South Sudan politicians inciting ethnic violence for political gains – US diplomat

JUBA – A United States diplomat has said on Sunday that political actors he didn’t name in South Sudan, which has just marked ten years of independence, are deliberately inciting underlying ethnic violence and community antagonism for political gains.

The United Nations and other international human rights organizations have documented an increase in inter-communal violence in several states across the country with Warrap, Unity, Lakes, Jonglei, and Northern Bahr el-Ghazal states, being hotspots.

Prominent causes of the violence include, but not limited to cattle raiding, boundary disputes between communities, and revenge killings coupling with mounting intercommunal hatred among some tribes.

Speaking to reporters during a press conference in Juba on Sunday, Larry André, United States Chargé d’Affaires in Juba, said solutions are urgently required, but South Sudan’s government has yet to address these conflicts effectively.

“In other cases, there is political manipulation and political mobilization that involves encouraging violence and resorting to violence,” the top United States diplomat in South Sudan told reporters.

“We have looked at each case and we see mixes of cases and in some instances, it is violent criminal groups taking advantage of the lack of security. In some instances, it is traditional rivalries among communities except now that people have access to weapons,” André added.

The United States diplomat noted that one of the many priorities for the country’s unity government should be finding meaningful and durable solutions to these deadly cycles of violence.

“In any case, it is the first duty of any government to protect its citizens that is job number one for any government and that is what we are consistently calling for,” he said.

Uphold promises of “no return to war”

Endre Stiansen, Norwegian Envoy to South Sudan urged President Salva Kiir to put into action his promise of not returning the country to war.

“Putting the reality behind the very good sentiment of the leaders, we hear and embrace those words, let see those words turning into action by implementing the peace an agreement,” Stiansen added.

South Sudan gained its independence from Sudan in July 2011. But just two years later, the world’s youngest country plunged into a devastating civil war that has claimed almost 400,000 lives and displaced four million people, according to international organizations.

Despite a 2018 ceasefire between Kiir and his rival Riek Machar who now serves as the first vice president, the country remains in the grip of political instability, economic ruin, and a deep hunger crisis.

Robert Fairweather, the British special envoy reiterated the international community’s readiness together with the people of South Sudan to hold the leaders of the country accountable for their actions.

“There is hope that South Sudanese will never again suffer from politician violence and we hope action can be taken to address the issues of communal violence and criminality,” Fairweather said.