A South Sudanese lawyer has defended Monday’s amendments to the 2018 peace deal initiated by the government, arguing that the process remained legally valid despite a boycott by opposition lawmakers.
Senior advocate Gabriel Kuot Akok made the remarks after parliament received proposed amendments to the peace agreement that had earlier been approved by the Council of Ministers.
The amendments come amid heightened political tensions within the unity government and growing disputes among parties to the 2018 Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS).
Akok told Radio Tamazuj on Monday that procedures for amending the agreement were clearly outlined in both the 2018 peace deal and the Transitional Constitution.
“The amendment procedure is clear, as provided under the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan 2018 under Article 8.4,” he said.
He said the agreement requires a two-thirds majority in the Council of Ministers to approve amendments before they are incorporated into the constitution by the national legislature.
Akok added that Article 197 of the Transitional Constitution requires members of the Council of States and the National Legislative Assembly to sit separately and approve constitutional amendments through a two-thirds majority vote.
“Considering Monday’s parliamentary session of the National Legislative Assembly, the two-thirds majority of the National Legislative Assembly is qualified to amend the constitution and also to incorporate the amendment made by the Council of Ministers,” Akok said.
His remarks followed criticism from some opposition figures and legal observers who questioned the legitimacy of the parliamentary process after opposition lawmakers boycotted the sitting.
However, Akok argued that the absence of some opposition lawmakers did not invalidate the process because the remaining legislators were sufficient to meet the constitutional threshold.
“Considering the total number of members of the National Transitional Legislative Assembly, which is currently standing at around 550, subtracting the total number which boycotted the amendment procedures and incorporation, which was 79 members of the SPLM-IO, it means the two-thirds majority is still reached,” he said.
“If it is reached, the amendment procedures can be considered valid and constitutional,” he added.
The latest constitutional changes have intensified debate over the implementation of the revitalised peace agreement, with opposition groups raising concerns about consultation, power-sharing arrangements and the future of the transitional process.
Opposition parties against the amendments argue that provisions relating to power-sharing were central to the agreement and could not be altered without undermining its foundation. They cite Articles 8.2 and 8.3 as guaranteeing the supremacy of the 2018 peace deal under which the transitional government was formed.
Under Article 8.4 of the accord, amendments must be approved by at least a two-thirds majority of the Council of Ministers and two-thirds of RJMEC voting members before ratification by parliament.
The proposed amendments tabled before parliament have not been processed through RJMEC, as required by the peace agreement.
The opposition SPLM-IO faction led by First Vice President Riek Machar, a key signatory to the agreement, said it was not included in the cabinet decision to amend provisions of the peace deal. Machar is under house arrest and faces treason charges before a special court in Juba.
The SPLM-IO is currently divided between a faction led by exiled acting chairman Oyet Nathaniel and another led by Peacebuilding Minister Stephen Par Kuol, who is in Juba and widely seen as close to President Salva Kiir.
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