Biography of President Salva Kiir Mayaardit of South Sudan

Biography for Salva Kiir

Modest leader lights the path to freedom for Southern Sudanese

By Otieno Onyango

President Salva Kiir Mayardit has lived through the South Sudan liberation struggle to see the independence of the country as the 54th African state.

Like the former president of Southern Sudan, the late John Garang, Kiir known for his trademark fedora hat, is a Dinka. However, unlike the man he succeeded at the highest office in South Sudan, Kiir has no personality cult, although he is popular with the citizenry.

Dr Garang who died in a helicopter crash on July 30 2005 after leading the South to a peace agreement with the North was exceptionally charismatic and brooked no opposition. Salva Kiir on the other hand, has been described by many as modest and self-effacing.

But Kiir is the man who has overseen the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed between South and North Sudan in 2005, barely a year after Dr Garang had signed the agreement.

When Garang died, many pessimists questioned Kiir’s credentials to steward the country through the various stages of the peace agreement, saying that he lacked appropriate qualities like those of his predecessor, who was seen as an intellectual, visionary politician, etc.

Kiir, known for his modesty at that time, admitted that his feet were not big enough to fit into his predecessor’s shoes. He said Garang had been built over a long period of time to become what he was at the time of his death and appealed to Southerners to build him too so that he could measure up to Garang’s experience.

Kiir’s inexperience was indeed manifested in the way he handled initial negotiations with Khartoum’s National Congress Party (NCP), in which he lost key ministerial posts that were supposed to go to SPLM in accordance with the SPLM.

Today, as the Southern Sudanese celebrate independence, one thing stands out clear: Kiir has steadily been built to claim a prime page in the history books of South Sudan as the man who led the country to independence.

There was no doubt that Kiir was determined to see an independent South Sudan when in 2009, he said: “The upcoming referendum is a choice between being a second-class in your own country or a free person in your independent state.”

His bold statement was further reinforced during the last elections in April 2010 when he decided not to contest the presidency of Sudan, but that of South Sudan. This was a definite indication that he was no longer interested in a united Sudan. He was elected as the South Sudan president with an overwhelming 93 percent of the votes cast.

Kiir’s career path started by a brief enrollment in a formal school but before he could get anywhere with his education the country was at a war and he dropped to join the Anya-Anya rebellion movement so as to fight the war. That time marked Kiir’s career of being a soldier.

After being in the Anya-Anya movement, Kiir was absorbed into the Sudanese Armed Forces after the Addis Ababa Peace Agreement of 1972. He was able to rise in rank as far as being a junior officer in the branch of military security service within the Sudanese Armed Forces.

In 1983, when the late Garang joined an army mutiny, he had been sent to put down, Kiir and other Southern leaders joined the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) in the Second Civil War.

At that time, Garang had little military field experience and relied upon the more experienced Anya-Anya veterans, including Kiir, to actually carry out the ground war. Kiir eventually rose to head the SPLA’s military wing.

Kiir was popular among the military wing of the SPLM for his battlefield victories; just the same way he became popular among the populace for his unambiguous pro-secession stance.

An attempt to remove him from his post as SPLA chief of staff in 2004 nearly caused the organisation to split.

Kiir who became an important member of Garang’s inner advisers was involved in the early stages of negotiating the 2005 peace deal, which ended 21 years of civil war.

After signing of the CPA formally ending the war in January 2005, which he had helped start, Kiir was appointed Vice President of Southern Sudan. After the death of Garang in the helicopter crash of July 30, 2005, he was chosen to be the First Vice President of Sudan and President of Southern Sudan.

In his efforts to ensure South Sudan becomes independent, Kiir has been supported by his Vice President Dr Riek Machar who was one of the earliest members of the SPLM/A.

Dr Machar, however, split from SPLA/M in 1991 with Lam Akol and Gordon Kong Chuol to form SPLA-Nasir (1991–1993), later SPLA-United (1993–94) following his dissatisfaction with the leadership of the late Garang.

But he later joined Kiir after Garang’s death and helped in the implementation of the CPA until the Government of South Sudan went for the referendum in January 2011 – when the people decided their destiny to separate from the Khartoum.

As champagne bottles are popped to celebrate the new status of South Sudan, all eyes will be turning to both Kiir and his deputy Machar as the men who will actualize the liberation that Southerners have struggled for, for so long.

http://www.sudanmirror.co.ke/Vol6Iss20/news/news5.html

Salva Kiir skillfully midwifes a divorce

By Darf Alum Mabior

When President Salva Kiir took over as head of semi-autonomous government in 2005 after the tragic death of civil war hero John Garang, many compared him unfavourably with his maverick, dashing predecessor.

The assessment was based on the fact that Salva Kiir is reputed as a man of few words in the runaway Sudanese politics. What is emerging now is that the picture he effuses as a political neophyte may not be all that correct.

In fact he is a wily political fox who has managed to steer Southern Sudan into safer waters on many occasions, the most memorable being last January’s referendum that many had predicted would plunge the country into civil war.

Kiir the president of Southern Sudan, forever sporting cowboy hats and backed by a small team of capable deputies, has spent the past five years locking horns with the region’s old enemies in Khartoum, laying the groundwork for most Southerners’ long dream of independence that comes to fruition this Saturday July 9.

When North and South Sudan ended decades of civil war following the signing of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), both sides officially agreed to campaign to persuade Southerners to stay united with the north. But it was an open secret that Kiir, and the vast majority of Southerners, had their heart set on a political divorce.

