Riek Machar
Encyclopedia
Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon (born 1953), is the first vice-president of the independent Republic of South Sudan
.
Riek Machar obtained a PhD in mechanical engineering in 1984 and then joined the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) during the Second Sudanese Civil War
(1983–2005). Riek fell out with the SPLM/A leader John Garang
in 1991 and formed a splinter group, the SPLM/A-Nasir. In 1997 Riek made a treaty with the Government of Sudan and become head of the government-backed South Sudan Defense Force (SSDF). In 2000 he left the SSDF and formed a new militia, the Sudan People's Democratic Forces (SPDF), and in 2002 rejoined the SPLA as a senior commander. After the death of John Garang in July 2005, Riek Machar became vice-president of the autonomous Southern Sudan. He became vice-president of South Sudan on 9 July 2011 when the country became independent.
, Unity State in 1953, the 26th son of the chief of both Ayod
and Leer.
He was brought up as a member of the Presbyterian church.
Riek belongs to the Dok section of the Nuer people.
He trained as an Engineer at Khartoum University, and obtained a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Bradford
in 1984.
Riek has been called a tuut dhoali, which may be translated "adult boy", meaning uninitiated and literate.
He has tried to transcend tribal divisions, and at one time attempted to ban initiation marks.
However, in his struggle with John Garang
he exploited ethnic rivalries between the Nuer and Dinka people.
Riek married Emma McCune
, a British aid worker. She died in a car accident in Nairobi
in 1993 at the age of 29, while pregnant.
Riek's second wife, Angelina Teny
, is one of the leading women politicians in South Sudan. She was state minister of Energy and Mining in the transitional government (2005–2010).
Riek was a rebel leader with the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement (SPLM/A) headed by John Garang
from 1984 until he fell out with Garang in 1991. As Zonal Commander of Western Upper Nile, in 1986 he entered into an agreement with Baggara
chiefs.
Riek led forces that attacked and overran Melut
in 1989.
That year he was able to visit his family, which was based in Britain, for the first time since the civil war started.
In 1990 Riek was based at Leer.
Later he was appointed SPLA Regional Commander for a region that extended from the Ethiopian border in the east to Renk in the north and to Ayod and Waat
in the south.
In August 1991 Riek Machar, Lam Akol
and Gordon Kong announced that John Garang had been ejected from the SPLM.
Kong Chuol is from the Eastern Jikany Nuer and Lam Akol is from the Shilluk people.
The breakaway faction, based in Nasir until 1995 and then in Waat and Ayod, was called the SPLM/A-Nasir faction from 1991 to 1993.
The Bul Nuer Anyanya-2 militia at Mayom
under Paulino Matip and the Lou Nuer Anyanya-2 militia at Doleib Hill under Yohannes Yual
declared for Riek.
Kerubino Kuanyin
and Faustino Atem Gualdit, Dinkas from Bahr el-Ghazal, had been among the founders of the SPLM but had fallen out with John Gareng and had been jailed. They escaped and joined Riek in 1993, with their forces making an important addition to the formerly Nuer-dominated SPLA-Nasir. Kerubino became deputy Commander in Chief.
After this addition by forces from other ethnic groups, Riek's movement and force was called the SPLA-United from 1993 to 1994.
In September 1993, President Daniel Arap Moi
of Kenya held separate talks with Garang and Riek Machar.
In October 1993 the US Congress hosted a meeting between Garang and Riek. The two seemed to agree about various subjects related to a cease fire and reconciliation between the two factions, self-determination and opposition to the Khartoum regime, but Riek disputed Garang's authority and refused to sign a joint declaration.
Riek dismissed Lam Akol from the SPLA-United in February 1994. Lam Akol returned to Kodok
in the government-held region of Upper Nile
state.
From 1994 to 1997 Riek's movement was known as the South Sudan Independence Movement / Army (SSIM/A).
Although seeking independence for South Sudan, the group received covert support from the Government of Sudan as it fought the SPLA between 1991 and 1999 in attacks that became increasingly violent and ethnically motivated.
Early in 1995 hostilities between the SSIM and SPLA, which had taken several thousands of civilian lives, were temporarily suspended. Riek dismissed Kerubino Kuanyin and Commander William Nyuon Bany
from the SSIM on the basis that they had signed military and political agreements with the government of Sudan late in the previous year, and that they had attempted to form a government-supported faction in the SSIM.
During the 1990's Riek skillfully developed support among the eastern Nuer, the Jikany and the Lou, taking advantage of SPLA unpopularity with the Jikany and drawing on prophetic tradition to make his case.
