December 4th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – The Troika countries (United States, United Kingdom and Norway) have urged the regional bloc, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), to release detained SPLM-IO leader Dr. Riek Machar Teny.
A last week meeting in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa of the IGAD heads of state and government ended without deliberation on the status of the main armed opposition leader despite early expectations that Machar would be released.
The SPLM-IO has condemned the continued detention of its leader saying there was no basis for him to remain under what it describes is an “illegal” house confinement since he signed a peace deal with President Salva Kiir.
“We look to IGAD to further strengthen its oversight of implementation, including through the development of clear benchmarks,” the Troika said in a statement.
“We also find it appropriate, in this context, to call on IGAD to appoint a new R-JMEC Chair and to address the issue of Dr. Riek Machar’s status so he can travel freely and fully participate in the peace process. We look forward to continuing to work in partnership with IGAD on moving the peace process into the next phase,” the statement added.
