Framing a Coup: The Role of Collective Memory in South Sudan’s Civil War Path

• In Event: Civil War Paths

Abstract

The foundations of armed groups in South Sudan’s civil war as observed in the literature leads us to conclude that this is a clear case of regime fragmentation, following the linear trajectory of a civil war emerging from fragmentation within the government through a coup d’état attempt. However, contestations around the veracity of the 2013 coup allegations call into question the appropriateness of such an understanding. This paper mobilizes intersecting frameworks from memory studies and transitional justice to deepen understandings of the role of collective framing as both a potential catalyst for, and not only a consequence of, regime fragmentation and conflict in South Sudan. South Sudan gained independence in 2011, as a new state built on the foundations of a divided nation. Power-sharing tensions and elite rivalry coalesced in 2013 when President Kiir (SPLM/A), with support from the Dinka ethnic group, accused Vice-President Machar and his Nuer supporters of conspiring to stage a coup. The dismissal of Vice-President Machar and his allies from the government (SPLM/A-IO) quickly carved the path for South Sudan’s ensuing civil war.

This paper draws from memory studies to examine the role of claims and frames around the alleged coup on the subsequent evolution of South Sudan’s main armed groups. It draws on transitional justice to further examine the politics of accountability resulting from the narrative conditions and implications of the coup allegations on the mobilization of armed groups and third-party positionality in this civil war path. It does so through a life history approach, using in-depth interviews among members and supporters of the SPLM/A and SPLM/A-IO groups. This paper firstly examines how coup allegations among a divided government influenced the unusual formation of the SPLM/A-IO as an organizational group combining elements of a social movement and a clandestine formation while simultaneously leveraging considerable military strength. Secondly, this paper addresses how collective memory is mobilized to dictate the politics of accountability in the case of South Sudan’s civil war path. It draws on contestations around the veracity of the 2013 coup allegations and leverages the discourses of memory studies and transitional justice to examine civil war path dependency, anchored in the role of accountability and perceived injustice among its main armed actors.

Author

• Sayra van den Berg, University of Sheffield