Inter-clan fighting left dozens dead in Warrap and Lakes states

By James Gatdet Dak

January 24, 2009 (JUBA) – Renewed inter-clan and inter-tribal fighting this week in Warrap and Lakes states, respectively, left dozens of people dead, wounded and hundreds fleeing, according to officials.

The Vice President of the Government of Southern Sudan, Dr. Riek Machar Teny, left Juba for the Lakes state capital, Rumbek, on Saturday to chair an urgent security meeting to try to arrest the insecurity situation involving a number of states in Greater Bahr el Ghazal.

The United Nations Miraya FM radio in Juba quoted the Commissioner of Tonj North County in the state, Deng Ayieny Aleu, as saying the fierce fighting which was between two Dinka clans resulted to the death of 24 people and 17 others wounded.

He said efforts to resolve the renewed conflict are underway. Last year, deadly clashes between two clans of Apuk and Aguok in the state which persisted for over a year and had to be stopped by a traditional chiefs peace conference through the intervention of the President of the Government of Southern Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit, also left dozens more dead and wounded.

Another separate inter-tribal fighting erupted in Lakes state between Agaar and Jur on Thursday this week.

According to Chan Majok, the Western Bahr el Ghazal State’s Director for Southern Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (SSRRC), hundreds of people displaced by the fighting arrived to Wau town since Thursday.

He said the number of the internally displaced persons, mostly women and children, has continuously been increasing daily.

The number of the people killed or wounded in the fighting was not yet known.

Machar is also expected to travel to Yirol East County within Lakes state and other counties in Jonglei, Upper Nile and Unity states in the next few days or weeks to try to resolve similar incidents.

This week a group of armed men in Jonglei state ambushed a truck near Duk County headquarters (inhabited predominantly by Dinka clan of Nyarweng) and killed 7 people who were returning to Wuror County inhabited by Nuer tribe of Lou clan.

The victims included traders, teacher, agriculturist, military and wildlife officers and woman.

It is not clear if the state authority has arrested the culprits some of whose identity were reportedly identified by a survivor during the attack.

During Christmas and New Year holidays, a group of Murle youth carried out an attack on Bor County, resulting to killing of one police. In Leer County, Unity state, a disagreement between former and current Commissioners of the County left one person dead.

In Juba, the semi-autonomous Government’s capital, 6 people were killed in separate incidents, 4 in one incident on the Eve of the New Year.

The SPLM Political Bureau in its recent meeting in Juba also discussed the recent deadly Malakal and Anakdiar incidents involving Dinka and Shilluk tribes during the 4th CPA celebrations as well as the LRA attacks on the civil population in Western Equatoria state. The SPLM meeting urged the Government of Southern Sudan to take further security measures to stop such attacks and conflicts.

In his briefing to the Council of Ministers after assessing insecurity situation in Jonglei state as a sample state during the Christmas holidays, the Vice President, Dr. Machar, warned of increasing inter-community conflicts during the coming dry season unless the Government conducted urgent peace and reconciliatory conferences among the various communities throughout the region.

The Council of Ministers resolved on further deployments of SPLA and other organized forces in areas of conflicts to protect the populations and re-affirmed its policy for continuation of disarmament exercise of the civil population.

The Government also resolved to implement quick projects such as digging of boreholes and drenching of water points in conflict-suspected areas which are vulnerable during the dry season in order to reduce the conflicts caused by competitions over access to water.

However, lawmakers of the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly in their deliberations on insecurity issues in the last three weeks blamed the executive branch of the Government for what they said was its “failure to implement resolutions passed on security.”

(ST)