Tag: Sudan

Over 1,000 people have been killed and more than 400 abducted in the past six months in intercommunal violence in South Sudan, amid fears that tensions may worsen with the onset of the dry season, the UN envoy for the country has said.

David Shearer, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for South Sudan, warned of increased risk of conflict with the start of the dry season, in December-January, as people start moving towards sources of water for their cattle, a UN statement said.

“I think we can anticipate increased tensions,” he said at a press conference, explaining that losses of cattle in floods earlier this year and poor economic conditions could exacerbate the situation.

The problems need to be “nipped in the bud” before they escalate into violence, added Mr. Shearer, who called for the appointment of officials at the county level “to fill the vacuum of power that has existed since the transitional government was formed”.

Mr. Shearer, who heads the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), also underlined an “urgent need to breathe fresh life into the peace process, which is currently stalled”.

The statement said Mr. Shearer also announced that, as of Monday, the protection of civilian (POC) sites in capital, Juba, have been re-designated as camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs).

The POC sites were set up by UNMISS to provide thousands of families – who had fled to UN bases in fear of their lives – with sanctuary when civil war erupted across South Sudan in 2013. Many lives were saved as a result.

The closure of the Juba sites “has followed a long and careful process, planning alongside humanitarians, and in consultation with national and local government, the security services, and of course the displaced community themselves”, added Mr. Shearer.

“The Government now has sovereign responsibility for the sites as it does with many other IDP camps across the country.”

The re-designation has allowed UNMISS to gradually withdraw troops from static duties at the sites where there is no threat so they can be redeployed to conflict hotspots where people’s lives are in real danger, said Mr. Shearer.

“Our approach to the protection of civilians is about being proactive, about being nimble, and being robust,” he added.

“That means we need to relocate our troops and staff who facilitate reconciliation and peacebuilding into areas of tension, and hopefully address that tension before conflict erupts.”

The statement said throughout the coming dry season, UN peacekeepers will be located in new temporary bases and carry out long duration patrols to places like Manyabol, Likongule, Duk Padiat, Yuai, and Waat where tensions between communities are high.

Troops and civilian staff will work together with local communities to deter violence, promote reconciliation, and build peace so families get the opportunity they deserve to rebuild their lives, added Mr. Shearer

Alongside, the UN mission will be rebuilding around 3,200 kilometres of roads across the country in the next few months, not only improving access to markets and services, but also improve trade and create jobs, and bring communities together.

“Through roads, peoples from different communities can communicate with each other, and by communication they can build trust and deter conflict,” said the senior UN official.

Mission engineers will also assist with plans to open the border between South Sudan and its northern neighbour, Sudan, by improving roads between Renk and Aweil and crossing points

Bona Panek Biar, governor of Warrap on Wednesday said 16 civilians were killed and scores wounded in South Sudan’s northern Warrap region following clashes over cattle.

Biar disclosed that the civilians were killed during clashes over cattle that erupted from Sunday until Tuesday between the Jalwau and Luanyjang clans of the Dinka community in Tonj East area.

According to Biar, criminals from Jalwau clan first raided cattle from Luanyjang clan which caused Luanyjang to retaliate by also raiding cattle from Jalwau.

He said that was what led to clashes between the two communities, leaving 16 people killed on both sides and 47 others wounded.

Biar said that the fighting has ended following intervention by government troops and the two communities are seeking dialogue to settle the conflict.

“I am not quite sure about the number of cattle stolen but authorities are working now to collect the raided cattle from both sides.’’

In August alone, 148 people were killed in Tonj East in clashes between government forces and armed civilians during a disarmament exercise which the civilians resisted.

In addition, similar clashes over cattle and grazing pasture occurred in July this year pitting Dinka, Neur communities from Jonglei region against Murle community in the neighboring Pibor administrative area bordering Ethiopia.

Biar said “violence prevents development in the (Warrap) area and causes insecurity among the communities, you cannot get roads, health care, network, and education when there is fighting.

“You get those things only when there is peace.’’

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced the intention of the United States government, subject to Congressional approval, to grant US$20 million to the World Food Programme (WFP), to purchase wheat for the people of Sudan which will help to alleviate the shortage of the cereal grain in the country.

A press release by USAID, published in Khartoum on Saturday, said the funding will enable the WFP to procure approximately 65,600 metric tons of wheat for Sudan.

It added that the civilian-led Transitional Government of Sudan will use the wheat to help reduce shortages of flour and bread in the greater Khartoum area.

Khartoum currently witnesses long queues by civilians in front of bakeries to get their daily supply of bread.

“This grant represents the United States’ contribution to a US$45 million commitment to provide the Government of Sudan with wheat needed to address the immediate shortage. The Government of the United Arab Emirates will be matching the U.S. contribution with US$20 million, and the Government of the State of Israel will be providing US$5 million,” it further said.

The press release said the USAID announcement comes as Sudan is entering a promising new era for its people. Along with joining the Abraham Accords and moving toward the normalization of diplomatic relations with Israel, Sudan’s Transitional Government has reformed laws and state institutions to represent and better respond to the needs of Sudanese people, and engage in difficult negotiations with armed groups to sign a peace agreement in October.