The build-up to that split this weekend has been bloody and disastrous. Thousands of people have died inside Southern Sudan over the past two years – in “tribal” clashes. The South insists northern-backed militias provoked the violence, but Khartoum strenuously denies the accusation.

Sudan’s northern and southern-backed armies are also still facing off in flashpoints along their ill-defined common border – including in the oil-rich northern region of Southern Kordofan and the contested Abyei area.

But compared to the bloodshed Sudan has seen over past decades, the fact that Southern Sudan has got this close to independent is in part due to Kiir’s unassuming, consensus-building skills, analysts say.

But Kiir, the former head of the military wing of the South’s dominant Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), has concentrated on keeping his fragmented region united.

He has repeatedly offered amnesties and pardons to a rash of renegade militia leaders who have sprung up over the past year.

During north-south confrontations over Abyei and other hotspots, Kiir was quick to say he had no intention of going back to war, welcome news to the United States and others in the West that shepherded the peace deal through.

Kiir, a regular worshipper at Juba’s Catholic cathedral, has been good at bringing old foes into the SPLM and the Southern army. But worries remain about the ability of his party to accept rivals who insist on staying outside the fold.

International observers accused the SPLM and southern army officers of intimidation of opposition groups during last year’s national elections.

Southern journalists have also complained about harassment, particularly when articles tackle corruption or some of the South’s more eccentric development projects.

So far Kiir, in his late 50s, has kept himself insulated from accusations made against more confrontational supporters.

His quiet approach and lack of polarising rhetoric could now be his main strengths in governing a landlocked territory handicapped by tribal divisions, severe poverty, unstable neighbours and huge supplies of privately held weapons.

http://www.sudanmirror.co.ke/Vol6Iss20/news/news4.html

 

 

BBC Article Profiling Salva Kiir Monday, August 26, 2010 UK

From a military leader, to a respected statesman.

Salva Kiir Mayardit looks set to be the man who leads Southern Sudan to independence in 2011.This somewhat reluctant politician realised he had little chance of being elected national president in the April 2010 election.So he chose instead to seek a democratic mandate as leader of Southern Sudan – a position he has held since the sudden death of his charismatic predecessor, John Garang, in 2005.Now that he has been elected, he is favourite to become the first president of Africa’s newest country in 2011 – no doubt still wearing his trademark cowboy hat.Although he has been national vice-president for five years, he has spent most of his time in the south – which some say indicates that independence was always his goal.In 2009, he made his feelings clear, saying: “The upcoming referendum is a choice between being a second-class in your own country, or a free person in your independent state.”Inner circleLike many of his fellow southerners, he voted for the first time in 2010.With 12 separate contests, he was not alone in making a mistake, putting one of the ballot papers into the wrong box. Dr. John Garand de Mabior Mr Kiir took over as southern leader and national deputy leader after Garang died in a helicopter crash in August 2005 – just three weeks after he had been sworn in as vice-president. This sparked rioting by southerners in the north, who thought Garang had been been killed. However, an official investigation showed the death was an accident and Mr Kiir has been able to ride out the storm, while steering the south towards the independence he has long cherished – far more so than Garang, who had advocated unity. Mr Kiir is not a natural public speaker and had always been in Garang’s shadow. But he was an important member of his inner circle and was military leader of the southern rebel group, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM). He was involved in the early stages of negotiating the 2005 peace deal – which ended 21 years of civil war – and was already well-known to the government in Khartoum before becoming national vice-president as part of the deal. Mr Kiir joined the southern rebellion in Sudan in the late 1960s. By the time President Jaafar Numeiri made peace with the rebels in 1972, Mr Kiir had risen to become a low-ranking officer. With the accord in place he joined the Sudanese army. SALVA KIIR1960s: First joined southern Sudan rebels1983: Became founder member of SPLM1990s: SPLM military leader2005: Nominated John Garang’s successor following his sudden death – national vice-president and southern president2010: Elected southern president In 1983 the southern rebellion was renewed and Garang was sent to quell a mutiny by troops in the south – but instead of putting down the mutineers, he joined them. Mr Kiir was, with Garang, one of the founders of the SPLM, and rose to lead its military wing. Unlike his predecessor, Mr Kiir is not an intellectual and is said to be easily bored in long speeches. Mr Kiir is from the same Dinka community as Garang, although the two are from different clans. Given that the Dinka are the biggest ethnic group in Southern Sudan, Mr Kiir should enjoy widespread support in the region. He is very popular among the SPLM’s military wing, says Gill Lusk, editor of Africa Confidential magazine. Most of their successes in the field are attributed directly to Mr Kiir, who controlled the movement’s army. An attempt to remove Mr Kiir as the movement’s army chief of staff almost caused a split in the SPLM in 2004. The trouble was averted only when Garang dropped the idea. As a former rebel movement, Mr Kiir’s SPLM is still to show that it is ready to accept dissent. The elections in the south were marred by widespread allegations of intimidation of those challenging official SPLM candidates. This raises fears that “New Sudan”, as it is sometimes called, may not be any more democratic than the old version.

Who is Salva Kiir?

Salva Kiir may be best known for his cowboy hat and for his landslide victory in April 2010 as president of Southern Sudan. He may soon celebrate his country’s independence from the North. As the referendum process reaches its completion, Kiir’s confidence has hugely increased, say observers. A vote for secession by the Southern Sudanese from the North is said to be expected.

