Wife of murdered opposition official breaks her silence

Nairobi/Juba, May 2, 2019 (SSNA) — The wife of a murdered opposition figure breaks her silence days after a confidential United Nations report reveals that the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) official Aggrey Ezbon Idri who was kidnapped in Kenya in January 2017 has been killed by South Sudan’s government on or about January 30, 2017, a statement obtained by the South Sudan News Agency (SSNA) shows.

Aya Warille, the wife of SPLM-IO figure Aggrey Idri wrote a heartbreaking message, describing her late husband as “patriot.” Aya went on to say that those who knew that her husband was already killed but decided not to tell her are no different from Aggrey’s killers.

“Today, I am celebrating the life of my husband. A man I knew as a patriot. I thank the Almighty God for revealing the truth about his fate; at least, the agony and anxiety have come to an end. He died as a man, he chose to die. He has made me proud,” Aya wrote, adding, “He is a hero! I know many people were involved in bringing his life to an end. Those of you who knew what happened and decided to keep me in the dark, you are as good as the killers. For you who killed him, thank you, you have made him a hero and those of you who knew what happened, you have brought out the best in me. What happened is wrong and unacceptable.”

Aya calls for those who killed husband to face justice and reveals an emotional message Aggrey used to tell her.

“In order to discourage future termination of innocent lives with impunity, justice must be done by bringing the perpetrators of such a heinous act to book. As I belatedly mourn your departure, I want to underscore my commitment to continue what we had started together and [made] you a proud husband and father. I thank God for giving me this opportunity of sharing my life with you. As you had always told me: “Aya, some people will have to die for us to be free”. You have died in the cause you believed in,” Aya explains.

The wife of the late opposition official also says she has forgiven people who involved in the killing of her husband and asserts that those who kept the death of Aggrey from her “earned a laudable place in the history of South Sudan.”

Aggrey Idri was an influential SPLM-IO official who held many different posts in the armed opposition leadership and was also a well-known government critic. Aggrey was abducted in 2017 along with human rights lawyer and Activist Dong Samuel Luak. The UN report also discloses that both Aggrey and Dong were killed on or about January 30, 2017 in Luri.

The SPLM-IO leadership has released a statement on Wednesday, describing the killing of its officials as “barbaric” and call on the UN Security Council to refer the case to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The South Sudan News Agency has learned that Aya has a list of people who she believes are responsible for the demise of her husband. The list includes the current First Vice President Taban Deng Gai.