Good People,
I am totally miserable and saddened from reports from South Sudan and the Congo. I Pray to God to perform a miracle in special way to intervene and save his people from the cruel hands of those hateful & selfish people who choose to conspire through political means and brutalize innocent lives of African people for building their wealth, simply because they avoid paying Government Taxes and are aiming at Grabbing Land of the poor Africans by force using the gun.
The pain of evil is real in Africa. Some few business individual commit to engage in official Crime, Violation and Abuse of Human Rights blatantly in open broad-day-light and they Aim to target Black Human Beings who have no means to protect self. It is immoral when Human kind in Africa are hunted and targeted in wild-chase for elimination and their flesh are fed on others. This is wickedness, it is evil and totally and completely immoral and is unacceptable in this present day and age. The world must accept that something has gone amiss and is abhorringly wrong that the world must stand together with the likes of these women in the video from South Sudan to do the needful. The voices of these women speaks for itself and it gives us reason to begin to think and engage positively to bring sanity to Africa for the sake of unity for common good in the world.
It is time that the world must unite to root out evil and wickedness that are spreading in East and Central Africa like fire. These are evils that are promoted by Museveni and Kagame and are politically manufactured and magnified by a few International Business Corporate Communities who are friends of the likes of Museveni and Kagame and before this situation spiral out of control, the world should unite to stop this wicked evil from spreading. The pain of raping women and opening their womb killing the unborn should be summarily condemned by all good people of the world.
I believe in my heart that, things can be done differently and be improved. It is why I champion for "Africa Forward" where things are planned to be done differently through Public Private Partnership between US/Africa and where, Unity for common good, Peace and Harmony shall be our guiding principle in Social Welfare Progressive Development that underline our basic needs for shared needs of "Giving and Taking" in a fair and favorable exchange of goods and services and where caring for one another in LOVE shall be our goal.
It is because, Love is peaceful, love unites and Love cares. Love is not cruel, love is not brutal, and those is in love do not kill carelessly or destroy lives or means for livelihood and survival of others.
May God have Mercy and save his people from those immoral and hateful beings.
Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Nhial Chuol Tut <nhial2005@gmail.com>
To: Judy Miriga <jbatec@yahoo.com>
Sent: Sunday, July 27, 2014 3:28 PM
Subject: Fwd: SPLM WOMEN CONDEMN SALVA KIIR FOR HYPOCRISY
From: Nhial Chuol Tut <nhial2005@gmail.com>
To: Judy Miriga <jbatec@yahoo.com>
Sent: Sunday, July 27, 2014 3:28 PM
Subject: Fwd: SPLM WOMEN CONDEMN SALVA KIIR FOR HYPOCRISY
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Nhial Chuol Tut <nhial2005@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Jun 4, 2014 at 3:23 PM
Subject: SPLM WOMEN CONDEMN SALVA KIIR FOR HYPOCRISY
And also South Sudanese women group held a press conference asking salva kiir to resign. Here is the youtube video of their press conference.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFhXkaTXaxU&feature
Hon. Duer Tut Duer defected and Joint SPLM- in-opposition today in Addis Ababa, as many of you may know Hon. Duer Tut Duer is number three in SPLM general Secretary after Ann Itto.
And also South Sudanese women group held a press conference asking salva kiir to resign. Here is the youtube video of their press conference.
From: Nhial Chuol Tut <nhial2005@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Jun 4, 2014 at 3:23 PM
Subject: SPLM WOMEN CONDEMN SALVA KIIR FOR HYPOCRISY
Dear all,
Hon. Duer Tut Duer defected and Joint SPLM- in-opposition today in Addis Ababa, as many of you may know Hon. Duer Tut Duer is number three in SPLM general Secretary after Ann Itto. SPLM WOMEN CONDEMN SALVA KIIR FOR HYPOCRISY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFhXkaTXaxU&feature
SPLM WOMEN CONDEMN SALVA KIIR FOR HYPOCRISY.
MAURITIUS ODUOR
The problem of the Luo started in 1885, following the partition of Africa at the Berlin Conference after which African lands were partitioned and handed out to colonial powers. Luoland was cut into pièces and placed under colonial occupation. When the colonial powers left Africa from around the late 1950s and early sixties, black colonial powers took
Well done ladies keep the good work up.
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Stream
Silva Kiir a very useless man.