Kiir, born in 1951, has said in the past that “the upcoming referendum is a choice between being a second class in your own country, or a free person in your independent state.” The south’s population mostly follow Christianity or traditional religions, while the north has a Muslim majority. Kiir, 60, is a Catholic.

“President Salva Kiir Mayardit is popular but he has no personality cult, unlike his late predecessor, Colonel John Garang de Mabior,” says Gill Lusk, associate editor at Africa Confidential

Africa confidential magazine. “Dr. Garang was exceptionally charismatic and brooked no opposition. Salva Kiir is seen as modest and self-effacing, which appeals to many Southerners, especially those who resent the domination of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army by people from the Dinka ethnic group.

The result of the referendum is widely expected to be a vote for secession, and the creation of a new African nation that could be born as early as July and Juba is the probable capital of a nation with fertile soil and oil, and potentially a bright future.

A graduate of the Sudan Military College, Kiir has led the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) as Commander-in-Chief that in 1983 he helped found. After Garang’s death in July 2005 in a helicopter crash, Kiir became the President of Southern Sudan and, by default, First Vice-President of Sudan and formed a government that incorporated many of the movement’s former opponents and rival factions. He was then elected, with 93% of the vote, President of Southern Sudan in April 2010.

“He has long had a reputation as a conciliator, both within the SPLM/A and among Southern ethnic groups, particularly for quarrels between Nuer and Dinka clans,” Lusk said.

He was a boy when he joined Anya Nya, the rebel movement of the post-Independence North-South war (1955-72). He was absorbed into the Sudan Armed Forces following the Addis Ababa accord which ended that conflict, and rose to lieutenant colonel that was uncommonly senior for an ex-rebel, and led military intelligence in Upper Nile, according to an article in Africa Confidential.

He worked and fought in different regions of the country, hence learning “the South’s ethnic and regional complexities,” said the article. By 1988, he was Garang’s de facto number two.

London-based research and educational NGO Rift Valley Institute Executive Director John Ryle says “if anyone can unite the south, it is Salva Kiir.” He had to respond by e-mail from Juba after phone lines kept breaking. In describing Kiir he writes, “he is genial and quiet-spoken, but can be eloquent as a public speaker, and in more than one language.”

Ali Sheikholeslami
euronews correspondent in London

Copyright © 2011 euronews

http://www.euronews.net/2011/01/15/who-is-salva-kiir/

From Wikipedia

Salva Kiir Mayardit (born 1951) is the first President of the Republic of South Sudan.

In the late 1960s, Kiir joined the Anyanya in the First Sudanese Civil War. By the time of the 1972 Addis Ababa Agreement, he was a low-ranking officer.^[2] In 1983, when John Garang joined an army mutiny he had been sent to put down, Kiir and other Southern leaders joined the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) in the second civil war. Garang had little military field experience and relied upon the more experienced Anyanya veterans, including Kiir, to actually carry out the ground war.^[3] Kiir eventually rose to head the SPLA, the SPLM’s military wing. An attempt to remove Kiir from his post as SPLA chief of staff in 2004 nearly caused the organization to split.^[2]

Southern Sudanese politics

Following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement formally ending the war in January 2005, which he had helped start, he was appointed Vice President of Southern Sudan. Perhaps significantly, former Southern Sudan president John Garang like Kiir is of the Dinka people, though of a different clan. After the death of Garang in a helicopter crash of 30 July 2005, Kiir was chosen to succeed to the post of First Vice President of Sudan and President of Southern Sudan. Kiir is popular among the military wing of the SPLM for his battlefield victories and among the populace for his unambiguous pro-secession stance.^[2]

Comments by Kiir in October 2009 that the forthcoming independence referendum was a choice between being “a second class in your own country” or “a free person in your independent state” were expected to further strain political tensions.^[4] Reports in January 2010 that Kiir would not contest April elections for Sudanese president, but would focus on re-election as president of Southern Sudan were interpreted to mean that the SPLM priority is independence.^[5]

Kiir was re-elected with 93% of the vote in the 2010 Sudanese election. Although the vote on both the national and sub-national level was criticized by democratic activists and international observers, the overwhelming margin of Kiir’s re-election was noted by some media as being “Step One” in the process of secession.^[6] Following his re-election, Omar al-Bashir reappointed Kiir as the First Vice President of Sudan in accordance with the interim constitution.^[7]

President of South Sudan

Southern Sudanese voted overwhelmingly in favor of independence from Sudan in January 2011, with 98.83% of voters reportedly preferring to split from the North.^[8] On 9 July 2011, South Sudan became an independent state, with Kiir as its first president. Kiir positioned himself as a reformer, using his inaugural address to call for the South Sudanese people “to forgive, though we shall not forget” perceived injustices at the hands of the northern Sudanese over the preceding decades^[9] and announce a general amnesty for South Sudanese groups that had warred against the SPLM in the past.^[10] A few weeks later, he publicly addressed members of the military and police to warn them that rape, torture, and other human rights violations carried out by armed personnel would be considered criminal acts and prosecuted aggressively by the Ministry of Justice.^[11]

Kiir faced the first real crisis in his presidency of the Republic of South Sudan in early August 2011, when clashes over cattle erupted between Lou Nuer and Murle people in Jonglei and Warrap states, leaving over 600 dead. Kiir ordered the army to deploy to the unrest-hit areas to quell the violence, and the South Sudanese government claimed the next day that fighting had ended.^[12]

In mid-October 2011, Kiir announced South Sudan had applied for accession to the East African Community. He declared the EAC to be “at the centre of our hearts” due to its members’ support of the South during the Sudanese civil wars.^[13]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salva_Kiir_Mayardit

Salva Kiir Mayardit

Southern Sudanese Nationalist and First President of South Sudan

Salva Kiir Mayardit is set to become the first president of the Republic of South Sudan, veteran of the First and Second Sudanese Civil Wars, and a leading member of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement.

