Bor community urge protection of cattle herders in Equatoria region
June 12, 2023 (JUBA) – Members of the Bor community in South Sudan have called for protection of cattle headers in Central Equatoria State, stressing it is the ultimate responsibility of government to protect citizens’ lives and properties.
The call was made in the community’s position paper Sudan Tribune obtained on Tuesday.
The paper tackles the current developments affecting its members in various parts of the Equatoria regions and the security challenges facing other communities.
“In this context, members of Bor communities keeping their animals in Central Equatoria deserve this protection against bigotry and discrimination based on ethnicity and regional belonging. The cattle herders have the constitutional right to live in that region. Although cattle keepers are demeaned as land grabbers, there is no evidence of that. They did not go there to occupy the land but to feed their animals, an indispensable part of South Sudan’s economy,” it reads in part.
The 12-page document highlighted the security challenges facing the Dinka Bor communities, saying the current security problems were national issues that required immediate action from the Transitional Government of National Unity.
According to the community, absence of law and order in various parts of the country has exacerbated cattle rustling, child abduction and increased criminal activities especially in Jonglei State, forcing its people to migrate to safer places.
“Insecurity affects every community in South Sudan. What makes it worse is the availability of guns in the hands of civilians throughout the country,” it stated.
The Bor community leaders further claimed many cattle herders recently returned to Bor County, but Murle criminals allegedly arrived in the area using the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) vehicles to carry out their criminal activities.
“In this situation, the state and national unity governments must pre-empt this security concern by deploying well-equipped security forces to deter illegal activities,” noted the document.
Member of the Bor community cited a May 11, 2022 incident in which 37 people were killed and 33 others were wounded in Magwi County of Eastern Equatoria State. A similar incident, it said, occurred in Kajo-Keji County leading to loss of lives.
“We regret any loss of lives in the Kajo Keji and Magwi incidents,” it further stated.
During the meeting, however, Bor community leaders appealed to communities from the Greater Equatoria region to desist from “divisive” politics in the country.
“It is this policy that is being used to instigate conflict between cattle keepers from Bor and farmers in East and Central Equatoria,” stressed the community’s paper.
Meanwhile, the Bor community have called for creation of a buffer zone between Pibor Administrative Area and Jonglei State to reduce criminalities in the region.
“This step is essential because it will encourage cattle herders to keep their animals in Bor,” the document stated, adding “Provide adequate security for citizens in Jonglei by eliminating child abduction and cattle rustling in the region”.
The Bor community meeting also called for enactment of laws on the co-existence of crop producers and cattle herders, amid appeals that the eviction of South Sudanese from one place to another be declared as being “illegal”.
Further calls were made for the national government to work with international partners to devise measures on how cattle and owners can cope with extreme climatic changes events especially the floods and problems related to drought.
Livestock herding is the main source of income in many South Sudanese communities.
(ST)