The chief mediator in South Sudan's peace talks, retired Lieutenant General Lazarus Sumbeiywo, says they will continue to the end, despite uncertainty over whether the parties will resume dialogue.

Sumbeiywo told The EastAfrican on Monday that the mediation team was still waiting for the government delegation to return and expressed optimism that an agreement would to be signed in November.

He and Mohamed Guyo are the Kenyan mediators leading talks between the South Sudan government and the delegates from various armed groups that had previously refused to sign the 2018 peace agreement brokered by the regional bloc, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad).

The peace deal, formally known as the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), led to the formation of the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGNoU).

But some armed groups didn't sign up and have been problematic, occasionally engaging in clashes with government forces. Regional players warned this would lead to a slow implementation of the R-ARCSS and urged inclusive talks that also roped in civil society.

However, after months of talks, government delegates left the venue in Nairobi in September, ostensibly for consultations, and haven't returned.“Till now, we have yet to receive the government delegation. However, they have not abandoned the talks since the Juba communique tasked the mediation to conclude the talks within two weeks."However, the questions over their delay is best answered by the Juba government,” said Lt-Gen Sumbeiywo.

Delegation reconstitutedKenya’s President William Ruto visited Juba on November 6 and agreed with President Salva Kiir that the talks resume on November 11 in Nairobi, but the government delegation is yet to arrive.

President Kiir had reconstituted the TGNoU delegation to fast-track the process but there have been concerns that it is now populated by those who oppose the Tumaini talks on the grounds that it would overturn the 2018 peace agreement.

The coordinator of General Paul Malong’s South Sudan United Front (SSUF), Lual Dau, who is also the secretary of the South Sudan Opposition Movements Alliance (SSOMA), is concerned that the change of members of the government delegation plus the two-week no-show could derail the process.“To our dismay, the transitional government has changed its delegation after having negotiated and agreed to the Tumaini Consensus. The new delegation is largely composed of anti-Tumaini elements. With that, it is clear that the government is reneging on the Tumaini Consensus, which had been negotiated. This shows a lack of good faith and an unwillingness to conclude the Tumaini process,” said Mr Dau in a press statement released on November 18.

He said that the government side failed to turn up for the second time.“The opposition, stakeholders and regional and international observers have honoured the invitation. This repeat of abscondment of the transitional government shows a dearth of political will to rescue the state from imminent collapse and total disintegration resulting from its failure to implement the R-ARCSS over the past six years,” said Mr Dau.

He added that this attitude demonstrates the government’s insensitivity to the plight of the people of South Sudan, as civil servants, the army and other organised forces have not been paid for over a year. He attributed this to the looting of government coffers by cartels.

Opposition groups negotiating peace with South Sudan’s transitional government at the Kenya-brokered 'Tumaini (Hope) Initiative' peace talks on Monday said the newly constituted government delegation did not turn up at the talks as promised.

Dr Cirino Hiteny, a member of the Implementation Committee, said that they had been told that the government delegation could arrive in Nairobi any time.“Tumaini is still on and hopefully talks may resume anytime this week,” said Dr Hiteny.

© Copyright 2022 Nation Media Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).