Date of Birth: c. 1951

Early Life
Very little is known about Salva Kiir despite his prominent position in Sudanese politics. It is believed he was born in 1951, one of the Dinka people who live along the Nile in what was then southern Sudan.

Civil War in The Sudan
Kiir became a member of the Anya Nya during the 1960s, the time of the First Sudanese Civil War. By the time the civil war ended under the 1972 Addis Ababa Agreement, and Southern Sudan was granted autonomy, Kiir was a junior officer.

In 1983 Sudanese President Jaafar Muhammad an-Numeiry broke the 1972 Agreement and sent his forces south to put down the resurgence of the Anya Nya. Many of the soldiers sent south mutinied. One officer in particular, John Garang had been part of the Anya Nya during the First Civil War and was now an army officer. He swapped sides and formed the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) from the remnants of the Anya Nya and the Sudanese soldiers who supported the south. Kiir was amongst those from the Anya Nya who joined the SPLA and he rose to eventually head the SPLM’s military wing.

Vice President Kiir
In 2002 Garang began peace talks with President Omar al-Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir. On 9 January 2005 the Sudanese National Islamic Front government, and various opposition groups including the SPLM signed a peace agreement. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) formally recognized the autonomy of southern Sudan and made way for an eventual referendum on independence. John Garang was made vice president of Sudan and president of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS). Salva Kiir Mayardit was made vice-president of Southern Sudan. When Garang died in a helicopter crash on 30 July 2005, Salva Kiir was made leader of the SPLM and became acting president of Southern Sudan. He was confirmed to the post on 11 August.

In 2010 Kiir decided to focus on independence for Southern Sudan rather than contest for the post of president of Sudan. He was re-elected as president of GOSS with a 93% majority. The re-elected president of Sudan, al-Bashir, once again selected Kiir as his vice-president.

Independence for South Sudan
A referendum on self-determination was held in southern Sudan between 9 and 15 January 2011. The result was a 98% vote for independence. On 9 July 2011 the Republic of South Sudan came into existence, with Salva Kiir Mayardit as its first president.

http://africanhistory.about.com/od/South_Sudan/a/Salva-Kiir-Mayardit.htm

BBC Profile: Southern Sudan leader Salva Kiir

The former rebel commander has guided his homeland of Southern Sudan through multiple challenges since a 2005 peace deal ended two decades of war with the north.

Since becoming the south’s leader later that year, much of his focus has been on ensuring the south’s referendum on full independence – the climax of that peace agreement – does take place.

As such, he has had to tread an often difficult line in negotiations with former enemies in the north.

Mr Kiir is also vice-president of all Sudan, but he has long supported full independence for the south.

In 2009, he made his feelings clear, saying: “The upcoming referendum is a choice between being a second-class in your own country, or a free person in your independent state.”

Garang’s shadow

His decision not to stand for national president in the April 2010 elections laid to rest any lingering doubts about whether he would back separation.

Instead, he chose to seek a democratic mandate as leader of Southern Sudan – a position he had already held since the sudden death of his charismatic predecessor, John Garang.

He won an overwhelming majority, with many south Sudanese saying there are few others able to take his place.

“President Kiir can hold us together – there is no-one else who can do that today,” trader Agnes Monoja told the BBC.

Mr Kiir took over as southern leader and national deputy leader after Garang died in a helicopter crash in August 2005 – just three weeks after he had been sworn in as vice-president.

This sparked rioting by southerners in Khartoum, who thought Garang had been killed by his long-time enemies in the north.

However, an official investigation showed the death was an accident and Mr Kiir has been able to ride out the storm, while steering the south towards the independence he has long cherished – far more so than Garang, who had advocated unity.

But the shadow of Garang still looms over his successor.

Mr Kiir was an important member of his inner circle and was military commander of the southern rebels, the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM).

He was involved in the early stages of negotiating the 2005 peace deal, which ended 21 years of civil war, and was already well-known to the government in Khartoum before becoming national vice-president.

Unlike his predecessor, Mr Kiir is not an intellectual.

But while he is not a natural public speaker, he does know how to work the crowds, and is greeted with cheers and popular affection when he speaks at rallies.

A committed Christian, Mr Kiir regularly speaks at the Roman Catholic cathedral in Juba, the southern capital.

Shrewd

Mr Kiir is believed to be 59 but even the SPLM could not confirm his age.

He first joined the southern rebellion in the late 1960s.

By the time President Jaafar Numeiri made peace with the rebels in 1972, Mr Kiir had become a low-ranking officer. With the accord in place, he joined the Sudanese army.

In 1983 the southern rebellion was renewed and Garang was sent to quell a mutiny by troops in the south – but instead of putting down the mutineers, he joined them.

Mr Kiir was, with Garang, one of the founders of the SPLM, and rose to lead its military wing.

