Self-defense groups in Equatoria say ready to fight LRA

By Richar Ruati

February 23, 2009 (MANIKAKARA) – Western Equatoria’s arrow boys have reiterated their readiness to fight the Ugandan who committed attacks in the region. A leading member of the self-defense groups urged the Lord Resistant Army (LRA) leader to surrender or face death assault.

The LRA attacks last week in Ibba and Maridi villages were intercepted and repulsed largely by the self-defense groups, as they too felt more tramped in the face of LRA reprisals after the Ugandan, SPLA and Congolese troops started fighting the rebels in mid December 2008.

The Arrow boys use traditional weapons of bows, arrows, spears and clubs, treated with thick black poisonous powder.

The head of the Arrow boys in Manikakara Payam (sub county), in Ibba county, Raphael Monuku said that, “LRA guerilla movement appears to be a defeated movement, they have no access to ammunitions and any warfare machinery, hence they are using pangas (machetes), axes, knife, woods, to kill the innocent civilian of the Western Equatoria State.”

Monuku added that “the arrow boys are very strong and they work together and united as one family” to fight the LRA out of Maridi, Ibba and Western Equatoria State respectively.

However he stressed that the citizen of WES especially in the LRA spotted areas don’t sleep anymore in their houses, in anticipation for any surprise attack by the rebels.

The recent attack in Manikakara caused a lot of destructions and deaths both in Ibba and Maridi Counties. The LRA came in small number but they caused a lot of destruction, more special burning down of houses, chopping of innocent civil, looting of food raping of women.

Most local analysts believe that plans to set community security guards which were spearheaded by state Governor of WES appear to progressing in the right track.

Tens of thousands of Western Equatoria State civilians have been left homeless, displaced and left with humanitarian catastrophe on them.

The rebel group has most recently displaced thousands of civilians in DR Congo seeking refuge in neighboring southern Sudan’s Western Equatorial region — at least 40,000 IDPs and 15,000 refugee have been registered according to government records, since LRA launched retaliatory attacks.

In related development, Mrs. Joyce Bakosom an arrow lady in Manikakara Payam said that, “the LRA lack foods at the moment, life in the murky jungles of Garamba have become hell for them.”

Her father’s leg was chopped by the notorious LRA rebels during recent attacks in Ibba county. “We the ladies and daughter’s of WES need to wake up and support our boys at this bad moment, let’s pick our arrows and spears and join our strong brother in bush in the warfront to fight the LRA.”

The arrow boy’s are all over WES but particularly from the counties of Maridi, Mundri, Ezo and Ibba counties. They patrol along the road of Ibba, Manikakara Maridi road to secure Ibba Maridi road.

Mrs. Joyce added that local authorities in Maridi and Ibba are cooperating with the arrow boys concerning and train the self defense groups how to protect themselves and deter any barbaric attack by the LRA.

(ST)