10th November, 2017
A South Sudanese ex-military Commander, Paul Malong has been freed from house arrest, his wife and other officials said on Friday.
Malong was sacked in May and has been confined to his home in the capital ever since then.
Bona Baak, a South Sudanese elder and ex-general who was instrumental in the negotiations to secure Malong’s release, told dpa he was free.
“The government of South Sudan has ended five months of house arrest of former army chief Paul Malong,’’ he said.
“South Sudan cannot fight another war within itself,’’ he added of the world’s youngest country, which has been engulfed in a bitter civil conflict since 2013.
Malong’s wife Lucy Ayak also told Voice of America radio that her husband had been released.
Presidential Spokesperson Ateny Wek Ateny told dpa that the release of the ex-army chief was the initiative of the elders.
“So the government of South Sudan is party to the dialogue,’’ Ateny added.
The capital Juba has been tense this week, with an increased military presence on the streets after the government sought to remove the bodyguards at Malong’s house surrounding it with tanks.
Malong reportedly asked the government earlier in a letter to allow him to go into exile or seek refuge at the UN mission in Juba.
Also this week, the South Sudanese army announced the defection to rebel forces of another army top brass, Chan Garang Lual, a protege of Malong.
South Sudan is in the midst of a bloody civil war, in which tens of thousands have been killed.