Dr. Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon

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The young Republic of South Sudan engulfed itself in a civil war barely two years into its independence. The political crisis within the political leadership of the ruling party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), turned violent on December 15, 2013, thereby plunging the country into the political abyss. Consequent to the events of that fateful day, the SPLM split into two factions, namely the SPLM in government [Government of the Republic of South Sudan (GRSS)] led by Salva Kiir Mayardit and the SPLM/SPLA (in Opposition) led by Dr. Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon.

On December 6, 2013, the reformists, led by Dr. Riek Machar, held a press conference in the SPLM House in which they called on the SPLM Chairman to, among other things, call to session the SPLM Political Bureau to set the agenda for the anticipated session of the SPLM National Liberation Council (NLC). Held at the height of simmering tensions in the SPLM, the Press Conference marked the beginning of a split within the movement. Chairman Salva Kiir construed the press conference as an attempt to snatch power, which he on 16 December 2013 elaborated as a “failed coup attempt against the state”, now proven beyond doubt that that was not the case. If anything, Salva Kiir pulled a coup against the SPLM and his colleagues in the leadership.

Splits are however not unusual to the SPLM/SPLA. The Movement witnessed splits within its ranks since its inception in 1983. The first rift pitted the group of Samuel Gai Tut and Akuot Atem against Dr. John Garang and other politicians. Then, Dr. John Garang and his loyalists embraced the idea of liberating the whole of Sudan from Arab rulers. Samuel Gai Tut, Akuot Atem and other Southern Sudanese on the other hand insisted on simply liberating South Sudan and making it an independent country. This split led to the bloodshed which resulted in the death of both Samuel Gai Tut and Akuot Atem. A more serious split in the SPLM ensued in 1991. This time, it split into SPLM Nasir Faction and SPLM Torit Faction. The key reason for the split was that the Nasir Faction led by Dr. Riek Machar rejected the Movement’s policy (“New Sudan Vision”) of unconditional unity of Sudan and advocated for the right of Self-Determination for South Sudanese. 

The two leaders, later on, signed the Washington Declaration which adopted the right of Self-Determination for the people of Southern Sudan. This right became a reality on 9 July 2011, a day when South Sudan gained independence. Despite having led the people of South Sudan through to independence, harmonious resolutions of internal contradictions within the SPLM did not happen. Splits were resolved through compromises and a return to the fold’ without addressing the root causes of the contradictions or effecting structural changes in the SPLM/SPLA explaining the recurrence of the contradictions. However, the split that boiled over in December 2013 has transcended the current ruling SPLM due to its linkage to the South Sudanese state and its governance System. The resistance to reforms, which now precipitated civil strife in the country, has therefore rendered it difficult to organize, democratize and politicize the SPLM internal relations.

The lack of a unifying political ideology and insufficient organizational capacity compounds the internal situation, making the current governing SPLM incapable of transforming South Sudanese society. Coupled with the inherited negative effects of colonial legacy, it is no wonder that South Sudan still bears the relics of centuries of socioeconomic and cultural underdevelopment manifested in abject poverty, ignorance, and propensity to ethnic and regional autochthonism as survival instincts. To confront and address this sad reality requires a new political ideology and organization to usher in a socio-economic paradigm shift capable of rendering rapid development through competitiveness in the production of social goods and knowledge.