CTSAM-VM chairperson, Desta Abiche, and members of the body during media briefing in Juba in Jan/Photo @Eye Radio

Some members of the ceasefire monitor (CTSAM-VM)  have accused the international community of hindering involvement of the citizens in investigating reports of violations by the parties.

They spoke during a meeting in Juba on Monday.

“I don’t know how this work will be undertaken without the participation of national monitors,” Major-Gen. Martin Abucha, an SPLM-IO representative asked.

Gen. Abucha threw doubts whether the body is likely to fulfil its mandate. “If we don’t overcome very this quickly, it will not fulfil its mandate,”he said

His counterpart Major-General Bior Leek said: “ The chairman of CTSAM -VM is living under intense pressure from the international community.”

It is against this background Maj. Gen. Leek concluded that the donors will not fund the national monitors for reason he said “they have so many different agendas from their countries .”

For his part, the SSOA representative, Major-General James Gai, questioned the decision of assembling sites for SSOA forces.

He said the monitoring body was making unilateral decisions on behalf of the parties – a move he that is against the peace accord:

“It is not clear for us as SSOA ,and we don’t know why.”

“Is it a responsibility of CTSAM -VM to prioritise our locations to be verified or it is ours? So, we need a clear statement for this.”

This is because he said: “CTSAM- VM has given only 2 locations for each section of SSOA to be verified,” instead of 11.

According to the September deal, the ceasefire monitor shall have national monitors.

They shall be fully trained and deployed along with the international staff  in monitoring and investigating violations of ceasefire.

Earlier, CTSAM –VM said that it had no income and has not been unable to deploy the national monitors.