In 1996 Riek signed a Political Charter and in 1997 the Khartoum Peace Agreement
with the government. Under this agreement he was assistant to Omar el-Bashir, President of Sudan, and President of the Southern States Coordinating Council. He was also made commander in chief of the South Sudan Defense Force (SSDF), which included most of the ex-rebels who had signed the Khartoum agreement.
oil concession area, and assisting in clearances from other oil blocks.
In 1998–1999, Paulino's fighters and government troops clashed several times with Riek's SSDF forces in a struggle for control of the Unity state oilfields.
Paulino's fighters forced Tito Biel
, a high-ranking SSDF commander, to evacuate Leer
early in 1999. Tito Biel later went over to the SPLA.
Riek Machar's failure to prevent the government from forcibly displacing civilians from the oil-producing areas of Unity State turned the Nuer against his leadership.
Riek's SSDF began to receive ammunition from the SPLA as of June 1999.
In 2000 at a meeting of leaders in Koch
he finally resigned from the government of Sudan and created a fresh militia named the Sudan People's Democratic Forces (SPDF).
At risk in his own homeland of the Dok Nuer, Riek moved his base of operations to the eastern Jikany area.
In January 2002 he signed an agreement with John Garang to merge the SPDF into the SPLA, and was given command of the Dok Nuer within the SPLA.
The civil war ended in January 2005. In August Riek became Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan and SPLM Co-Chair of the Joint Executive Political Committee.
When South Sudan became independent, in July 2011 he was appointed first Vice President of the new republic.
On 15 July 2011 Riek represented South Sudan at the ceremony when his country's flag was raised outside United Nations headquarters in New York.
South Sudan
South Sudan , officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country located in the Sahel region of northeastern Africa. It is also part of the North Africa UN sub-region. Its current capital is Juba, which is also its largest city; the capital city is planned to be moved to the more...
.
Riek Machar obtained a PhD in mechanical engineering in 1984 and then joined the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) during the Second Sudanese Civil War
Second Sudanese Civil War
The Second Sudanese Civil War started in 1983, although it was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originated in southern Sudan, the civil war spread to the Nuba mountains and Blue Nile by the end of the 1980s....
(1983–2005). Riek fell out with the SPLM/A leader John Garang
John Garang
John Garang de Mabior was a Sudanese politician and rebel leader. From 1983 to 2005, he led the Sudan People's Liberation Army during the Second Sudanese Civil War, and following a peace agreement he briefly served as First Vice President of Sudan from January 2005 until he died in a July 2005...
in 1991 and formed a splinter group, the SPLM/A-Nasir. In 1997 Riek made a treaty with the Government of Sudan and become head of the government-backed South Sudan Defense Force (SSDF). In 2000 he left the SSDF and formed a new militia, the Sudan People's Democratic Forces (SPDF), and in 2002 rejoined the SPLA as a senior commander. After the death of John Garang in July 2005, Riek Machar became vice-president of the autonomous Southern Sudan. He became vice-president of South Sudan on 9 July 2011 when the country became independent.
Early career
Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon was born in LeerLeer, South Sudan
Leer is a small town in Unity State in South Sudan. It is the headquarters of Leer County.-Location:Leer is in Dok Nuer territory.It is located in Block 5A, an important oil-producing area in the north of South Sudan....
, Unity State in 1953, the 26th son of the chief of both Ayod
Ayod
Ayod is a community in Jonglei state, South Sudan, headquarters of Ayod County.The Nuer people are the main inhabitants.Riek Machar, first vice-president of South Sudan, is the 26th son of the chief of both Ayod and Leer....
and Leer.
He was brought up as a member of the Presbyterian church.
Riek belongs to the Dok section of the Nuer people.
He trained as an Engineer at Khartoum University, and obtained a PhD in mechanical engineering from the University of Bradford
University of Bradford
The University of Bradford is a British university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The University received its Royal Charter in 1966, making it the 40th University to be created in Britain, but its origins date back to the early 1800s...
in 1984.
Riek has been called a tuut dhoali, which may be translated "adult boy", meaning uninitiated and literate.
He has tried to transcend tribal divisions, and at one time attempted to ban initiation marks.
However, in his struggle with John Garang
John Garang
John Garang de Mabior was a Sudanese politician and rebel leader. From 1983 to 2005, he led the Sudan People's Liberation Army during the Second Sudanese Civil War, and following a peace agreement he briefly served as First Vice President of Sudan from January 2005 until he died in a July 2005...
he exploited ethnic rivalries between the Nuer and Dinka people.