Like Garang, he comes from the Dinka community – the largest ethnic group in the south – although the two are from different clans.

He is also shrewd – he has to be.

It is an unenviable task to balance the rival and heavily armed ethnic groups in the vast and grossly underdeveloped swamps, jungles and grasslands of the south.

Some members of other groups, especially the Nuer, the second most numerous in the south, resent the perceived Dinka dominance.

The two groups sometimes battled each other during the civil war, as well as fighting together against northerners.

Ms Monoja fears that Mr Kiir is one of the few able to keep the south united.

“If, God forbid, he went, it would open old wounds between people, and there would be too many fierce arguments over who would replace him,” she said.

And despite the oil riches of the south, development since the war ended has appeared slow to many people on the streets.

“Things have improved greatly since the war,” said Francis Jacob, an unemployed man. “But the government drives big cars and we still have not got jobs.”

For now, however, old civil war enemies in Khartoum provide a useful rallying point for southerners to unite behind Mr Kiir.

He is very popular among the SPLM’s military wing, says Gill Lusk, editor of Africa Confidential magazine.

Most of their successes in the field during the war were attributed directly to Mr Kiir, who controlled the movement’s army.

An attempt to remove Mr Kiir as the movement’s army chief of staff almost caused a split in the SPLM in 2004. The trouble was averted only when Garang dropped the idea.

As a former rebel movement, Mr Kiir’s SPLM is still to show that it is ready to accept dissent.

The elections in the south were marred by widespread allegations of intimidation of those challenging official SPLM candidates.

This raises fears that “New Sudan”, as it is sometimes called, under Mr Kiir may not be any more democratic than the old version.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12107760

Biography of Kiir Mayardit SALVA

Sudan > Politics : Kiir Mayardit SALVA

Born on 01/01/1951 (format : day/month/year)

Biography :

Salva Kiir Mayardit was born in Anglo-Egyptian Sudan in 1951.

He is currently head of state of, among others, Southern Sudan, Southern Sudan, Southern Sudan, Southern Sudan and Southern Sudan. His current occupation is politician.

On 2 August 2005, he was nominated John Garang’s successor as vice President of Sudan and his first task was to negotiate the peace deal which ended 21 years of civil war. Previously he was deputy leader of the SPLM. In 1983 he was a founder member of the SPLM.

He first joined the Southern Sudan rebels in the 1960’s, joining the Sudanese army in 1972 after a peace deal with the President Jaafar Numeiri. Kiir is a Dinka (Sudanese tribe). Kir is well known for always wearing a cowboy hat. In 1983, as an army officer, he was sent to put down a mutiny, which he ended up joining and he ended up helping found the SPLM (the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement).

An attempt to remove Kiir from his post as SPLA chief of staff in 2004 nearly caused the organization to split. He is well known for his heroic military achievements during the civil war. His comments have been well publicized, in 2009, about the aim of achieving an independent southern state, he said, “a second class in your own country” or “a free person in your independent state.”

http://www.africansuccess.org/visuFiche.php?id=1012&lang=en

From Guerilla Fighter to Independence Politician: The Story of South Sudan’s Salva Kiir Mayardit

With the January 9, 2011, referendum on South Sudanese independence only weeks away, a long-time rebel commander turned politician stands to become the first president of a new African nation with both abundant oil reserves and a highly uncertain future. Salva Kiir Mayardit, a Roman Catholic Rek Dinka from Warrap State in Bahr al-Ghazal Province, fought in both of Sudan’s civil wars, finishing the second as chief military commander of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/M). [1]

Background

In 1967, a 17-year-old Salva Kiir joined the Anyanya Rebellion (1955-1972), an armed effort to establish a separate state in South Sudan. Following the 1972 Addis Ababa Agreement that brought an end to Sudan’s first civil war, Kiir was among those Anyanya guerillas who were integrated into the Sudanese Armed Forces, or the Wildlife Protection Service (many other irreconcilable fighters went south to Idi Amin’s Uganda). He graduated from the Sudan Military College in Omdurman and went on to serve as a major in Sudanese military intelligence.

Having joined the renewed Southern insurgency in 1983, Salva Kiir’s skills and influence were recognized when he was made a member of the SPLA/M High Command Council, alongside notable southern soldiers such as Colonel John Garang de Mabior (who emerged as the SPLA/M’s Chairman), Lieutenant Colonel Karabino Kuanyin Bol, Major Arok Thon Arok and Lieutenant Colonel William Nyuon Bany. Of these figures, only Salva Kiir survives today.

Kiir began to play an important political and diplomatic role in 1993 when he led the SPLM delegation to the Organization of African Unity-sponsored Sudan peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria. Kiir filled the role as John Garang’s deputy following the death of William Nyoun Bany in 1996. He again led the SPLM delegation to the initial Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD)-sponsored Sudan peace talks in Kenya’s Eastern Province that paved the way for the ground-breaking July 2002 Machakos Protocol. The Machakos Protocol was the first in a series of eight protocols that ultimately led to the Naivasha Agreement, formally known as the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed in Nairobi on January 9, 2005. The signing of the CPA in Nairobi set the stage for the 2011 referendum vote and for the equal distribution of oil revenues between North and South.

