Nearly 200,000 civilians still seeking safety in PoCs: UNMISS
October 14, 2019 (JUBA) – At least 194,954 civilians are currently seeking safety in six Protection of Civilians (PoC) sites located on United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) bases, the UN said.
Speaking to reporters in Juba last week, David Shearer, the head of UNMISS said the mission drafted a report together with the humanitarian community in the South Sudan about the future of PoC sites that the Secretary General submitted to the Security Council.
“It is a complex issue. These sites were set up as a last resort to physically protect people in immediate fear for their lives,” he said.
About 20,000 people, Shearer said, have voluntarily left the PoC sites since South Sudan’s revitalized peace accord was signed last year.
“Many left of their own accord while others have asked for assistance from humanitarian agencies and UNMISS,” he stressed.
The senior UN official, however, said it is the primary responsibility of the South Sudanese government to establish the conditions needed for displaced families to return safely and live with dignity.
“In particular, the government needs to do more to find land for people who want to leave PoC sites,” he told reporters in Juba.
Shearer also assured that UNMISS would continue to physically protect people in the PoC sites until they feel ready to leave, emphasizing plans by the world body to step up the deployment of peacekeepers to remote communities to protect the returnees.
He said the change in approach will depend very much on the continued commitment of the parties to implement the peace deal.
“But we should remember that, if there is durable peace with a transitional government established, the need for PoC sites will no longer exist,” said Shearer.
South Sudan descended into war in mid-December 2013 when President Salva Kiir accused his former deputy-turned rebel leader Riek Machar for plotting a coup.
In September 2018, the rival factions involved in the South Sudanese conflict signed a peace deal to end the conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced over 2 million people in the country.
(ST)