Reply
South Sudanese women are telling the truth about crime being committed by Salfa Kirr
Thank you for the job well done. we really want to educate the world that Salva Kiir is the one who cook-up his own coup. If it is a coup, what involves women, children and elderly people into a coup? Salva Kiir lost his legitimacy to remain as a president of Republic of South Sudan.
Salva is a criminal, dictator, uneducated ,liar .he must step Down to give peace a chance. He caused ROSS division. The blood shed for the last 6 months and still continue is caused by him from the day his army attacked Former Vice president compound and killed over 2,000 civilians within 2days. Dr Riek flet for his life that does not make him a rebel. fighting back was self protection not a revenge killing. South Sudan people need to unite & remove Salva , elect new leader of their choice
Whoever still believes that Salva Kiir is not the root cause of the carnage South Sudan sits in today,must find a psychiatrist immediately.Three years ago all the talk was about business opportunities one could find in South Sudan an the future looked brighter than bright.Almost all Africans i met in Europe wanted one thing, and that was to go and do business in that virgin economic territory.Fast forward to 2014 and Somalia is a far better place for most people.Reason for all these: primitive greed for power.
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Dr. Riek Machar explains how Uganda participated in South Sudan's Coup
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4zr2h_2hxo
Published on Jun 7, 2014
Dr. Riek Machar explains how Uganda participated in South Sudan's Coup Watch KTN Live http://www.ktnkenya.tv/live
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Dr. Riek Machar on South Sudan Crisis, Uganda & Salva Kiir
Dr. Riek Machar on South Sudan Crisis, Uganda & Salva Kiir Published on Jun 7, 2014
During his brief visit to Kenya, Dr Riek Machar spoke to KTN's Joy Doreen Biira on the current South Sudan Crisis, the peace talks and why he wants Ugandan forces out of the world's youngest nationWatch KTN Live http://www.ktnkenya.tv/live
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Breaking News - Riek Machar explain the talk he had with secretary of state John Kerry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52vz3WYFaPQ Published on May 4, 2014
South Sudan - Riek Machar Revealed the phone conversation he had with Secretary of State John Kerry
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Malual Community Association in Diaspora Thanks and Congratulates Former Ambassador Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth
Former Ambassador to the U.S. /UN Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth (Center), from left in a red tie General Chaiyot Manyang, on the right no tie, Brig. General Khor Chuol Giet, far right Former Maiwut Commissioner Hon. Gatdet Bol, and far left Comrade Duop Abshiry D. Bichiok [File photo].
Press StatementFrom: Malual Community Association in the U.S., Canada, and Australia
Date: July 1, 2014
July 4, 2014 (SSNA) -- The Malual Community Association's Technical Committee, Members, Elders, and its Religious Leaders are here to thank and congratulate Former Ambassador to the United States of America Amb. Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth for his bold and courageous decision to join SPLM/A-in Opposition-Resistance movement led by Former VP of f the Government of the Republic of South Sudan Dr. Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon. Ambassador Gatkuoth declared joining the SPLM/A-in Opposition on June 30, 2014 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. On the day of his declaration to the opposition in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, stand beside him were two great Generals from Greater Upper Nile, General Chaiyot Manyang Wur and Brigadier General Khor Chuol Giet. This was a historic movement for the Greater Malual Community, Upper Nile, and South Sudanese people in general who have been terrorized and victimized by President Salva Kiir Mayardit's regime during the wake of South Sudan crisis.
The current crisis in South Sudan which President Salva Kiir himself instigated on December 15, 2013, by attempting to eliminates Dr. Riek Machar and his colleagues from South Sudan's Political scene, was a lack of political will and a failure of leadership. As a result, it tragically plunged the whole country into state of chaos. By all counts, President Kiir miserably failed the country since he assumed the leadership of SPLM party and right upon by the time he led the self-government which its mandates brought by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed in 2005 between the government in Khartoum and the SPLM/A. South Sudan gained her independence on July 9, 2011, as a result of overwhelming Referendum vote of 98% by South Sudanese people. The death of charismatic Leader, Dr. John Garang De Mabior, left Salva Kiir Mayardit not knowing what he should do to transform the country politically, economically, and socially. His failure to transform the country as a result, decided to divide the country regionally and ethnically to continue hold on power in a form of a dictatorship.
