South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
August 27, 2011 (JUBA) – The South Sudan government on Saturday proposed convening a conference with traditional leaders across to look for mechanisms to address the new country’s various tribal conflicts.
The Murle attack is in response to a Luo Nuer raid in June, which local activists say killed around 900 people. Cattle raids and revenge attacks between the neighboring tribes have resulted in the death of 1,000 people since January according to the UN.
In the same period the UN says tens of thousands of people have been forced from their homes, and hundreds of women and children have been abducted from both communities.
If organised, the conference will be the Juba government’s first major political event since Africa’s 54th state was established in July. It would draw participation of paramount chiefs from all the ten states of South Sudan representing different cultures and tribes. Similar conventions were held in Bentiu of Unity State in 2008 and in the Upper Nile region in 2010 but the resolutions were not implemented.
Murle chief Ismail Konyi told the press at South Sudan’s parliament in Juba that he would support any programs and initiatives to foster peace and reconciliation.
Konyi said the interim constitution of South Sudan allows the Council of States – of which Konyi was one of the appointees – to legislate in order to promote a culture of peace, reconciliation and communal harmony among the peoples of South Sudan.
The all-appointed Council of States is the second branch of South Sudan’s parliament, the National Legislative Assembly.
“Under article 60 (F) of part one in chapter five of the competence of the council of states in interim constitution of South Sudan, the council of states has a mandate to legislate a law aiming at promoting a culture of peace and reconciliation among the people”, observed Konyi.
“There is no way to maintain peace in this country if we do not prioritise and support peace and conflict resolution programs through involving participation of the traditional leadership,” Konyi told journalists on Saturday.
“I have been telling our traditional leaders and politicians that wars and ethnic fights can never end differences, instead they tend to cultivate animosity between brothers and sisters if appropriate measures are not taken to address them”, explained Konyi.
The former presidential advisor on peace and reconciliation categorically stated that revenge does not resolve long standing differences and only makes things worse. He said that in his home state of Jonglei, the Dinka, Nuer and his own ethnic group – the Murle – have been engaged in attacks and counter attacks for decades.
“The acts of attacks and counter attacking among cattle keeping communities in South Sudan are not the solution to addressing local differences. There have to be national and unified positions on how to address issues connected to tribal fights in South Sudan”, he said.
A group of officials from Jonglei told Sudan Tribune immediately after the clashes in Uror county, which began on August 18, that the fighting had resulted in 640 deaths, 861 people sustaining injuries, the kidnap of 208 children, the arson of 7,924 houses and the theft of 38,000 cows.
The scale of the attacks so soon after South Sudan’s independence has concerned not only the Juba government but also the UN and members of the international community. The UN Mission in South Sudan and the country’s army, the SPLA. have sent more troops to the area to bring an end to the violence.
SPLA officer Kuot Dut Kuc, told Sudan Tribune on Saturday that acts of vengeance between Nuer, Murle and the Dinka Bor are on the rise in Jonglei. Kuc, who was assigned to the state between 2009 and 2010 said he “realised that in Jonglei State, the killing of two or three people is a normal thing.”
“People are killing themselves like animals”, said Kuc.
Insecurity, through cattle raiding and banditry, is one of the major challenges facing South Sudan, after it separated from North Sudan on July 9 as part of a 2005 peace that ended decades of conflict. Numerous rebel groups add to the insecurity making it difficult for South Sudan – one of the poorest countries in the world – to develop after decades of crippling civil war.
The military officer described cattle raiding and the killing and abduction of children, which are regular occurrences in Jonglei, as a “real threat” to national security and development.
“If there are people preaching wars and ethnic fights in South Sudan, I am telling you in the media that no one can ever win ethnic war. No one, I tell you, will be declared to have won ethnic war against the other instead all will be losers. So when two communities lose their ethnic wars, it is the south as a country which is losing its people because these tribes or communities [are] part of this country.”
He said that reprisal attacks or the deployment of extra UN or SPLA troops would not end the problem. The solution he said was to initiate a dialogue between the communities
“Their politicians including those in the army need to initiate and implement resolutions of the dialogue else the ethnic fight will continue unabated”,he said.
(ST)
Mzalendo Mwema
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
That is true Sir,
Our nation is being threatened by cattle rustling.It need our collective attention to get rid of it.
We need helicopters
We need to reconcile our tribes because roots of wars have gone deeply into our people’s hearts and we need to uproot them.
Mach Achiek
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
I think the most important thing to do first; is to disarm the tribes as traditional leadership can not disarm them.
jur_likang_a_ likan'g
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
It is important the security must be implemented in this region. The way to do that is to barter their guns with cattle. Secondly employ a trully multi-ethnic soldiers to carry out the program of enforcing tranquility. Thirdly Radio signal disseminated programs in local languages for the benefit of peace and security in this region should be introduced and encouraged to the people of this region.Thirdly introduce modern ways of cattle keeping with their cattle wearing identity tags to represent ownership of the livestock.
Akoon mangok
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
yes,good move
kaci-banno
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
Murle is right to kill so call stuped mijority tribes Nuer and dinka in south Sudan for thier act of foolishness greednese not to consider minorty right. And the purposal of traditional leadreship conference is a way of looting public money instead of bringing sustainable development so that people should be aware for the important of peace. I don’t agree with the point of Conference because it bring no change to community life only dullusion. What is killing our community now, is hatred, ignorance, jealousy and condering mijority tribes as a important tribe in south sudan. My point is that instead of addressing traditional leaders, first address your wrong ministers who generate the problems for their political interest among local communities.
