South Sudan unified forces desert training camps again after failed graduation

According to the ceasefire monitoring organization CTSAM-VM, peace troops who were summoned to cantonment locations in expectation of graduating last month have abandoned the camps after failing to graduate once again.

The trainees had arrived in large numbers after the Co-Chair of the Joint Defense Board announced that over 50,000 united soldiers would graduate by the end of that month.

According to CTSAM-VM Chairperson Lt. General Asrat Denera Amad, the troops have already gone home after seeing no trace of graduation.

“The CTSAM-VM team visited cantonment locations and training facilities and found that many troops had returned in expectation of graduation, as previously reported by the RTGoNU.” “However, the majority of them have returned to their homes,” added General Denero.

The ceasefire observer said that the setback was detected during their visit to the areas as part of the transitional duties’ execution.

The Joint Defense Board, a group entrusted with monitoring the training and graduation of the united forces, revealed last month that they were working on a timeline for the troops in the Bahr el Ghazal, Upper Nile, and Equatoria regions to graduate.

“We’re working on it, as is the leadership of JDB and JTAC, to graduate the troops on the designated date (June),” JDB Co-chair Gen. Akol told Eye Radio.

The revived peace agreement of 2018 anticipates that the unity government would graduate 83,000 united troops selected from diverse parties to take responsibility of security during the continuing transitional phase.

Since 2020, tens of thousands of troops have been formed and trained at numerous cantonment and training facilities around the nation.

Dozens of trainees are said to have died of famine and disease while waiting for graduation, which never came.

In a separate statement, General Asrat Denero voiced alarm over the country’s ongoing spate of violence.

Denero, speaking at the CTSAM-VM conference in Juba on Friday, urged peace accord participants to confront the growing violence.

“Violence against civilians and armed confrontations between parties persist as a result of the parties’ lack of rigorous control over their military personnel and armed groups under their authority owing to a lack of command control.”