This Week in South Sudan – Week 43

Tuesday 24 October

• SPLM (IO) announced that a person suspected of causing the death of its late spokesperson Lam Kuei Lam has been arrested by the Sudanese police.
• 200 Ethiopian peacekeepers arrived in South Sudan to help bolster the UNMISS mission.

Wednesday 25 October

• President Salva Kiir will visit Khartoum and his Sudanese counterpart, President Omer al-Bashir, on 31 October, for bilateral talks about the IGAD peace and security forum in South Sudan. The two will however not discuss issues relating to Abyei and oil production.
• US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, issued a stern warning to President Salva Kiir during her visit in Juba, saying the US has lost trust in the Government of South Sudan (GoSS). Haley had to be evacuated from a UN PoC camp in Juba during her visit, due toa volatile demonstration against President Kiir. Camp residents later accused the French charity ACTED, which runs the camp, of preventing Haley from seeing their poor living conditions.
  • The Washington Post: “Nikki Haley and the awful dilemma posed by South Sudan”
• Kiir issued an order instructing the SPLA to ensure that all pastoralists and cattle camps from the Equatoria region withdraw immediately, and return to their respective states.

Thursday 26 October

• SPLA’s former secretary for external affairs, Suzanne Jambo, has vowed to challenge Salva Kiir in the next general elections.

Friday 27 October

• More than 70 soldiers from the opposition group of South Sudan Patriotic Army/Movement has reportedly defected to the SPLA in Northern Bahr al Ghazal.

Saturday 28 October

• Conflicting reports on clashes between SPLA (IO) and government forces in Kuergeng, Unity State, as both factions claims control of the area.

Sunday 29 October

• Several SPLA units have defected following a failed attempt to forcefully free former army chief, General Paul Malong Awan. The number of defected troops and their new position or affiliation remains unclear, but the move has sparked tension and fears that the army could be divided and imbued with dissents.
• GoSS has again announced they will increase the cost of foreign workers’ work permits, from USD$ 100 up to USD$ 4000, starting in November 2017. GoSS has previously had to suspend similar initiatives due to heavy criticism from the international aid and development sector.
• The Washington Post: “Africa trip illustrates Haley’s trusted, unusually direct relationship with Trump”

Monday 30 October

• The Guardian “Forced to live in a cemetery: the secret shantytown for Juba’s homeless”