South Sudanese youth call for detention review ahead of elections
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Radio Tamazuj
Youth leaders from Bahr el Ghazal are asking South Sudanese President Salva Kiir to release former officials who are detained or under house arrest, or bring them before the courts. In a statement published in Juba, they called for cases to be reviewed ahead of the elections scheduled for 22 December 2026, Radio Tamazuj reports.
Youth leaders from Bahr el Ghazal have asked South Sudanese President Salva Kiir to review the detention and house arrest of former government officials ahead of the general elections scheduled for 22 December 2026, Radio Tamazuj reports. In a joint statement published in Juba on Wednesday, they called for the release of people whose detention has no legal basis and for those facing criminal charges to be brought before the courts promptly.
The signatories, from the four states of Bahr el Ghazal and the Abyei Administrative Area, said their appeal was intended to defend peace, justice and national unity. They referred to people detained at the National Security Service’s Blue House facility or placed under house arrest, including General Akol Koor Kuc and former Vice-President Benjamin Bol Mel.
The statement comes days after General Mawien Mathiang Gor, president of the Awan Pajok community, warned against calls to release Bol Mel, accusing him of taking part in an alleged plot to overthrow Kiir. Bol Mel, a businessman appointed vice-president in charge of the economic cluster in February 2025, was dismissed in November of the same year and placed under house arrest, according to Radio Tamazuj.
The appeal comes amid preparations for December’s elections, for which Kiir sought regional support on 10 October and announced preparations on the same day. Last month, an ally of the president accused Bol Mel of planning to overthrow the government.
Summary produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools, under AFREEQUE’s editorial responsibility.
