CEPO condemns Juba IDPs camp clash, urges gov’t to create conditions for return of displaced

JUBA, JANUARY 27^th 2023 (SUDANS POST) – South Sudan’s civil society watchdog, the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) has issued a statement condemning Wednesday and Thursday’s clash at the Juba IDP camp and called on the government to create necessary conditions for permanent return of the displaced to their homes.

This comes after communal clashes resulted in the killing of two young men on Wednesday and Thursday at the displaced persons’ camp.

In a statement, CEPO condemned the violence and urged the leadership of the camp to take responsibility and resolve any issue that might escalate the violence further.

“CEPO strongly condemn the breakout of the communal violence in Juba IDPs camp which led to the death of two young people. This is an unacceptable act and it should be stopped by the leadership of the camp immediately to avoid escalation,” the statement said.

Edmund Yakani, the executive director of CEPO, said the eruption of clashes within the POC is a sign that South Sudanese are succumbing to “dark forces” quest for violence and warned against listening to those he said do not want peace among the citizens.

“The trend of deadly violence in IDPs camp is a bad sign for our communities that they are succumbing to dark forces and are becoming more violent,” Yakani said.

“I am urging the IDPs not to allow themselves to be pushed for violence because it is time to avoid violence as means of mitigating disputes among people. This culture is bad and it should be avoided among the IDPs,” Yakani stressed.

The Community Empowerment for Progress Organization further urged “the internally displaced person to avoid culture of resolving disputes through use of violence and also calls on our government to find a permanent solution to the IDPs’ grievances so they return to their homes.”