South Sudan peace talks, which were almost brought to a close, hit an unexpected snag after, in order to sign the proposed agreement, the opposition groups asked to drop an approved bill that allows the detention of people without an arrest warrant, the Associated Press reported, quoted by BTA.
Since May, Kenya has hosted high-level meetings between government officials and rebel opposition groups that are not part of the 2018 accord that ended a five-year civil war that has killed about 400,000 people and displaced millions from their birthplaces. Despite the agreement, violence often erupts in the country of 9 million people.
Pagan Amum, a negotiator for the Alliance of South Sudan opposition movement, told the AP last night that it would be “pointless to sign any agreement if the draconian National Security Act is signed by the president and enters in force“.
Last week, parliament voted in favor of the 2015 bill, and President Salva Kiir Mayardi must sign it within 30 days for it to take effect. This is happening before the first elections in history, which will be held in the country on December 22.
„This law violates the fundamental rights and freedoms of South Sudanese citizens. It eliminates the political space”, Amum said. "There can be no peace or democracy with such a law," he added.
The executive director of the non-governmental organization “Community Empowerment for Progress“ present at the negotiations. (Community Empowerment for Progress Organization) – Edmund Yakani, criticized the bill and said it “creates a negative atmosphere during the negotiations”.
The human rights organization “Human Rights Watch“ also called on the president to reject the controversial bill, saying it would further undermine human rights in the future and strengthen national security agencies that have a long history of rights abuses.
During the talks, called “tumaini“, which means "hope" in Swahili, a draft agreement was drawn up proposing to extend the country's transition period by postponing the upcoming elections to allow for the completion of the constitution and electoral laws, as well as establishing electoral district boundaries and unified security forces, which was proposed in the 2018 peace talks.
Representatives of some Western countries have also suggested postponing the elections “to ensure a free and transparent vote”. However, President Salva Kiir Mayardit is adamant that the elections should be held in December.