Three people shot in suspected revenge attack in Rumbek
May 1, 2014 (RUMBEK) – Three people sustained gunshot wounds in Lakes state’s Rumbek Central county on Thursday after an attack by unknown gunman.
According to Lakes state officials, the attack occurred after a house in Malual-Akan shooting was attacked while its occupants were sleeping.
The state’s Criminal Investigation Department said they have yet to identify any suspects in the shooting.
The victims, two students from Comboni Primary School and a pastoralist, believed to be a relative visiting at the time, suffered critical injuries after the gunman entered the room where they were sleeping and opened fire.
“There were two students and one pastoralist who were sleeping in a room, both of them sustained gunshot wounds, but we did not arrest anybody suspected in the assault,” an officer who spoke on condition of anonymity told Sudan Tribune.
Police insist the wider public refuse to share information with them, blaming the poor relationship between the administration and the people of Lakes state.
Requests for information from the local community on the latest shooting incident was also denied.
“They refuse to share information with us and they daily told us to get information from [the] caretaker governor,” he said.
“We ask people to track the person who carry out [this] shooting but people told us ‘let [the] governor help you track the person,’” the officer said.
There are growing calls for military caretaker governor Maj-Gen Matur Chut Dhuol to resign, amid concerns the Lakes state government is becoming increasingly isolated.
There are reports the attack may have been related to inter-clan clashes between the Nyan and Joth sections.
The officer told Sudan Tribune he suspects members of the Nyan section may have been responsible, an accusation they deny.
Lakes state has been the scene of ongoing tribal tensions and revenge attacks, with a group of Lakes state lawmakers making little headway in reconciling rival clans.
Critics of Dhuol accuse the governor of inflaming the cycle of revenge attacks in the state.
Lakes communities have also demanded the state government do more to hold those accused of tribal killings and inciting violence accountable.
Dhuol was among 35 top military officers who were removed from active military service and put on a reserve list for reassignment in a presidential decree on 21 January 2013.
His appointment drew mixed reactions in Lakes state, with critics fearing the new governor would rule with “an iron fist”.
Frustration is growing among Lakes state’s youth, intellectuals and traditional authorities, over president Salva Kiir’s refusal to remove Dhuol.
Kiir recently appointed Northern Bahr el Ghazal state governor General Paul Malong Awan as the South Sudan army’s (SPLA) new chief-of-staff, replacing General James Hoth Mai.
General Marial Nuor Jok was also appointed head of military intelligent, replacing Mac Paul.
A group of students destroyed a television after Kiir’s decree ended without an announcement on Dhuol’s removal.
(ST)