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Salva Kiir is the former rebel leader of South Sudan.

When South Sudan declared independence from Sudan in 2011 to a chorus of worldwide congratulations and celebrations, rebel-leader-turned-president Salva Kiir promised his people freedom and democracy. He fired his vice president, Riek Makar, two years later. This sparked a civil conflict that splintered his young nation on ethnic lines. The international and regional powers demanded a resolution. Kiir has now detained Machar for a decade, and his administration is threatening to ignite conflict once more in an impoverished nation in the middle of a fragile region.

The scandal has highlighted the depth of ethnic and social rifts in the country that have existed since its founding, as well as the failure of a government to deal with these problems. Kiir has been at the heart of this government.

The peace agreement promised that there would be elections and a comprehensive effort to unite rival forces.

The tensions between Kiir and the Dinka, the largest ethnic group in the country, as well as Machar's Nuer have persisted. Both men are accused of prioritizing tribal interests over national priorities.

Former government official Jok madut Jok who was the undersecretary of the culture ministry from 2011 to 2013 said that Kiir "was very taken with tribalism. He believes in promoting [his] tribe first."

"This is a sign of weakness in a leader who leads a country with a wide range of cultures," said Jok. He has criticised Machar and Kiir, and left his position to return to the U.S. to teach at Syracuse University.

Kiir spoke out before against ethnic conflicts and tribal killings. He said that his dispute with Machar was based on differences of politics, and not ethnicity.

Power Player

Kiir, born in 1951 into a family that was cattle herders and grew up in southern Sudan, joined the rebellion against the Sudanese Government in the 1960s. This would lead to the longest civil war in Africa.

He spent many years as a rebel leader in the swamps and grasslands of southern Sudan, eventually rising to the rank of a military intelligence agent.

John Garang led him to the top, and he was widely hailed for his heroic role in the liberation war.

Kiir assumed the leadership after Garang was killed in a 2005 helicopter crash, only months after the Sudanese Government signed a deal of peace with the rebels in the south.

After George W. Bush, then president of the United States, gave him a black cowboy cap in 2006, he renounced his military fatigues and was seldom seen without it.

Kiir was not as charismatic as Garang, but he was an expert operator. He held the Khartoum government to its promise of allowing an independence referendum between the 2005 peace agreement and the 2011 independence vote.

He kept the southern Sudan united by pardoning militia leaders, amnestying them, and maintaining peace until the referendum, when more than 99% voted for independence.

Analysts say that the focus on unity has now become a thing in the past. They point to the string of sudden reshuffles within Kiir's administration and intelligence services, all to maintain his power.

Abraham Awolich said that he had mastered the art to play people against one another in order to build loyalty.

"That's how he keeps himself at the top."

SUCCESSION

According to an investigation conducted by The Sentry in 2024, a United States based watchdog, Kiir’s family, including his granddaughters, own or have control over at least 126 South Sudanese companies, even though Kiir was not listed on any corporate documents.

Kiir's Office dismissed the allegations, calling them "a deliberate witch hunt designed to undermine First Family and destabilise nation's unity."

Kiir fired his intelligence chief, two of the five vice presidents and named a close advisor, Benjamin Bol Mel, as Second Vice-President last month.

This move led to speculation that Kiir (73), was preparing Bol Me, a businessman who is on the United States sanctions list because of his ties to construction companies accused of money laundering to succeed him.

Awolich, however, said that Kiir would not give up his presidency amid an intensifying power struggle between him and Machar.

Kiir is in control of the situation at this moment. He said he has no intention of relinquishing power any time soon. (Reporting and writing by Nairobi Newsroom, Ammu Kanampilly and Maggie Fick; editing by Andrew Heavens).

(source: Reuters)