PRESS STATEMENTDear Comrades,
Calgary, January 1, 2016 (SSNA) — Revolutionary Greetings to you all SPLM Canada Members across Canada Provinces and North America in particular USA, and I want also to extend my revolutionary greetings to our SPLM members in Europe, Australia and Africa and above all to our Freedom Fighters, Governors, Military Commanders, Chief Negotiator, National Committee Chairpersons, Ambassadors and fellow deputy ambassadors, Deputies Chiefs of Staffs, National Liberation Council, Vice Chairman SPLM/SPLA General Alfred Lado Gore and on top our SPLM/SPLA Chairman and Commander in Chief General Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon, I salute you all in the name of our SPLM/SPLA Resistance Movement Viva SPLM/SPLA, Viva Compromised Peace Agreement, Viva our freedom fighters and Viva for the people of South Sudan.
As Canadians SPLM Members gathered to celebrate our New year 2016, let us not forget our end day of 2015 and our 20 months of imposed war in our nation. I salute our Chairman and Commander in Chief SPLM/SPLA General Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon and SPLM/SPLA leadership in ending the war in our country, congratulations to you the people of South Sudan and our partners in Peace like the Government of South Sudan and all those signatories to the August 17, 2015 Agreement.
My message to you all is our Chairman and Commander in Chief General Riek call and message for all the people of South Sudan to embrace and own the peace agreement. Let us all Canadians South Sudanese SPLM members be Ambassadors of peace and development, human rights, democracy and rule of law apostles in our new nation. It is our rights to own the Compromised Peace Agreement and implement it fully to end the suffering of our people in the protected camps, Internally Displaced Persons and the South Sudanese Refugees across Africa.
Dear Comrades in struggle, it is my hope and resolution that I will see and read for the first time in our history the inclusion of my Itahile tribe and other oppressed, marginalized and colonized tribes in the Republic of South Sudan like Ofiriha, Katembo, and others unknown across the ten states due to fear and reprisal from their colonist. These tribes like Itahile, Ofiriha and Katembo in Imotong State had suffered a lot and their languages thrown away from schools in their local villages and replaced by Otuho tribe Language which is not their mother tongue. The Government of South Sudan leadership and our Chairman and Commander in Chief SPLM/SPLA General Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon, Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission through their Representatives in the Constitutional Amendment Committee recognize and include in the New coming Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011 which will be emerge with the Compromised Peace Agreement that will govern the people of South Sudan during the Transitional Government of National Unity, the acknowledgement and recognition of all ignored tribes or un represented tribes like Itahile, Ofiriha, Kembo in the old Tranistional Constitutional of the Republic of South Sudan 2011 by the Constitutional Amendment Committee to bring an end to the suffering of these tribes and their freedom to promote their own languages buried under the wings of their oppressors is very imperative to bring total peace and harmony in the new nation of the Federal Republic of South Sudan. It was not easy for these tribes to fight, liberate and vote for total independence of South Sudan in last 38 years of our Liberation struggle from Anya Anya I to SPLM/SPLA First struggle and the Referendum vote of January 09, 2011 but ending up not free in their own land and country. This is the 3rdRevolution and armed struggle where Itahile tribe members and sons took the first initiative to support the Nuer victims of genocide during the December 2013 campaign by Juba regime. It is therefore very vital for all the people, the tribes and the languages in South Sudan to be treated equal without discrimination, biases and above all because their voices are not heard in Pagak capital and Juba seats of government of National Unity.
In Eastern Equatoria State now Imotong State for example it was not an easy road for the leaders in tribes like Lokoya, Lopit, Tenet, Dongotono, Lango and others to have a free ride to their tribes freedom and independence from otuho tribe but it took them courage, resilient and resistance to Otuho leadership but because of their higher education and representation in the government and SPLM/SPLA Military Command and influential position the Lopit, Dongotono, Lango and Lokoya people were able to liberate themselves and pushed for the inclusion of their tribes in the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011 after verbal and political confrontation with Otuho tribe leaders and intellectuals.
The above example is not worth comparing to our tribes of Itahile, Ofiriha and Katembo plus others across South Sudan ten states who are led by Chiefs who can be manipulated by the colonizers and corrupt opportunists intellectuals from these tribes collaborating with Otuho to get petty positions while the majority population continued to suffer only to be recognize during elections campaign and war situations like the current war where the sons of unity are high but after liberation we will go back to our marginalized standard of living and our languages not practiced in schools and replaced by foreign language of our imperialist and neocolonialist Otuho. We love Otuho people because they are part of Imtotong state but we are not from their tribe, some speak and write because we are forced to study it in our villages as main subjects leaving our mother tongues we speak at home on daily bases un taught in our schools.
My fellow tribesmen and Women from Itahile tribe, my Comrades from Katembo, Ofiriha and other unknown tribes in South Sudan ten states, it is my hope and wish that our tribes that are unknown by 64 tribes of South Sudan be known in the year 2016 in South Sudan and across the world. We will be only free and equal when we are recognized and acknowledged in our new States and national Constitutions. I wish you SPLM/SPLA members, your families and love ones across Canada and the world a joyful, bright, healthy, happiest and prosperous new year 2016. Together we will be all free and peaceful in our new nation if justice and equality prevail.
Struggle Continues and Victory is Certain.