Activist criticizes Jonglei deputy governor over calls for return of cattle herders

JUBA – An activist in South Sudan’s Jonglei state has criticized the call made by the deputy governor of Jonglei state for cattle herders to return home from Eastern Equatoria state where violence has been raging between host community and the pastoralists.

Deputy governor Jacob Akech Dengdit last week urged pastoralists in Eastern Equatoria state to return home to avoid creating conflicts with the host communities there.

“We need to help implement the degree made by the president of the republic of South Sudan that cattle should return back to their home state and peacefully resettle in their home state, we all know that in our culture cattle are not only for the people who own, them but they are for everyone,” Jacob said.

The deputy governor further called on youth to help county commissioners in enforcing the order made by the president.

However, Bol Deng Bol, chairperson of Jonglei civil society network, criticized the deputy governor and cited the rampant insecurity in the state that makes it unsafe for the herders and the cattle keepers.

Bol pointed out that the state government should not force cattle keepers to return home when it has failed to normalize the security situation in the state.

“It should be understood that the pastoralists in question left their kraals and pastures and migrated in their thousands to Central and Eastern Equatoria States because of the 2020-2021 devastating floods,” he said.

“This very disaster claimed human lives, livestock and properties, a phenomenon where the government did less or nothing at all to mitigate its impacts back then,” he said.

Bol appealed to the state government to resettle the cattle herders in Mangala of Central Equatoria until security situation increase in Jonglei.

“It is my appeal that, instead of forcing the herders to return to Jonglei state, yet the situation on the ground is still uncertain (floods and insecurity), the government should facilitate resettling them in Mangalla IDP camp of Central Equatoria State until such a time when the prevailing circumstances improve in most parts of Jonglei State,” he said.

Bol further stressed that protection of the civil population is the sole responsibility of the government.

“The issue of security is still resting in the shoulders of the government, it is a challenge they should be the one accountable for, nobody can say the civil population should take the issue of the insecurity in their hands, then that is indirectly calling for anarchy in the state,” he added.

Tensions between farmers in Eastern Equatoria state and cattle keepers from Jonglei state have been high over accusation of crops destruction by cows and cattle theft.

The tensions prompted President Kiir to ordered forceful return of cattle from the entire Equatoria region last year, but several herders of cattle declined to leave Equatoria, citing lack of security back in their respective states.