Amnesty International has urged South Sudanese authorities to guarantee a public trial for Riek Machar, the opposition leader now facing treason charges alongside several other serious accusations. The organization warned that transparency in the legal process is essential in a nation already strained by fragile political stability.
The appeal came a day after President Salva Kiir announced the suspension of Machar as first vice president, an action that dismantled the transitional unity government credited with preventing a relapse into civil war.
Machar and seven co-defendants have been charged with treason, murder, conspiracy, terrorism, crimes against humanity, and the destruction of public property and military assets. He and his wife have remained under house arrest since March, with concerns mounting for his safety since he has not appeared in public for months. Authorities have yet to announce when his trial will begin.
“We remind the authorities of their obligation of the right to a public hearing,” Amnesty International’s regional office stated. “This means that not only the parties and victims in the case, but also the general public, independent observers and the media have the right to be present during criminal trials.”
READ ALSO: South Sudan confirms custody of 8 men deported by U.S. following Supreme Court ruling
The charges are linked to a March assault in Nasir, Upper Nile state, where the White Army militia overran a government garrison, killing its commander and several troops. The justice ministry alleges that Machar and others helped orchestrate the attack through “coordinated military and political structures.”
According to his spokesperson, Puok Both Baluang, Machar met with his legal team on Friday for the first time since being confined. The meeting took place at his residence in Juba, the South Sudanese capital.
International analysts see political motives behind the case. Daniel Akech of the International Crisis Group in an AP report described the proceedings as “a pretext for a political power struggle.” He cautioned that the move has “deepened long-standing ethnic cleavages and might lead to a return to civil war along ethnic contours.”
Clashes between government troops and militias allegedly allied with Machar have intensified in recent months. Machar has accused Kiir of ruling like a dictator and resisting efforts to step aside, while elections promised under the 2018 peace deal have been continuously delayed.
Both leaders were once allies in the rebel movement that achieved independence from Sudan in 2011, but their rivalry has long been defined by ethnicity. Kiir hails from the Dinka, South Sudan’s largest ethnic group, and Machar from the Nuer, the second largest. Their bitter split dates back to December 2013, when Kiir accused Machar of orchestrating a coup attempt, a charge the government insists triggered nationwide violence.
READ ALSO: U.N. Security Council condemns Sudan paramilitary’s rival government plans