Ezekiel Gatkuoth was detained for 130 days along with his SPLM Colleagues and Political Leaders, later known as G-11 with the exception of two home arrests and three leaders who escaped and ran for their dear lives. The G-11 and the other 5 members, namely Pagan Amum Okiech, Deng Alor Kuol, John Luk Jok, Kosti Manibe Ngai, Gen. Oyay Deng Ajak, Gen. Dr. Majak D'Agoot, Gen. Madut Biar Yel, Gen. Gier Chang Aluong, Governor Chol Tong Mayay, Dr. Cirino Hiteng Ofuho, and Amb. Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth together with Dr. Riek Machar Teny, Madame Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, Taban Deng Gai, Dr. Peter Adwok Nyaba and Alfred Lado Gore. The 12 detained were arrested a day after President Kiir ordered his presidential guards commander Marial Chanuong to disarmed Nuer presidential guards in the Tiger Battalion at Gudele Barrack.
Ambassador Ezekiel Gatkuoth was detained together with his Comrades on December 16th 2013 a day after a false Coup D'état' was announced by President Kiir, and they were remained in detention until April 24th, 2014. Later on, 7 were released on bail, and the 4 remained in detention were dragged to Kiir's Kangaroo court, charged with treason and many other charges, all carrying a death sentence as it was announced on South Sudan National TV by the current Government of South Sudan spoke person and Minister of Information Micheal Makuei Lueth. When asked what is going to happen to the arrested? "The charges carrying Life in prison, or a death by hanging" said, minister Lueth.
As we know what we know now, the whole world denounced there was no Coup D'état' attempted by the SPLM/A leaders. An estimated 10,000 killed in Juba and other affected areas now estimated to be 50,000 killed, and 1.5 million of people internally and externally displaced. The world and the regional leaders have tried their best to restore peace and stability in the country by approaching the two warring parties to come to the table and result their differences. On January 23, 2014, cessation of hostilities was signed. Another document was signed on May 9, 2014 by President Kiir himself and Dr. Machar the leader of the SPLM/A-in opposition. But, President Kiir still expanding the war, attacking opposition positions in a hope that he will get a better deal in the negotiation table. Expanding the war is delaying tactics for Kiir and his regime to continue waging war which he is not going to win militarily. Kiir and his regime thinking that they are waging the war against the SPLM/A-In-Opposition but he is killing innocent civilians who are not interested in his pursued of senseless war.
As a community among South Sudanese Communities, we call on all peace loving South Sudanese communities as a group or individually to take the example that was taken by our Former Ambassador to the United States, Comrade Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth to join brothers and sisters in the SPLM/A-in Opposition and join hands to denounce President Kiir and ask him to step aside and give peace a chance. For question or concern, please contact below contact persons.
Faithfully Submitted,
Malual Community Technical Committee:
Nyith Lul Bukjiok, Contact: nlbukjiok@yahoo.com
David Ruei Gatkuoth, Contact: sscincus@yahoo.com
Moses H. Deng Lul, Contact: mdlul@hotmail.com
Daniel Bichiok Dup, Contact: danielbichiok@yahoo.ca
Kuk Tong Yik Bol, contact: Kukbol@hotmail.com
Ghey Christian Network for Peace & Unity
Joseph W. Khek, GCNPU Chair, Contact: Up on request
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"UN human rights report: Central Equatoria
UN human rights report: Central Equatoria
JUBA (13 May.)
Witness testimonies and other evidence of human rights violations have been gathered by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and compiled into a human rights report, published 8 May 2014.
The report covers the period since 15 December 2013 and was prepared by the peacekeeping mission's Human Rights Division (HRD).
Its publication follows an earlier interim rights report released on 21 February 2014. This report is based primarily on over 900 interviews with victims and witnesses, among others,
Radio Tamazuj is publishing parts of the report section by section. Here is presented the section of the report on human rights abuses in Central Equatoria State.
Central Equatoria State
52. On the evening of 15 December, heavy gunfire was heard throughout the capital of Juba, Central Euqatoria State. In the early morning of 16 December, there was fighting in the SPLA barracks at Bilpam and the SPLA armoury in the Newsite neighbourhood.
The faction of the Presidential Guard loyal to the Government defeated the defecting troops loyal to Mr. Machar in the barracks and, as the latter retreated, the former chased them through civilian neighbourhoods, shooting at them on the way.
General confusion, and then panic, was reported as civilians saw troops moving into their communities.
