Unity State condemns defection of General Gatdet
Unity State spokesman Gideon Gatpan Thaor on Wednesday condemned the move, saying that "resorting to violence is not the right way to resolve differences in Southern Sudan." The SPLA has confirmed that Maj. Gen. Peter Gatdet Yaka is now in Khartoum, adding to the growing list of rebels taking up arms against the Government of South Sudan (GoSS) ahead of independence in July.
"Gatdet should know that people of Southern Sudan embrace peace and harmony."
"The Unity State government condemned General Gatdet’s defection, though it might not translate to any deterrence to the independence of South Sudan," Thaor said. "Gatdet should know that people of Southern Sudan embrace peace and harmony and that all political achievements can be done through democratic settlement."
Maj. Gen. Gatdet was the deputy SPLA divisional commander in Northern Bahr el Ghazal before he defected. He has a long history of switching sides. During the war, he was a militia leader under Gen. Paulino Matip, a top commander supported by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) in the battles for Unity State and its oilfields. In 1999, Gatdet switched over to the SPLA before defecting back to the Khartoum government’s side in 2002.
According to the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey project, Gatdet's men "are known for being more unruly and ill-disciplined than the average SPLA soldiers. As a former proxy force opposing the SPLA [..], Gadet and his men were known for their ruthlessness." The notoriously mercurial warlord, himself having been wounded several times, is also said to be responsible for the killing of Kerubino Kwanyin Bol, who started the 1983 rebellion against the North.
Gatdet is still considered one of the most active field commanders in Sudan. Each of his defections during the war drastically shifted the balance of power over control of Unity State. Since 2005, he served the SPLA as a field commander in the Abyei clashes of 2008, then during fighting in Malakal in 2009, with forces loyal to Gen. Gabriel Tanginye.
Gideon Gatpan ThaorAccording to SPLA spokesman Philip Aguer, Gen. Gatdet went on official leave for medical treatment in Nairobi, but upon arrival in the Kenyan capital, he boarded a plane to Khartoum. He has reportedly not responded to SPLA attempts to contact him. The SPLA accuses the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) of flying Gen. Gatdet to Khartoum, but SAF Spokesman Al Sawarmi Khalid has denied Gatdet is in the northern capital.
Officials assume the renegade commander will try to mobilise forces in his home area of Unity State, where he fought throughout the war. It is not clear whether he will join forces with other rebels in the state, including Gatluak Gai, Bapiny Monytuel and Gai Yaoch, all of whom served under Gen. Paulino Matip during the war. Those rebel forces are currently led on the ground by Col. Matthew Puol Jang.
Gen. Matip, now an elderly man, has not defected. He retains his position of Deputy Commander in Chief of the SPLA. Thaor said that Unity State security officials have established contact with Gen. Gatdet’s close allies, who acknowledged their defection but refused to disclose their main intentions.
Thaor acknowledged that Gen. Gatdet is known as a "charismatic leader and talented mobilised," adding, "the state hopes he chooses other means to express his discontent." The Unity State spokesman also stressed that disagreements should be addressed through national consensus and constitutional means instead of violence.
Taban Deng GaiThe political atmosphere in Unity State is tense due to a widely held view that the election of Governor Taban Deng Gai last year was rigged. Many accuse the southern leadership in Juba of imposing his rule on the state against the will of the population.
Maj. Gen. Gatdet joins a growing group of rebels across Southern Sudan who may be forming a coalition under the leadership of George Athor, a former deputy chief of staff who also has accused the government of rigging last year’s elections.
