to finalize the peace agreement,” by Reuters.
In July the IGAD set an August 17 deadline to end the talks, outlining proposals for ending the fighting. The proposal designates a 30-month transition period with Kiir as president, with a first vice president post allocated to the rebels, with elections being held two months after the close of the interim period. Both Kiir and Machar would be eligible to run in the election.
However Kiir expressed concerns over some aspects of the IGAD’s proposals, such as the demilitarization of Juba. Kiir’s team also called in to question the provision that calls for consultations with Machar on “powers, functions and responsibilities” he would exercise. Kiir would like to shorten the deadline for integration of armed forces, taking it from the proposed 18-months to six months.
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