53. Many soldiers began conducting house-to-house searches, killing, looting, and conducting arbitrary arrests. Corroborated witness accounts indicate that Nuer civilians were targeted and gross violations of human rights and humanitarian law were committed in the process.
The violence, which spread widely in matter of hours, subsided after three days. Moreover, due to the devastation and lasting fear generated by the violence, tens of thousands of civilians remain in IDPs sites, too afraid to return home.
By 17 April, over 79,000 people were displaced in Central Equatoria State and by 22 April, over 32,000 civilians were seeking protection in UNMISS PoC sites in Juba.
54. The following section provides a description of some of the humanitarian law and human rights violations that occurred with the initial outbreak of violence in Juba; a mass killing in a Juba neighbourhood; an attack on the home of Mr. Machar; and restrictions on freedom of expression that have been imposed in the context of the conflict.
Juba, 16-18 December
55. After fighting in the barracks, and with the pro-Machar defecting troops of the SPLA defeated and retreating from Juba, soldiers in SPLA uniforms swarmed into neighbourhoods in Juba. The first neighbourhoods affected were those close to military installations, namely Giada and Bilpam barracks. The attacks then spread across Juba.
56. Numerous witnesses who spoke to the HRD told consistent stories of house-to-house searches in multiple neighbourhoods across Juba, notably Jebel, Newsite, Mia Saba, Lologo, Khor William, Gudele, Eden, and Mangaten.
These neighbourhoods are spread across Juba and cover large areas of the city: Jebel in the southwest; Mia Saba in the northern, central city; Lologo and Khor William near the southeast; and Newsite in the north. Many, such as Mia Saba and Newsite, are known as predominantly Nuer residential areas.
Many also border on military barracks, including Jebel which is near the Giada barracks; Lologo near Khor William; and Newsite which is adjacent to the SPLA Headquarters at Bilpam and an SPLA armoury.
57. Security forces killed unarmed civilians, detained and otherwise took people away, destroyed homes, and stole valuables. Most incidents allegedly occurred between 15 and18 December, although the vast majority of incidents took place on 16 December.
Over the course of these few days, whole neighbourhoods were emptied. By 18 December, 8,500 people sought shelter overnight at UNMISS Tomping; a further 8,000 sought shelter at the UN House compound. Thousands also sought refuge in other locations, such as churches.
Dead bodies were seen across the city, in Jebel, Munuki, Lologo, Newsite, Mia Saba, Tomping, Khor William, Gudele, Eden, Mangaten, and the Juba University area.
Photographs received by the HRD support these reports. Reportedly, bodies were taken, in some cases by truck, to one or more unknown disposal sites, likely between 16 and 19 December. The Government has informed UNMISS that it recorded some burials in Juba.
58. According to sources, security forces targeted men of Nuer ethnicity. Several sources relayed how Nuers were identified by facial markings; if an individual was not identifiable by facial markings, security forces reportedly questioned them in the Dinka language or asked about their ethnicity.
If a person questioned in this way admitted to being Nuer, could not speak Dinka, or was able to speak Nuer, that person would be shot. Several Nuer survivors reported that they believe their lives were spared because they could speak other languages such as Anyuak or Dinka or because they claimed to be members of non-Nuer ethnic groups.
59. The perpetrators were members of the security forces, mostly armed and in uniform. Although the majority of allegations implicate the SPLA and the SSNPS, other security forces were reportedly involved, including the National Security Service (NSS), the Wildlife Service, the NPSSS, and even the Fire Brigade.
In many cases, it was reported that members of the security forces spoke the Dinka language or bore identifying facial marks specific to the Dinka ethnicity.
60. From various accounts, security forces entered neighbourhoods on foot, in official vehicles, and/or in tanks. Several sources reported that security forces ran over homes with the tanks. Reportedly, in some cases the security forces or even neighbours announced in Arabic that people should come out of their homes.
At least one witness with some knowledge of the Dinka language indicated that in his area, an individual called out in the Dinka language that Dinkas should not be concerned as Nuers were the ones being sought.
61. While each individual witness account could not be verified due to a variety of factors, the general pattern of events described by witnesses is credible due to the large number of reports received, the consistent nature of the reports, as well as the presence of additional corroborating information.
62. In the Mangaten neighbourhood, for instance, early in the morning on 16 December, the fighting was reportedly very intense. A Nuer man decided to leave his home and make his way to Mia Saba, to escape the fighting. He walked with a group of about 300 or 400 other Nuer for about an hour.
