Silence in the Halls of Power: What Niemöller’s Poetic Warning Reveals About President Kiir’s South Sudan
By Anyieth Duom Ang’oh Panyang, Brisbane, Australia
Saturday, 24 May 2025 (PW) — Martin Niemöller’s haunting poem “First They Came” remains one of the most powerful indictments of political apathy and moral complacency. Originally a personal confession of silence during the rise of Nazism in Germany, the poem has since transcended its historical context, offering a timeless warning: the erosion of collective freedom begins when injustice against one group is met with indifference by others. When read through the lens of South Sudanese politics, particularly in the context of President Salva Kiir Mayardit’s leadership within the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), the parallels are both striking and tragic.
President Kiir, once revered as a liberation hero and symbol of national unity, has presided over an era defined by internal fragmentation, political repression, and the systematic sidelining of prominent SPLM figures. From the dismissal and isolation of key allies such as Dr. Riek Machar, Pagan Amum, Dr. Majak D’Agoôt Atem, Nhial Deng Nhial, and Deng Alor Kuol, to the quiet suppression of dissenting voices within the party, Kiir’s leadership has steadily shifted toward the centralization of power at the expense of collective governance and intra-party democracy.
Just as Niemöller reflected on his silence as one persecuted group after another was targeted, so too might many senior SPLM members look back on their own silence as their colleagues were politically marginalized, exiled, or accused of subversion and imagined conspiracies. At each critical juncture, when Kiir removed or discredited a figure under the guise of preserving unity or ensuring national security, the party’s top leadership responded not with protest, but with silence. Whether motivated by fear, loyalty, or political calculation, many chose complicity over confrontation.
The consequences of this silence are now unmistakably clear. As Niemöller’s poem ends with the chilling realization that “there was no one left to speak for me,” a similar reckoning confronts many SPLM veterans who once imagined themselves immune to political irrelevance. Figures such as Lt. Gen. Kuol Manyang Juuk, Lt. Gen. Daniel Awet Akot Thuou, and Vice President Dr. James Wani Igga, once pillars of the liberation movement and trusted confidants of the president, now face diminished roles, public criticism, or quiet marginalization. Their long-standing loyalty has offered no protection from the same political purges that swept away others before them.
This moment is not simply a reshuffling of political influence, it is a profound indictment of a political culture that elevates personal loyalty over institutional integrity, and fear over truth. It reveals the peril of silence in the face of injustice, even when the victims are allies or rivals. The SPLM’s internal decay stands as a cautionary tale of how revolutions can betray themselves when they abandon the principles of unity, dialogue, and justice that once inspired them. This tragic irony is powerfully captured in George Orwell’s Animal Farm, where those who once fought for equality become the new oppressors.
Niemöller’s poem must be read not only as a moral reflection but as a call to political accountability. For a nation still healing from the wounds of civil war and yearning for a better future, South Sudanese leaders must heed that call. Genuine reform, reconciliation, and lasting peace cannot be achieved through purges and patronage, but through transparency, inclusion, and mutual respect.
In conclusion, the trajectory of the SPLM under President Salva Kiir lays bare the steep cost of silence and complicity. The political marginalization of those who once watched in silence is a fitting, if tragic, echo of Niemöller’s final lament. For them, the reckoning may have come too late. But for South Sudan, the time to speak, to act, and to rebuild a culture of courage over conformity is now.
The author, Anyieth Duom Ang’oh Panyang, is a South Sudanese Political Commentator based in Brisbane, Australia and could be reached via his email: micaduom@gmail.com.
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