Riek married Emma McCune
Emma McCune
Emma McCune was an expatriate British foreign aid worker in Sudan who married guerrilla leader Riek Machar. She was killed in a car accident in Kenya....
, a British aid worker. She died in a car accident in Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
in 1993 at the age of 29, while pregnant.
Riek's second wife, Angelina Teny
Angelina Teny
Angelina Teny is a South Sudan politician who was state minister of Energy and Mining in the Khartoum-based Government of National Unity between 2005 and 2010...
, is one of the leading women politicians in South Sudan. She was state minister of Energy and Mining in the transitional government (2005–2010).
Riek was a rebel leader with the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement (SPLM/A) headed by John Garang
John Garang
John Garang de Mabior was a Sudanese politician and rebel leader. From 1983 to 2005, he led the Sudan People's Liberation Army during the Second Sudanese Civil War, and following a peace agreement he briefly served as First Vice President of Sudan from January 2005 until he died in a July 2005...
from 1984 until he fell out with Garang in 1991. As Zonal Commander of Western Upper Nile, in 1986 he entered into an agreement with Baggara
Baggara
The Baggāra Arabs are a set of communities inhabiting the portion of Africa's Sahel between Lake Chad and southern Kordofan, numbering over one million. They have a common language which is one of the regional colloquial Arabic languages...
chiefs.
Riek led forces that attacked and overran Melut
Melut
Melut is a community in the Upper Nile state of South Sudan, headquarters of Melut County.-Location:The town is on the east bank of the White Nile, just below the point where the Adar River enters the Nile....
in 1989.
That year he was able to visit his family, which was based in Britain, for the first time since the civil war started.
In 1990 Riek was based at Leer.
Later he was appointed SPLA Regional Commander for a region that extended from the Ethiopian border in the east to Renk in the north and to Ayod and Waat
Waat
Waat is a village in South Sudan. It is located in Akobo County, Jonglei State, in the northeastern part of South Sudan. It is connected by road to Faddoi just to the southeast...
in the south.
Factional leader
Riek disagreed with the SPLA leader John Garang over objectives. Where John Garang at first wanted a secular and democratic but united Sudan in which the southerners would have full representation, Riek wanted a fully independent South Sudan.In August 1991 Riek Machar, Lam Akol
Lam Akol
Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin is a South Sudanese politician of Kenyan descent. He is the current leader of SPLM for Democratic Change , which he founded 6 June 2009...
and Gordon Kong announced that John Garang had been ejected from the SPLM.
Kong Chuol is from the Eastern Jikany Nuer and Lam Akol is from the Shilluk people.
The breakaway faction, based in Nasir until 1995 and then in Waat and Ayod, was called the SPLM/A-Nasir faction from 1991 to 1993.
The Bul Nuer Anyanya-2 militia at Mayom
Mayom, South Sudan
Mayom is a community in Unity State of South Sudan to the west of Bentiu. It is the headquarters of Mayom County.-Location:Mayom was a major cattle trading center in Western Upper Nile , in Bul Nuer territory....
under Paulino Matip and the Lou Nuer Anyanya-2 militia at Doleib Hill under Yohannes Yual
Yohannes Yual
Yohannes Yual Both was a leader of the South Sudan Defense Forces whose mobile forces gave the Sudan People's Liberation Army considerable difficulty during the Second Sudanese Civil War ....
declared for Riek.
Kerubino Kuanyin
Kerubino Kuanyin
Kerubino Kuanyin Bol was one of the leaders of the Sudan People's Liberation Army during the Second Sudanese Civil War ....
and Faustino Atem Gualdit, Dinkas from Bahr el-Ghazal, had been among the founders of the SPLM but had fallen out with John Gareng and had been jailed. They escaped and joined Riek in 1993, with their forces making an important addition to the formerly Nuer-dominated SPLA-Nasir. Kerubino became deputy Commander in Chief.
After this addition by forces from other ethnic groups, Riek's movement and force was called the SPLA-United from 1993 to 1994.
In September 1993, President Daniel Arap Moi
Daniel arap Moi
Daniel Toroitich arap Moi was the President of Kenya from 1978 until 2002.Daniel arap Moi is popularly known to Kenyans as 'Nyayo', a Swahili word for 'footsteps'...
of Kenya held separate talks with Garang and Riek Machar.
In October 1993 the US Congress hosted a meeting between Garang and Riek. The two seemed to agree about various subjects related to a cease fire and reconciliation between the two factions, self-determination and opposition to the Khartoum regime, but Riek disputed Garang's authority and refused to sign a joint declaration.