“These efforts demonstrate the Transitional Government’s commitment to ending and combating terrorism and decades of violence and corruption in Sudan,” USAID stressed.

It added: “The United States looks forward to a new era of cooperation with the Transitional Government, civil society, and the private sector in Sudan to bring stability and prosperity to the Sudanese people.”

South Sudan said it had reversed its plans to introduce a new currency as the pound continues to depreciate against the U. S. dollar and other major currencies due to the economic crisis.

Michael Lueth, the Minister of Information and Broadcasting, said this on Thursday in Juba.

Lueth said the move to change the local currency was only a mere proposal by the economic crisis management committee as a means to salvage the economy from further collapse but was not agreed and passed by the cabinet.

“The change of national currency (South Sudanese Pounds) was brought in the discussion of previous cabinet meeting as one of the long-term economic measures, but it was not agreed and passed by the council that time,” Makuei said.

In September, President Salva Kiir established an economic cluster committee to investigate mismanagement of non-oil revenue and also to come up with recommendations to revive the falling economy.

Makuei also said the government was in the final process of acquiring a loan that would be injected into the market to stabilise the deteriorating economy.

In August, the central bank said the government had run out of foreign reserves to control the hyperinflation rate in the world’s youngest republic.

As of Thursday, 100 dollars was selling at between 70,000 to 73,000 South Sudanese pounds (SSP) due to the low volume of SSP circulation in the market amid skyrocketing prices of commodities due to speculation.

The South Sudan economy has been shattered by several years of civil war and this coupled with the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a drastic drop in oil prices, thus dropping the country’s revenues.

The United States says it is “deeply concerned” by Monday’s attack on a World Food Programme (WFP) delivering food aid in South Sudan.

The government’s reaction came in a statement by spokesperson of the Department of State, Ms Morgan Ortagus, on Friday.

WFP said the attack occurred while the convoy of boats was delivering food aid to hundreds of thousands of people displaced by a recent flooding in the country’s north.

The UN said the attack left one crew member missing, presumed dead, and three aid workers with gunshot wounds.

Ortagus said “humanitarian aid workers in South Sudan and throughout the region work under extremely challenging conditions to assist some of the world’s most vulnerable men, women and children”.

“This is the second attack on humanitarian cargo vessels in this area in the past two months.

“We call on the Government of South Sudan to investigate this attack fully and expeditiously.

“It should provide the security necessary to ensure the safety of aid workers who are delivering critical life-saving services and assistance,” she said.

The U.S., according to the spokesperson, is the largest humanitarian assistance provider to the people of South Sudan.

She said the country provided nearly 907 million dollars (N346 billion) in humanitarian aid to South Sudan in 2020 through the UN and nongovernmental organisation partners.

“We continue to stand with the South Sudanese people to help address their ongoing humanitarian needs and demonstrate the long-term commitment of the U.S. Government and international community to South Sudan’s stability,” she added.

Earlier on Friday, the WFP was awarded the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts at combating hunger and improving conditions for peace in conflict areas.

The Sudanese government on Thursday voiced commitment to implementing the peace deal that it recently signed with armed rebel groups.

Mohamed Hamdan Daqlu, deputy chairman of Sudan’s Sovereign Council and head of the government’s negotiating delegation, on Thursday returned to the capital Khartoum from South Sudanese capital Juba, accompanied by the representatives of the armed movements which signed the deal.

“As of today, we have folded the page of armed struggle and entered the phase of peace, construction and development,” said Daqlu during a news conference at the Khartoum airport.

Daqlu mentioned his meeting with Abdel Aziz Al-Hilu, leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM)/northern sector which did not sign the peace deal.

He said the meeting “broke the stalemate” which was hindering resumption of the peace talks, vowing to bring about peace with Al-Hilu and Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) leader Abdul-Wahid Mohamed Nur.

Meanwhile, Yasir Arman, deputy chairman of the SPLM/northern sector, led by Malik Agar, told the news conference that the visit by the delegation of the armed movements to Khartoum marked the actual beginning of the implementation of the peace deal.

On Oct. 3, the Sudanese government and the armed groups signed a final peace deal in Juba to end their armed conflicts.

The deal ends about 17 years of conflict in Sudan’s Darfur region and about nine years of war in South Kordofan and Blue Nile regions.

According to UN statistics, the Darfur conflict, which erupted in 2003, has left around 300,000 dead and 2.5 million others displaced, while the war in South Kordofan and Blue Nile has affected at least one million people since its outbreak in 2011.

The final peace deal included protocols of security arrangements, power and wealth-sharing, compensation for the displaced people and refugees, land ownership as well as realisation of justice and development.

Since October 2019, South Sudan has been mediating between the Sudanese government and the armed groups from Darfur, South Kordofan, and the Blue Nile regions.

Sudan’s Justice and Equality Movement, led by Jibril Ibrahim, the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) /Minni Minnawi faction, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM)/northern sector and opposition groups from eastern, central, and northern Sudan, took part in the talks with the government.

The SPLM/northern sector led by Abdel-Aziz Al-Hilu, did not ink the peace deal, while the SLM/Abdul-Wahid Mohamed Nur faction even refused to join the peace talks.