Open Letter to H.E. Donald J. Trump,

President of the United States of America

Through Ambassador Michael J. Adler,

Dear Mr. President,

I write with tears staining this letter, the same tears that have flowed endlessly since our hard-won independence became a cruel joke in the hands of those entrusted with our dreams.

Our beloved President Salva Kiir Mayardit, once a source of unity and hope, now sits as a hollow figurehead, diminished by age, alcoholism and illness, his judgment clouded, and his authority stolen.

In this tragic vacuum stands Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel, not as a patriot, but as a predator feeding on our country’s lifeblood.

Mr. President, the atrocities committed under his instruction as concealment for the theft of our beloved country have reached horrifying levels.

The bombing of innocent civilians in Longechuk County, Akobo County, and Nasir with outlawed cluster bombs, weapons banned by international convention, shows the evilness of the current situation.

Families are torn apart, children maimed, and communities obliterated, all while the world watches in silence. These are war crimes happening in real time, organised by a man who operates with impunity.

Our soldiers, heroes and heroines who bled for freedom are now standing unpaid for years while Ugandan mercenaries, each mercenary pockets $6,000 monthly or $ 200 daily. Can you imagine the burning shame and rage this ignites in patriots’ hearts?

The peace South Sudanese sacrificed everything to achieve is being shredded before our eyes. During Lt. Gen. Majur Dak Thel’s burial, a moment that could have been for dignity and respect, was turned into a war theater with Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel spewing venom and threats, daring to invite new bloodshed in a land already soaked with it.

Mr. President, we South Sudanese parents implore you that the current US sanctions on Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel are insufficient. Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel continues to conduct international business through proxies and rebranded companies. We urgently request that your administration impose comprehensive sanctions that would completely sever his ability to conduct any international business whatsoever. His assets must be frozen, his business networks dismantled, and additional punitive measures implemented that will finally end his reign of terror. Those who enable his activities, both within and outside South Sudan, must face consequences as well.

America has always stood for freedom and dignity. You personally understand what it means to fight against corrupt establishments. That is why on behalf of silent South Sudanese majority, I appeal directly to you. One phone call from you to President Kiir could save countless lives. One firm demand to remove Dr. Benjamin Mel could prevent another generation of South Sudanese children from being orphaned and from knowing only war. Please do just that now as a matter of urgency.

Mr. President, if you could walk our streets for just one day, seeing the mothers cradling children wounded by cluster bombs, hearing the whispered fears of what is coming, you would understand the desperate urgency of this moment.

Mr. President, across all our divisions, be they ethnicity, political or religious, we South Sudanese agree on one truth, Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel will destroy everything if not stopped. He is not fit to lead South Sudan; he is a conman unworthy of any leadership.

Before more blood waters our soil, before more children become orphans, please help us with decisive action that matches the severity of our crisis. Put pressure on President Salva Kiir Mayardit to sack Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel immediately.

With the earnest urgency and hope, A Concerned South  Sudanese parent praying for tomorrow

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