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UN expresses concerns over violence inside IDP camps in South Sudan

November 5, 2014 (NEW YORK/JUBA) – The office of the United Nations secretary-general has expressed deep concerns about a series of violent activities which have taken place among the internally displaced persons (IDPs) in South Sudan.

Children play inside a camp for internally displaced persons from the Nuer ethnic group inside the UNMISS compound in Bor, the capital of South Sudan'sJonglei state, on 27 February 2014 (Photo: AFP/Jim Lopez)
Children play inside a camp for internally displaced persons from the Nuer ethnic group inside the UNMISS compound in Bor, the capital of South Sudan’sJonglei state, on 27 February 2014 (Photo: AFP/Jim Lopez)
In remarks during a press conference at the UN General Headquarters in New York on Wednesday, the spokesperson for the Secretary General, Stephane Dujarric, said high tensions were continuing among the IDPs who have been sheltering in camps manned by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

Dujarric cited as instances violence which occurred on Tuesday in Bentiu UNMISS camp as well as in Malakal site a week before.

“Our colleagues there report that high tensions are continuing among displaced civilians sheltering in the Mission’s sites in Bentiu and Malakal – which is in Unity and Upper Nile states respectively,” he said.

On Wednesday, UN police personnel were attacked at the Bentiu site by civilians armed with machetes, steel rods and spears, while they intervened to break up fighting among youth groups,” UN spokesperson said.
In the fighting five IDPs sustained minor injuries, he said.

Last week, there was similar violence in Jebel camp in the capital, Juba, in which at least 60 people sustained injuries, some seriously.

According to sources inside the camp, the Juba clashes which involved two major Nuer sections was ignited by adultery case involving a married woman who was impregnated by another man inside the camp while her husband was in the front line on the side of the rebel group.

Meanwhile, 2,700 IDPs who had been living in the original site outside the Jonglei state’s capital, Bor, have been relocated to a new location, Dujarric told the press in New York.

The Mission also reported that in Juba some 3,000 displaced people have arrived at the sites of Tongpiny and UN House over the past two months – mostly from Upper Nile and Unity states.

KIIR CALLS ON IDPS TO RETURN

While addressing the governors’ forum last week, president Salva Kiir defended the government’s perception of the IDPs inside UNMISS camps saying many of them were soldiers who were still holding guns in the camps.

He said the IDPs in Bentiu came out with guns from UNMISS camps and shot at the SPLA forces during the recent clashes in the oil-rich state’s capital.

He however called on them to come out from the UNMISS sanctuary and return to their residents, promising that nobody will be killed.

The South Sudanese president mockingly told the governors’ forum that the IDPs had false hope in the opposition leader Riek Machar that he would one day takeover the government and free them.

“They [IDPs] are hoping for something that they will not get. Their kingdom come, according to them, is the fall of this government and Riek Machar takes over. I want to assure them that Riek Machar will not come here by force,” Kiir told the governors.

He appealed to IDPs to leave the camps in Juba, Bor, Malakal, Bentiu and Wau and to join the free citizens in their residents.

JUBA ACCUSED OF ILL INTENTIONS

However, spokespersons for the rebel group said Kiir’s comments were indicative of seeking ways to further harm the IDPs, accusing the government of inciting violence inside the camps.

“Salva Kiir wants to kill the remnants of Nuer civilians who have survived the Juba massacres in December,” said James Gatdet Dak, spokesperson for the opposition leader, Machar.

“He is not happy seeing them surviving in UNMISS camps. This is the same reason his soldiers disguised as civilians and attacked and killed many IDPs inside Bor UNMISS camp on 17 April,” Dak said, adding that government soldiers on Friday also attacked IDPs inside Rubkotni UNMISS base in Unity state, also using them as human shield in the fight against the opposition forces.

Dak called on UNMISS to exercise maximum protection to the civilian sites as well as work hand in hand with community leaders inside the camps in order to prevent intruders from entering the protection sites.

Rebels military spokesman, Brig Lul Ruai Koang, also accused government troops of attacking IDPs camps and blamed it for “subversive activities”, alleging that government’s security agents have also been allegedly deployed to the camps in order to cause misunderstandings.

“Government troops opened fire on Nuer IDPs at UNMISS Camp 6 at Rubkona killing heavily pregnant woman, a child and wounded eight others. UNMISS force tasked with the responsibility of protecting helpless civilians failed to return fire in order to repulse the attackers,” Koang said.

He said four security operatives from president Kiir’s government were apprehended by the IDPs last week in which they admitted that they were sent for the purpose of causing insecurity inside the Jebel camp in Juba.

Koang said the activities would include smuggling in explosives with the purpose of harming the IDPs.

However, he said after government’s intervention the security personnel were released by UNMISS, but some of their official IDs were confiscated by the IDPs.

UN says over 100,000 IDPs, mostly women and children, have been sheltering in various UNMISS camps across the country.

The IDPs who are mainly from the Nuer ethnic group of the former vice-president, Riek Machar, turned armed opposition leader, have been fearing persecutions by the government’s security personnel under the leadership of president Salva Kiir who is ethnically from the Dinka – the largest and ruling elite in South Sudan.

The IDPs have been living in the camps for the last 11 months of the violent conflict which erupted in mid-December.

(ST)

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