Increasing differences between Kiir and SPLA chairman John Garang in 2004 led to unsuccessful attempts by Garang to replace the popular military leader as commander-in-chief of the SPLA (Sudan Vision, July 8, 2005). There were, in turn, rumors that Kiir was planning to depose Garang and install veteran politician Bono Malwal in his place.
John Garang was Sudan’s foremost advocate of a united but democratic and federated Sudan that would incorporate the country’s highly diverse peoples into Sudan’s narrowly defined power structure, traditionally dominated by three Arab tribes of North Sudan. His particular vision of a “New Sudan” often placed him at odds with the rest of the SPLA/M leadership, many of whom advocated for an independent South Sudan. These divisions grew as the civil war showed few signs of ending and attitudes toward the North hardened. Garang became increasingly intolerant of internal challenges to his program and used force to maintain ideological discipline. However, Garang’s vision appears to have died with him in the helicopter crash that claimed his life in July 2005, only months after successfully negotiating the CPA that ended the civil war with Khartoum. Unlike the late Garang, Salva Kiir is a separatist who quickly steered the direction of the SPLM from an organization officially vouching for national unity into an independence movement. Kiir was girded with strong ground support with a dearth of vocal opposition for the shift.

The CPA established a Government of National Unity (GoNU) in Khartoum and a Government of South Sudan (GoSS) based in Juba, Central Equatoria State, with the GoSS president automatically becoming first vice-president of the Republic of Sudan. Since Garang’s death, Kiir has served as first vice-president of the Sudanese GoNU and president of the GoSS.  Kiir was not everyone’s choice as the movement’s new leader, but it was important to follow the established line of succession for the SPLA/M to maintain its international credibility as a partner in the CPA and prevent the movement from splintering. The result was a unanimous vote on the part of the SPLA/M High Command Council to elect Kiir as SPLM chairman and commander-in-chief of the SPLA. He was later reelected by unanimous vote in 2008.

Kiir is not known as a forceful speaker but has used other methods to establish his public presence. Like most Nilotic peoples of the region, Kiir is unusually tall by Western standards and cuts a distinctive look in his typical black suit, red tie and broad-brimmed black hat (the latter innovation has since been adopted by many of Darfur’s rebel leaders).

Disengaging from the New Sudan

It was widely expected that John Garang’s appointment to first vice-president of the Sudan under the terms of the CPA would mark the beginning of a new approach to the crisis in Darfur, but his death and the subsequent takeover by Salva Kiir as vice-president instead marked the beginning of a more muted approach by the SPLA/M to the Darfur crisis. The movement’s attempts to unite the fractious Darfur rebels have been largely unsuccessful and even the SPLA/M’s limited efforts to help forge a solution to the Darfur crisis have been discouraged by Khartoum. Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) recently demanded that South Sudan arrest Darfur rebel leaders who are residing in the region governed by the GoSS (Sudan Tribune, November 8). Salva Kiir has, nonetheless, encouraged the unification of the many Darfur rebel movements, and his discussions with Dr. Khalil Ibrahim’s Justice and Equality Movement (JEM – the strongest rebel group in Darfur) have proved particularly worrisome for Khartoum.

With Kiir uninterested in the national presidency, the SPLM decided to run Yasir Sa’id Arman, a northerner and longtime member of the SPLM leadership, for the presidency in the April elections. However, Arman and the other leading challenger, former president and Umma Party leader Sadiq al-Mahdi, both decided to withdraw from the election citing irregularities. Following the withdrawal of the SPLM from the presidential contest, Kiir stunned many by saying he had voted to re-elect National Congress Party (NCP) chairman Omar al-Bashir as president of Sudan (Sudan Tribune, April 18).

Kiir has accused Khartoum of sending only 26% of Sudan’s oil revenues to the southern capital of Juba, rather than the 50% designated in the CPA (Sudan Tribune, October 1). Nearly 50% of the revenues that have reached Juba have gone to an ambitious rearmament program in the South intended to place the SPLA on a more even footing with the conventional forces of the SAF. Nascent efforts have even begun to create a South Sudan Air Force.

Pardoning Thy Enemies

Under the terms of the CPA, the SAF and the SPLA became the only legal armed groups in Sudan. The many independent or pro-Khartoum militias operating in the South were given the option of disarming or joining one of the legal armed forces. Naturally it became imperative for the SPLA/M to integrate these forces rather than allow pro-Khartoum armed groups to continue their existence in the South. The process, however, has been slow and even appeared to be failing in the last year as a number of SPLA commanders rebelled against Salva Kiir’s government in the aftermath of the April elections, which the dissidents complained were fixed in favor of Kiir loyalists.

In January 2006, Salva Kiir’s negotiations with longtime anti-SPLA militia commander Paulino Matip Nhial resulted in the traditionally pro-Khartoum Bul Nuer commander joining the SPLA/M. The so-called “Juba Declaration” incorporating “other armed groups” into the SPLA/M was a major coup for Kiir and an important step in convincing remaining Nuer and other tribal dissidents to cooperate with the SPLA/M in the lead-up to the referendum. Paulino Matip was rewarded by being made deputy commander of the SPLA, with promotion to full general in May 2009 (splamilitary.net, May 31, 2009).

As Kiir began preparing South Sudan for the independence referendum (and the possible outbreak of hostilities following a yes vote for a separate state), a series of small rebellions and mutinies by SPLA/M generals and officers threatened to destroy any chance of a unified approach to the question of the Sudanese Republic’s formal bifurcation. Many saw the hand of Khartoum and its proven “divide and conquer” approach to any threat to central authority behind these rebellions. Though Kiir initially responded with force to these challenges, he ultimately turned to an amnesty in September 2010, which, combined with the seeming inevitability of a Southern vote for independence, succeeded in bringing nearly all the rebel commanders back into the fold. It was a bold gambit – before the decision, many Southerners were calling for the utter destruction of the mutinous commanders; after the decision, the families of loyal SPLA troops killed in combating the rebellions were outraged by such pardons (New Sudan Vision, October 11).

