Jonglei lawmaker calls for return of Murle refugees from Ethiopia

August 9, 2013 (BOR) – A local member of parliament in Bor has called for 5,000 Murle refugees whom he claims are exiled in Ethiopia to return home.

The Member of Parliament, Judi Jonglei Boyoris, made the call on Tuesday during a news conference in Bor.

Boyoris said the Murle refugees are currently in Raat, near the border between Ethiopia and South Sudan.

According to Boyoris, the refugees are registered by the United Nations High Committee for Refugee (UNHCR) and the Ethiopian government.

Boyoris said although the security situation in Raat where the Murle refugees are, is normal, the area lacks schools for children.

In July clashes between the Lou Nuer and Murle displaced about 100,000 civilians while an unknown number of people were killed.

The Luo Nuer reported that 70 of its members had been killed with 317 wounded while Pibor County reported that 300 from the Murle side were killed.

With the situation that led to the initial displacements still volatile, it is not known whether the Murle refugees being called upon to return by the member of parliament will heed the advice.

(ST)