Riek dismissed Lam Akol from the SPLA-United in February 1994. Lam Akol returned to Kodok
Kodok
Kodok is a town in the northeastern South Sudanese state of Upper Nile. Kodok is the capital of Shilluk country, formally known as Shilluk Kingdom. Shilluk has been an independent kingdom for more than sixteen centuries...
in the government-held region of Upper Nile
Upper Nile
Upper Nile is one of the 10 states of South Sudan. The current governor of Upper Nile, and its first governor in the independence era of South Sudan, is Simon Kun Puoch. The White Nile flows through the state, giving it its name. The state also shares a similar name with the region of Greater Upper...
state.
From 1994 to 1997 Riek's movement was known as the South Sudan Independence Movement / Army (SSIM/A).
Although seeking independence for South Sudan, the group received covert support from the Government of Sudan as it fought the SPLA between 1991 and 1999 in attacks that became increasingly violent and ethnically motivated.
Early in 1995 hostilities between the SSIM and SPLA, which had taken several thousands of civilian lives, were temporarily suspended. Riek dismissed Kerubino Kuanyin and Commander William Nyuon Bany
William Nyuon Bany
William Nyuon Bany was a Southern Sudanese politician who was also a high-ranking officer in The Sudan People's Liberation Army. While he worked as a commander of the SPLA he lived in Itang a small Ethiopian town in the Gambela Region. He was older than Dr. John Garang, Salva Kiir, Arok Thon...
from the SSIM on the basis that they had signed military and political agreements with the government of Sudan late in the previous year, and that they had attempted to form a government-supported faction in the SSIM.
During the 1990's Riek skillfully developed support among the eastern Nuer, the Jikany and the Lou, taking advantage of SPLA unpopularity with the Jikany and drawing on prophetic tradition to make his case.
In 1996 Riek signed a Political Charter and in 1997 the Khartoum Peace Agreement
Khartoum Peace Agreement of 1997
The Khartoum Peace Agreement of 1997 was an agreement made on 21 April 1997 between the Khartoum-based government of Sudan and various militia leaders from South Sudan during the Second Sudanese Civil War ....
with the government. Under this agreement he was assistant to Omar el-Bashir, President of Sudan, and President of the Southern States Coordinating Council. He was also made commander in chief of the South Sudan Defense Force (SSDF), which included most of the ex-rebels who had signed the Khartoum agreement.
Return to SPLM
There was growing tension between Riek Machar and Paulino Matip's South Sudan Unity Movement (SSUM), which became engaged in forcibly removing civilians from the Block 5ABlock 5A, South Sudan
Block 5A is an oil concession in South Sudan.After oil field development began during the Second Sudanese Civil War, Block 5A was the scene of extensive fighting as rival militias struggled for control....
oil concession area, and assisting in clearances from other oil blocks.
In 1998–1999, Paulino's fighters and government troops clashed several times with Riek's SSDF forces in a struggle for control of the Unity state oilfields.
Paulino's fighters forced Tito Biel
Tito Biel
Tito Biel Chuor was a high-ranking commander in the South Sudan Defense Forces during the Second Sudanese Civil War ....
, a high-ranking SSDF commander, to evacuate Leer
Leer, South Sudan
Leer is a small town in Unity State in South Sudan. It is the headquarters of Leer County.-Location:Leer is in Dok Nuer territory.It is located in Block 5A, an important oil-producing area in the north of South Sudan....
early in 1999. Tito Biel later went over to the SPLA.
Riek Machar's failure to prevent the government from forcibly displacing civilians from the oil-producing areas of Unity State turned the Nuer against his leadership.
Riek's SSDF began to receive ammunition from the SPLA as of June 1999.
In 2000 at a meeting of leaders in Koch
Koch, South Sudan
Koch is a community in Unity State, South Sudan, headquarters of Koch County.The community lies in Jagei Nuer territory.It is within the Block 5A oil concession...
he finally resigned from the government of Sudan and created a fresh militia named the Sudan People's Democratic Forces (SPDF).
At risk in his own homeland of the Dok Nuer, Riek moved his base of operations to the eastern Jikany area.
In January 2002 he signed an agreement with John Garang to merge the SPDF into the SPLA, and was given command of the Dok Nuer within the SPLA.
The civil war ended in January 2005. In August Riek became Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan and SPLM Co-Chair of the Joint Executive Political Committee.
When South Sudan became independent, in July 2011 he was appointed first Vice President of the new republic.
On 15 July 2011 Riek represented South Sudan at the ceremony when his country's flag was raised outside United Nations headquarters in New York.