Riek Machar

==Return to SPLM==

There was growing tension between Riek Machar and Paulino Matip's South Sudan Unity Movement (SSUM), which became engaged in forcibly removing civilians from the [[Block 5A, South Sudan|Block 5A]] oil concession area, and assisting in clearances from other oil blocks.{{sfn|Rone|2003|pp=17}}
In 1998–1999, Matip's fighters and government troops clashed several times with Machar's SSDF forces in a struggle for control of the Unity state oilfields. 
Matip's fighters forced [[Tito Biel]], a high-ranking SSDF commander, to evacuate [[Leer, South Sudan|Leer]] early in 1999. Tito Biel later went over to the SPLA.{{sfn|Peace from within}}

Riek Machar's failure to prevent the government from forcibly displacing civilians from the oil-producing areas of [[Unity State]] turned the Nuer against his leadership.{{sfn|Rone|2003|pp=16}}
Machar's SSDF began to receive ammunition from the SPLA as of June 1999.{{sfn|Oil-Caused Realignment}}
In 2000 at a meeting of leaders in [[Koch, South Sudan|Koch]] he finally resigned from the government of Sudan and created a fresh militia named the [[Sudan People's Defense Forces/Democratic Front]] (SPDF).{{sfn|Rone|2003|pp=16}}
At risk in his own homeland of the Dok Nuer, Riek moved his base of operations to the eastern [[Jikany]] area.{{sfn|Schlee|Watson|2009|pp=44}}
In January 2002 he signed an agreement with John Garang to merge the SPDF into the SPLA, and was given command of the Dok Nuer within the SPLA.{{sfn|Rone|2003|pp=16}}

The civil war ended in January 2005. In August Machar became Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan and SPLM Co-chair of the Joint Executive Political Committee.{{sfn|Miraya FM}}
When South Sudan became independent, in July 2011 he was appointed first vice president of the new republic.{{sfn|SoSaNews 13 July 2011}}
On 15 July 2011 Machar represented South Sudan at the ceremony when his country's flag was raised outside [[United Nations headquarters]] in New York.{{sfn|Sudan Tribune 15 July 2011}}