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The widow of Sudan's former vice-president John Garang is visiting Uganda to show support for the government, which has been stung by media claims it may have caused his death in a plane crash, an official said on Friday.
Ugandan leader Yoweri Museveni in particular is furious at suggestions in local media that the presidential helicopter he lent his close friend and political ally may have been faulty.
"Rebecca Garang is here to show her continued support for, solidarity with and confidence in the Ugandan government," said Riak Jeroboam, the representative in Uganda of Garang's Sudan Peoples' Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/SPLM).
Garang, who led southern Sudan and signed a peace deal with Khartoum in January, died on July 30 in the crash on remote border territory between the two east African countries.
An international probe is under way and his supporters have not suggested foul play. But speculation and conspiracy theories ranging from sabotage to hijackers have raged in Uganda's media.
Garang's widow arrived late on Wednesday and his successor Salva Kiir was also due to visit Uganda soon.
Uganda says the presidential helicopter was in good condition and that Museveni himself used it earlier that day.
Last week, a Ugandan radio journalist who accused Uganda's government of causing Garang's death through incompetence was charged with sedition and his station shut down for a week.
Museveni's spokesperson Onapito Ekomoloit said he understood Rebecca Garang had flown into Uganda on a private visit.
"If she is here to meet the president, she would be visiting a family that was so close to her husband," he said.
Garang's death triggered riots that killed 130 people in Sudan, and fed fears his peace deal with Khartoum could unravel.
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