We speak to "Mama" Rebecca Garang, former adviser to President Salva Kiir and widow of the country's founder.

Civil war, famine, and warnings of genocide; what’s gone wrong in the world’s youngest country?

Two years after South Sudan gained its independence in 2011, a civil war erupted that has left the country devastated, with recent reports emerging of a man-made famine.

For "Mama" Rebecca Garang, widow of the country’s founder, its poor leadership is to blame, specifically President Salva Kiir.

"Anything being done good in the country, or bad, is always going to the president, so everything, I think, is with our president," says Garang, who was a former adviser to President Kiir and has called for him to step down. "All of us, as the leaders of South Sudan, we did not lead our people properly."

Asked why she did not speak out against human rights abuses while she was an adviser, Garang claims that she made repeated attempts to address the issue with President Kiir.

"I’m supposed to talk on the ears of the president for what I have seen, and I did my role," says Garang, adding the caveat that it was difficult to even get hold of President Kiir. "It’s very difficult to get appointment to our president ... it can go even sometime to six months."

In this special interview, the "mother of South Sudan", Rebecca Garang, tells UpFront of her thoughts on President Kiir, human rights abuses and alleged child-soldier recruitment.

Follow UpFront on Twitter @AJUpFront and Facebook.

Source: Al Jazeera News