The treason trial of South Sudan’s suspended First Vice President, Riek Machar, began on Monday in Juba under heavy security, with his legal team challenging the court’s authority to hear the case.
Machar, who has been under house arrest since March, is facing charges including murder, treason, and crimes against humanity alongside 20 others. The accusations stem from deadly raids earlier this year in the northeastern town of Nasir, allegedly carried out by the Nuer-dominated White Army militia, which the government claims Machar supported.
The case has heightened fears of renewed instability in a country still reeling from the 2013–2018 civil war, which pitted Machar’s Nuer forces against fighters loyal to President Salva Kiir, a member of the Dinka ethnic group.
Appearing in court in a dark suit and cobalt-blue tie, Machar was seen in public for the first time since his detention. Media access to the proceedings was tightly controlled, limited to state broadcasters, and the trial was held in a repurposed event hall usually used for weddings and concerts.
Machar was suspended from office earlier this month by presidential decree after the charges were announced. Among those accused with him is South Sudan’s petroleum minister and several senior allies from his SPLM-IO party, which has dismissed the trial as politically motivated.
Machar’s lawyer, Geri Raimondo Legge, told the court that the proceedings were “unconstitutional, unlawful, illegal and void,” arguing that Machar retains immunity as a sitting vice president. He urged the immediate release of his client and the co-accused, describing their arrest and detention as unconstitutional.
The prosecution dismissed the defence’s claims as “unfounded and weak,” insisting that Machar’s support for the White Army contributed to dozens of civilian deaths and the displacement of more than 80,000 people in Nasir.
The high-profile case is being closely watched both domestically and internationally, as observers warn it could further strain South Sudan’s fragile peace agreement.
