JUBA – South Sudan government has announced that its police authorities are unable to disarm the heavily armed youth of Gelweng in the country’s Lakes state saying it has become difficult for the government to intervene to restore security in the restive Bahr el Ghazal region state.
Since the signing of the revitalized peace agreement in 2018, United Nations and other international agencies have reported rise in ethnic and sub-national violence, amid decline in political conflicts in the country with Lakes state, Warrap and Jonglei being hot spots for that kind of violence.
Last year, a government attempt to disarm Gelweng youth in Warrap state sparked violence that resulted in the killing of more than two-hundred (200) people, mostly members of the country’s South Sudan People’s Defense Force (SSPDF) and police forces.
The government then decided to halt the disarmament campaign and resort to embark on peaceful disarmament that include asking civilians in the area to peacefully hand over their guns to the government, which has been rejected by the civilians who said they don’t have confidence in the promised protection of the government from other armed youth in other states such as Unity.
Speaking in an interview quoted by the Juba-based Eye Radio, Lakes state police spokesman Captain Mabor Makuac, said the police hasn’t succeeded in its attempt to disarm the armed youth revealing that the youth are heavily armed more than the government.
“The youth are currently heavily armed, more than the police themselves. They are more powerful than the police. Police cannot arrest them,” Makuac said.