By:Kaci-banno
watchout
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
kaci-banno son of bitch,
Before I said these check your spelling, you are really illeterate better to avoid comment. Thank Dinka and Nuer to let you know that little English that you are having.
you are adapted child (melekia) stop barking on South Sudan right, there is no majority and minority right. Avoid divide us, we are one despite of which tribe you are belonging to. Avoid mentioning these two major tribe who freed you from the slave of Arabs and who also freed your mothers from been misused by Northerners for more then 21 years which lost their virginity,
Chakin Riek Rah
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
Idiot Kaci Bano,
You did not know what you were talking about. Does the Murle or where ever you are from, do you know where the source of incomes are coming from? You talked about the public money being wasted. Why don’t you get your own source of incomes?
If you are fucking Murle, or Murle’s wife this conspiracy killing of the civillans in the Nuer’s soil by you will have a major conseguence and the Murle and those who were behind this will regret their action.
Regard to a peace idiot Ismail Konyi is talking about, he’s wasting his times. We will not accept that at this time until those perpetrators held accountable.
Chakin Riek Rah
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
The NCDS, in its investigation, discovered that the attackers were not Murle cattle rustlers as the Government of South Sudan wants the world to believe. The attackers were estimated to be a force of 5, 000 SPLA gunmen in uniform. Two of the attackers captured alive were from Dinka tribe and they confessed that they were an SPLA force composed of Murle and Dinka. The attackers confessed that they were ordered by the Jonglei government and the SPLA headquarters in Bilpam to go to Uror County and disarm Lou Nuer by force. They narrated that on their way to Uror County they decided to massacre the civilians instead to forcefully disarm them in order to settle tribal grudges.
The account of the captured killers could not be disputed because the day before the massacre, the head of SPLA Division 8 Commander met with chiefs of Uror County and told them that the SPLA was on the way to disarm them. The Chiefs told him that they would not accept to be disarmed while the SPLA did not protect them from cattle rustlers in the past after accepting first disarmament in 2006. The day after that meeting, all villages of the County were in flames.
It should be born in mind that the SPLA army embarked on a forceful disarmament of Lou Nuer in 2006 where several villages were burned to ashes resulting in massive displacements and death of hundreds of civilians. People should refer to UN Report and the study of Small Arms Survey which documented Lou Nuer killed by the SPLA army during forceful disarmament of Nuer civilians in 2006. The current massacre of Lou Nuer in Uror County is reminiscent of massacres the SPLA army perpetrated against the same community in 2006.
It should be brought to the attention of the international community that the Government in Juba is not telling the truth by blaming Murle cattle rustlers as perpetrators of the massacre on August, 19, 2011. Enmity between the Nuer vs. Dinka and Nuer vs. Murle is something which dated back to 1980s. The relationship between the tribes of Jonglei State has never been smooth for many years. However, what is unusual is for SPLA forces to massacre civilians after becoming a national army guided by the Interim Constitution of South Sudan. In the past, the SPLA committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in most parts of South Sudan. The Nuer, Murle, Didinga, Taposa and many tribes were massacred with impunity in 1980s. Those killings were swept under the carpet in the past because the SPLA was still a guerrilla army. But they could not be left unpunished in the era of International Criminal Court (ICC).
Since it is now clear that those who massacred Lou Nuer were not ordinary Murle who always look for cattle, the international community has a responsibility to bring to justice armed agents of the Government of South Sudan who perpetrated those crimes. By massacring Lou Nuer, the SPLA army had committed heinous crimes against humanity by massacring innocent civilians to settle tribal scores. Rome Statute of International Criminal Court states in article seven that crimes against humanity include torture; persecution against any identifiable group or collectively on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender; imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international law; Attack directed against any civilian population; and forcible transfer of population.
Article eight of the said statute also states that war crimes include wilful killing; wilfully causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or health; extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly; intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population as such or against individual civilians not taking direct part in hostilities; intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects, that is, objects which are not military objectives; Intentionally launching an attack in the knowledge that such attack will cause incidental loss of life or injury to civilians or damage to civilian objects or widespread, long-term and severe damage to the natural environment which would be clearly excessive in relation to the concrete and direct overall military advantage anticipated; and violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture.
The NCDS is requesting the international community and the Government of Juba to take the following steps before the entire Nuer tribe takes action:
1. The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) should investigate the massacre to find out the leaders of Jonglei State and the officers of the SPLA army responsible for sending forces to massacre Lou Nuer civilians to settle tribal differences.
2. We call upon President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit, to remove Governor Kuol Manyang and arrest all SPLA generals in Bilpam who are behind the conspiracy to massacre Lou Nuer.
3. Finally, the Nuer community worldwide warns President Salva Kiir that failure to remove Governor Kuol Manyang and SPLA generals in Bilpam Headquarters would compel Nuer tribe around the world to arm their civilians to defend themselves from the SPLA. The Nuer tribe is capable of fighting the SPLA army if the perpetrators are not brought to justice.
Signed By:
Marco A. Wek
South Sudan proposes traditional leadership conference to end conflicts
I totally agree with Konyi, attacks and counter attacks is not going to do us any good as Southerners but peace among our people is the best choice.
As for brother Chakin, the thinking of your type is the one responsible for the death of our people in south Sudan and by no way will good people of south Sudan listen to what people of your type think or say.