The main individuals concerned in the amnesty were the following:

• Lieutenant General George Athor:  George Athor, a Dinka tribesman, ran as an independent for governor of Jonglei State in the April elections after having failed to receive the nomination of the SPLM. Unhappy with his loss in the polls, Athor and his men began a series of heavy clashes with SPLA forces in late April through May. Athor threatened to take the Unity (Wilayah) State capital of Malakal while SPLM secretary general Pagan Amun accused him of being a pawn of al-Bashir’s NCP (Sudan Tribune, May 17; al-Hayat, May 14; see also Terrorism Monitor, May 20). Athor’s men are now reported to be rejoining SPLA forces in Jonglei under the command of Major General Peter Bol Kong (Sudan Tribune, November 9).

• Major General Gabriel Tang: Tang led a pro-government militia in the civil war. After clashing with the SPLA in 2006, Tang withdrew to Khartoum, where his forces were integrated with the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF). His unannounced return to Malakal in February 2009 led to further clashes with the SPLA that left hundreds dead before Tang returned to Khartoum (see Terrorism Monitor, March 13, 2009). Tang responded to the amnesty offer within days by flying to Juba and declaring his allegiance to the SPLA/M (Sudan Tribune, October 15).

• David Yau Yau: A civilian from Jonglei, David Yau Yau is a member of the Murle Tribe and is allied with George Athor. Yau launched a small rebellion in Jonglei’s Pibor County following his defeat in the April elections. He was not named in the September 29 pardons, but is expected to follow George Athor’s lead (Miraya FM [Juba], July 5; Small Arms Survey, November 2010).

• Colonel Gatluak Gai: A colonel in the Prisons Service of South Sudan, this relatively unknown Nuer officer led a short-lived rebellion in May-June against the SPLA/M in Unity State following allegations of vote rigging there in the April elections. Several sources reported Missiriya Arab fighters amongst Gai’s force. The colonel fled north after clashes with the SPLA and has not responded to offers of an amnesty (Gurtong.net, November 18; Sudan Tribune, June 4; Jonglei.com, June 30; Small Arms Survey, November 2010).

Preparing for the Referendum

Kiir’s decision not to contest the April 2010 Sudanese presidential elections in favor of running for president of the South Sudan was a clear sign that the SPLA/M was no longer a national movement. With little real opposition, Kiir returned to office with 93% of the vote. As president of the South Sudan, Kiir was automatically made vice-president of the national Sudanese government. In the byzantine realm of Sudanese politics, Dr. Riek Machar, a Nuer warlord who spent many years dedicated to the destruction of the SPLA/M, was made vice-president of the GoSS.

Salva Kiir’s statement to supporters in Juba that he intended to vote for outright independence because the North had failed to make unity attractive was condemned by NCP official Rabie Abdelati Obeid, who noted that the CPA “stated clearly that the SPLM with the National Congress Party should work together to achieve unity and to make unity attractive during the interim period…This is a clear violation of the CPA and it is against that agreement…” (Sudan Tribune, October 1; VOA, October 3).

After his return from recent meetings with UN and American officials, Kiir told a crowd in Juba: 

“Critically important is that the referenda take place on time, as stipulated in the CPA. Delay or denial of the right of self-determination for the people of Southern Sudan and Abyei risks dangerous instability.  There is without question a real risk of a return to violence on a massive scale if the referenda do not go ahead as scheduled… We are genuinely willing to negotiate with our brothers in the North, and are prepared to work in a spirit of partnership to create sustainable relations between northern and southern Sudan for the long-term.  It is in our interest to see that the North remains a viable state, just as it should be in the interests of the North to see Southern Sudan emerge a viable one too.  The North is our neighbor, it shares our history, and it hosts our brothers and sisters.  Moreover, I have reiterated several times in my speeches in the past that even if Southern Sudan separates from the North it will not shift to the Indian Ocean or to the Atlantic Coast!”(Gurtong.net, October 4).

The most contentious issue Kiir must deal with is the future of Abyei, a disputed territory lying along the border of Kordofan (North) and Bahr al-Ghazal (South). A separate referendum to be held simultaneously with the independence vote will determine whether Abyei joins the North or the South. Most of the district’s Ngok Dinka peoples are expected to vote for unification with the South, but the nomadic Missiriya Arabs of South Kordofan who pasture their herds there demand to be included in the voting. So far this issue has not been resolved and there are few signs the referendum will take place on time. Khartoum has said a postponement is necessary and Missiriya anger is threatening to create new violence in the already war-ravaged territory. Kiir has promised an SPLM government can provide services to the Missiriya, but cannot hand over the land to Missiriya control (Miriya FM [Juba], November 17). SPLM officials now speak of annexing Abyei if a referendum cannot be held, but only after making significant financial concessions to Khartoum.

