A Peace conference and a brewing conflict in Western Equatoria State
By Eng. Charles Kisanga*
April 19, 2006 — From the 18th to the 24th of April 2006, a Peace and Reconciliation Conference will be taking place in Yambio in which participants had been invited from the neighbouring states of Lakes, Warab and Bahr el Ghazal, all of which border Western Equatoria State on the northern sectors. About 200 delegates will be attending the conference. Delegates from these neighbouring states will join their counterparts from Western Equatoria state in Yambio to discuss and hopefully find ways where the bordering sates could help in preventing ethnic conflicts and clashes especially with regards to pastoralists who have been coming over from across the broader of these neighbouring states with all their cattle and clashing with local villagers. Tension and clashes had been evolving since January 2006 from the border areas of WE Sate and now increasing moving inside towards Yambio itself and other main towns in the state.
Ever since the Dinka/Zande/Moru Ethnic clashes erupted violently in Yambio and spreading to other WES towns last year in November/December inter-ethnic tension had been building up again. During the clashes that time a lot of civilians from both sides died and the clashes led to the exodus of thousands of displaced Ethnic Dinka Bor from the state making their way towards their home counties. But later on it seems some also turned back. Last February another conflict in Lakes state led to Dinka Chobet moving also towards Western Equatoria. All these led a to a new conflict brewing up again which now include thousands of pastoralists arriving in the State and starting to attack local villagers. LRA terrorists also moved from bases in Eastern and Central Equatoria to Congo Garamba National Park and then mounting cross border raids for supplies into Yambio. But this Peace conference of course does not include the LRA terrorists and Ambororo who are an invading force from the North. But if the Ethnic clashes among Southern Sudanese in Western Equatoria state can be resolved it can allow the authorities more resources and energy to put pressure on LRA and the Ambororo. Hence the conference delegates are expected concentrate on discussing how to live as good neighbours in peace and how to prevent the influx of pastoralists who come via the border of the three state of Bahr el Ghazal, Lakes and Warab. Will the conference be adequate to save Western Equatoria state from further conflict remains to be seen after the conference and implementation of its resolutions.
The Southern Sudanese pastoralists had been arriving across the border with these Bahr el Ghazal states in larger numbers and displacing thousands of villagers. Recent reports, since February 2006, from displaced villagers, speak of hundreds of pastoralists who have come and taken over complete villages in the payams of places such as Naadiangere, Mvolo, Yangiri, and Nagero. First hand report of what is talking place is scarce because of lack resources to visit and assess the areas but thousands of local villagers who fled their homes for safety to the inner towns of Yambio, Ibba, Madebe , Maridi, and Nagero, speak of merciless pastoralists who have come to settle with all their cattle, wives and children and they are heavily armed. The pastoralists arrive at a village and attack local villagers, looting and killing people and burning their bodies together with their houses. This have led to hundred of villagers fleeing with their lives for the inner towns such as mentioned above. But even inner towns such as Ibba are still at risk because last month around the 10th of March the marauding pastoralists also arrived at Ibba town coming via Bambu in Maruko payam. Six villagers were reported then killed and nine others abducted. Displaced local villagers who have fled their homes are now common sights in Ibba, Madebe and Maridi. Many more deaths and abductions have gone unreported.
The same things are also happening around Mvolo, Mundri East and Mundri West and displaced local people are everywhere with their tales of attacks from armed pastoralists as well as Ambororo.
The attacks do not end only with civilians . A group of policemen going from Nadiangere to Yambio were ambushed recently near Nabima and the two policemen killed and their rifles taken (Sudan radio Service report 12 the April 2006). There has other reports of casualties inflicted on the Security forces by these armed pastoralists.
Since the pastoralists seem to enter WE State via the borders with the three Bahr El Ghazal states mentioned the authorities and people of Western Equatoria and NGOs appealed to donors to sponsor a Peace and Reconciliation conference so that the neighbouring states can come and discuss ways of ending the conflicts and trying to persuade the pastoralists to go back to their original villages in their counties and also may be prevent further incursion into West Equatoria state. Furthermore the conference can also help improve Zande/Moru/Dinka relations shattered by the conflict last year as well as other conflicts previous to that because so far no reconciliation had been done before.
However it may be difficult then said as first of all, all the pastoralists would need to be identified and their chiefs can be talked to so as to persuade their people to stop ethnic clashes and return voluntarily back to their villages so that basic services resulting from the Comprehensive Peace agreement (CPA) peace dividends may be availed to them. Things such as putting their children to school and being provided with medical care and water for their animals. Also they would like to be assured of their security that other cattle rustlers would not attack them back home. However the same might not apply for marauding Ambororo coming all the way from Kordofan and Darfur regions of Northern Sudan. In such cases may be the conference delegates my like to appeal to the Government of southern Sudan (GoSS ) to take action and deal with the Amboro directly in order to preserve the peace and allow for the smooth implementation of the CPA.
Without adequate GoSS intervention with enough resources to settle all the issues of the new settlers in Western Equatoria state it would be difficult to achieve any peace and a full scale conflict could break out any time which would jeopardise implementation of the CPA. Also the conflict could spill over to the neighbouring states which already had their own share of the violence and conflicts resulting previously in many deaths.
Also the LRA of Uganda who have now set up a camp in Western Equatoria state near border with Congo would need to be taken seriously. Recently three LRA scouting terrorists were apprehended near Yambio (Sudan Radio Service report) and are being held by Joint Integrated Unit forces (JIU) in Yambio The apprehension of these terrorists while on spying mission would suggest that the LRA might be in the process of preparing to launch another attack on Yambio just as the Vice President of GoSS was meeting Kony’s second in command Vincent Otti at Nabandga in Western Euatoria state near the border with Congo. It would be necessary for the SPLA or Joint integrated units to move against LRA whenever there is any news of the LRA inside Western Equatoria rather than waiting to respond to an attack It is more likely also that LRA may continue to mount cross boarder raids for supplies even if they are completely forced back into Garamba forest in Congo and hence a stronger border protection force, highly mobile, to seal the border with Congo, would have to be set up.
Hence the challenge of securing peace in Western Equatoria are enormous indeed and a Peace and Reconciliation Conference without adequate resources to address the security problems and issues arising at the conference and the resolutions thereafter will only serve as a get together exercise without benefits of achieving peace for the state. Hence the delegates might also need to send a petition to the GoSS to take drastic action to maintain security and bring peace to Western Equatorial state and preserve the CPA.
* Charles Kisanga is former SPLM National Liberation council Member and Former Secretary General of Former EDF which merged with SPLM /A to became SPLM/A. Mr Kisanga now lives and works as Consultant Telecoms Engineer in exile in the United Kingdom. He can be reached on [email protected]