Government to send investigation team to Malakal and Wau over recent killings
February 21, 2016 (JUBA) – South Sudan government on Friday said it will soon dispatch a high profile of investigation team to the oil rich Upper Nile state’s capital Malakal and Western Bahr el Ghazal state’s capital, Wau, to investigate the recent inter-communal clashes which left dozens killed in the towns.
The announcement came hours after the national council of minister’s urgent meeting on Friday over the report of rampant insecurity in the two states when clashes between Shilluk and Dinka displaced persons inside Malakal’s United Nations camp was allegedly joined by soldiers from the South Sudanese army (SPLA). Also Dinka armed youth backed by SPLA also target members of Fertit tribe in Wau, killing a number of them.
Speaking to media in the national capital, Juba, on Friday, South Sudanese government’s spokesperson, Michael Makuei Lueth, said the council of ministers meeting came up with a discussion of sending investigation committees to the two states to investigate the incidents.
“As the government is waiting for the UN report on how the clashes started inside Malakal UN IDPs protection site, yet there [is] an investigation delegation dedicated to go on the ground to investigate these problems,” Makuei told journalists in Juba.
“We are now waiting for the UN report because the fighting took place inside their civilian’s protection camp of which government was incapable to intervene, therefore we need to have a clear report on the matter,” said Lueth.
For Wau town, he added, it was worth mentioning that the incident happened while the state governor was in Juba, “therefore, the national government is ready to go and investigate the matter.”
Fighting erupted on Wednesday night and continued on Thursday between Dinka members and Shilluk inside Malakal civilians protection site of UN camp calming 18 lives while 90 wounded. Members of the Nuer were later on involved in the clashes when their members were also killed by the Dinka and their tents burned.
While on Thursday morning in Wau town clashes occurred between armed youth of the Dinka ethnic group and youth from Fertit ethnic group. The national army (SPLA) was accused of shooting dead two young girls as they allegedly sided with the Dinka youth who attacked the Fertit tribesmen.
WAU DEPUTY GOVERNOR ACCUSED
In the connection to Wau incident, state deputy governor, Major General Andrea Dominic was arrested by national security on Thursday and transferred to Juba on Friday for investigation.
According to Lueth, Andrea was arrested in connection to disagreement over the SPLM-IO members who were wounded in battles last week and were admitted to Wau teaching hospital “illegally.”
“The wounded of [SPLM]IO were brought to Wau hospital by some citizens. From there, the army got information that the wounded people from IO were at the hospital. The army went to the hospital and moved them to the army hospital,” Lueth explained.
“But the deputy governor went to the army hospital and brought the wounded people from the IO to the Wau hospital again and also admitted some into his house for treatments,” he said.
Depending on the tone Lueth was using, it seemed the government charged the deputy governor of their newly created state of Wau as supporter of the SPLM-IO.
(ST)