Kiir has promised the nomadic Missiriya Arabs that they will continue to be allowed to graze their animals in an independent South Sudan: “Even if they come up to Juba, nobody will stop them” (Sudan Tribune, October 1). However, Kiir may find it difficult to back up such a promise under new attitudes to the presence of Arab nomads in an independent South Sudan. Many southerners harbor memories of the Missiriya’s role in the pro-Khartoum murahileen militias. The Missiriya have accused by many southerners of conducting widespread atrocities against the civilian population designed to collapse support for the SPLA/M during the civil war.

Conclusion

Though Kiir has managed to construct a façade of unity going into the 2011 independence referendum, he has also surrounded himself with former rivals of questionable loyalty. Tribal tensions between oft rivaling Nuers and Dinkas are never far from the surface. There is every possibility that an aggravated dispute over posts, appointments and revenue sharing in a newly independent South could easily lead to a localized civil war, fueled and funded by opportunists in Khartoum who would like to see the new state fail. As the vote grows ever closer there are indications that the leaders of the ruling NCP, highly adept at manipulating the international community, may attempt to force a last minute postponement of the referendum on technical grounds. Kiir has said that the SPLA/M will not declare unilateral independence, but will instead press forward with the vote without the cooperation of Khartoum. The legality of such a step, not provided for in the 2005 CPA, would give Kiir’s opponents ample ammunition to disrupt the South Sudan independence movement.

Note:

1. The SPLA/M’s structure of a dual military/political command has served as a model for a number of other Sudanese rebel movements since its formation in 1983.

http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,THE_JF,,SSD,456d621e2,4cfcbf682,0.html

Eventful week to a historic occassion

BY MIRROR CORRESPONDENT

Late last week the GOSS Ministry of Information,released details of series of events from July 2 up to July 11,20011 including the July 9, 2011 Independence Day celebrations.

According to the programme, a series of events will take place for 10 days. These include a host of concerts, sports events and religious prayers, culminating in the big day itself in the capital Juba and across the country’s ten states. The main events will be on the eve of the Independence Day on July 9, 2011.

On the eve of independence, citizens across Southern Sudan were encouraged to go to churches or gather in public squares to light candles and say prayers, to herald the birth of the new nation. Dancing and festivities will take place in villages and across the entire country. The Catholic Church initiated nine days of prayer on the ‘theme of “Tolerance and harmonious inter-ethnic and inter-religious relationships”. On the eve of Independence Day, neighbours from all faiths will be encouraged to share a meal together.

Other faiths including Islamic groups will also take similar steps. At midnight, bells will be rung across the new country and drums will be beaten to mark the historic transition from Southern Sudan to the Republic of South Sudan (RSS) – the world’s 193rd country.

In Juba, on Saturday July 9,2011 the official programme will begin at 10 am at the Dr John Garang Mausoleum and last until the early afternoon, with a parade, official acts and a series of speeches. Some 3,500 invited guests and or their representatives will attend including kings, chiefs and elders from the 10 states, leaders from the business community, civil society, women’s groups and the youth movement.

Foreign dignitaries will include some 30 African Heads of State, leaders of regional and multilateral organisations, as well as foreign ministers and other senior officials. Over 100,000 citizens will bear witness to the events at the Mausoleum, and many others will watch on large screens across Juba city. Events will also be broadcast live on national television (SSTV) available across three continents and by international media. Simultaneous activities will take place across the land.

Security measures have been put in place all over Southern Sudan to ensure a peaceful and orderly environment for the weeklong activities. The parade of 1,500 people will include a March-Past of groups from different branches of the military, including the army, police, prison service, wildlife service and fire brigade. There will also be six groups of folklore dancers from different parts of the country, joined by women’s groups, civil society and young people.

During the ceremony, the National choir and hundreds of young South Sudanese will lead the singing of the new National Anthem, which was chosen through a competition of 49 entries by musicians, poets and academics. The song, which reflects the unity, identity, the land’s resources and the liberation struggle of the country, has been taught over the last weeks to government officials, security organs, civil society and other groups across the country. There will be a Proclamation of Independence of the Republic of South Sudan by the Speaker of the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly (SSLA) the Rt. Hon James Wani Igga.

The flag of Sudan will then be lowered and the flag of the new Republic of South Sudan will be raised, to the tune of flag ceremonial trumpets. President, H.E. Salva Kiir Mayardit will then sign the new Transitional Constitution into force. He will then take the Oath of Office as the first President of the Republic of South Sudan.

Main speakers will include the President of South Sudan H.E. Salva Kiir Mayardit, the President of Sudan, Omar Hassan Ahmed Bashir, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, Head of the UN General Assembly and representatives from the African Union, Intergovernmental Authority on Development, Arab League, European Union, United States (representing the Americas) and China (representing Asia.) In the evening, there will be an open-air concert of folklore and music at the Nyakoron Centre and other concerts over the following days featuring distinctive music from the country’s different ethnic tribes.

Football matches will also be held, including a match between the recently-formed national team of South Sudan versus Kenya on July 10 and a basketball match against Uganda on July 11. Apart from planning for the commemoration, other work has been underway to establish the foundations of the new Republic.

Over the last few weeks, the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly has passed some key laws that are prerequisites to the establishment of the nation. These include the Nationality and Citizenship Act, and laws on the National Flag, Anthem, Coat of Arms and State Seal.

On July 1, the Council of Ministers approved crucial draft legislation relating to the financial framework of the country, to be considered by the Assembly. These include draft bills on the formation of the Central Bank, public finance management, taxation, investment promotion, company law and medals and insignia.

The Transitional Constitution is currently before Parliament.

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