South Sudan’s VP on peace mission to three bordering states

April 8, 2012 (JUBA) – The Vice President of South Sudan, Riek Machar Teny, has traveled to Lakes, Unity and Warrap State to encourage peace and reconciliation between communities there. The three bordering states have been embroiled in cross-border cattle raiding between communities as well as internal clan conflicts.

Machar left Juba on Saturday for Unity State’s capital, Bentiu, and is scheduled to visit Lakes and Warrap states in the next few days.

The triangular states share long common borders involving 16 counties. He is expected to visit a number of locations in the three states to urge the populations to stop counterattacks and reconcile with each other.

In February Machar took part in a conference between the three states held in Lakes State and attended by Taban Deng Gai Unity State Governor, Nyadeng Malek Warrap the governor of Warrap State and Chol Tong Mayay the governor of Lake State, as well as local representatives.

In January this year officials say that 37 were killed dead and more than 13 injured, in violence between the three states. An earlier peace initiative was interrupted by fighting raising tension between the three states.

The three governors were summoned to Juba to explain the violence. It has been agreed that compensation be paid to those who lost family members and cattle – a valuable resource in South Sudan.

However, local chiefs in Lakes State’s Rumbek North County blame South Sudan’s government and military for the insecurity. The southern army (SPLA) has been accused of supplying civilians with weapons in some areas of South Sudan and some chiefs say that the SPLA cannot be trusted to disarm people.

Despite efforts to disarm civilians since South Sudan signed a peace deal with the north in 2005, the region is still flooded with small arms from decades of civil war. As part of the peace deal South Sudan became independent last year.

Sultan Marial Cham said in February that it was a “big shame” that after independence the world is witnessing “us killing ourselves without reason in the South Sudan”.

JONGLEI

The visit to Lakes, Unity and Warrap follows Machar’s two-week tour of volatile Jonglei State where he visited 16 locations covering all the eleven counties. During his tour he urged all of the Jonglei State’s communities to surrender their weapons to the organised forces and begin to reconcile among themselves.

As well as the disarmament campaign being led by 15,000 soldiers and police South Sudan’s president, Salva Kiir, has also launched the Jonglei Peace Initiative headed by Episcopal Archbishop of Sudan and South Sudan, Daniel Deng Bul, to encourage dialogue between the warring communities.

In December last year Machar attempted to persuade 6,000 armed Luo Nuer men from attacking Pibor County in Jonglei State. However, the raid went ahead with the leaders of the group ignoring attempts by traditional leaders and politicians to diffuse tensions with the Murle tribe.

Over 100,000 people were displaced by the Luo Nuer offensive and Murle counter raids, many of whom have not yet returned to their homes.

(ST)