The fighting followed them. The witness then walked about an hour and a half to a relative's home in Gudele, after hearing it was still safe. Only a few hours after arriving, he heard gunshots.
A woman who was went to look at what was happening in the street reported back that "the Dinka police are killing Nuer". The witness as well as others in the house ran, but were caught by police and detained for several days before escaping.
63. In Newsite, on 16 December, several witnesses reported that, not long after the Nuer soldiers were defeated at the SPLA armoury, soldiers in uniforms and speaking the Dinka language entered Newsite in big numbers in tanks and by foot.
One witness reported that, after soldiers entered Newsite, 18 men were ordered to make a line and were tied together with rope. They were directed to walk for about 15 minutes until they reached a location with several tukuls (thatched huts).
As many as 200 Nuer men were detained in these tukuls and subsequently taken in groups to be interrogated in the Dinka language, or in Arabic if they could not speak Dinka. In a few cases, following the interrogation, men would be returned to the tukuls; in the majority of cases they did not.
Gunshots could be heard throughout the night.
Those who remained the next morning were reportedly released into the custody of NSS personnel and thereafter detained and interrogated for some days. The approximately eight men who survived reportedly either could speak Dinka or spoke only English. None of the survivors had Nuer facial markings.
64. In Khor William, on 16 December, as a witness was trying to escape the neighbourhood, he was stopped by SPLA at a checkpoint and told to sit down with approximately ten other Nuer men. Three of the men were shot; the remaining men were taken to an SPLA barracks and questioned for about six hours before being released.
On 17 December, a Nuer witness reported that after being arrested on the street by SPLA soldiers in Khor Romla, near the Khor William area, he was detained along with 200 Nuer males, both soldiers and civilians and including some children, in containers in a factory in Jebel Kujur area. Many of the men were released and transported to the UNMISS PoC area on 18 December after being interrogated by two senior SPLA officers.
65. In Mia Saba, on 16 December, around 14:00, one man saw a group of security forces, mostly comprising SPLA soldiers but with some SSNPS, enter the neighbourhood.
He reports that they were organized "in big groups" and were "collecting" Nuer civilians from the street and from houses and tying their hands behind their backs to take them on foot to other locations. He saw three lines of civilians tied together with ropes and clothes; in one line, there were between 10 and 20 people.
66. Also in Mia Saba, several witnesses report that, on 16 December, they were taken from their houses by Dinka SPLA in a group of around 40 Nuer men, tied together with bed sheets and forced to walk to the Newsite cemetery.
Along the way, a witness saw the soldiers bringing different men being taken from their homes. Smaller groups of between four and eight men were shot dead as they walked. One witness reported that, every time the group came across a dead SPLA soldier, they killed four or five men from the group.
This reportedly took place between two and three times during the walk. Around 20 of those who reached the cemetery were then shot. Those who were not shot were detained for three days and then released.
67. In Tomping, on 16 December, a witness reported that about 40 or 50 SPLA soldiers wearing uniforms arrived carrying heavy weaponry, including RPGs and AK-47s. They told everyone to come out of their houses, speaking in Dinka.
Seven soldiers entered his house, ordered him outside and made him kneel on the ground. He recognized some of the soldiers as his neighbours. The witness was ordered to give the soldiers his car keys and money. The soldiers then told him to find his way to UNMISS or they would kill him.
68. In Lologo, on the afternoon of 16 December, a witness reports that a group of five SPLA soldiers forcefully entered his house. He ran away, although his housemates were left behind. He heard several gunshots as he ran.
While on the way, he saw SPLA soldiers raiding houses and shooting civilians. According to the witness, "Nuer were being killed like chickens."
69. Credible allegations have been received that, after people fled their homes in search of safety, SPLA or other security forces have occupied them. This is particularly acute in areas targeted in the initial searches. This has been acknowledged by several local officials, including in the security forces, to UNMISS.
Mass killing in Gudele
70. One incident that has been well documented by the HRD illustrates the nature and the scope of the violence in Juba. It involves the killing of at least 300 Nuer men in the Gudele neighbourhood on 16 December.
71. According to numerous accounts received by HRD, including those of survivors of the incident, beginning on the morning of 16 December, until the afternoon, Nuer men from Gudele were rounded up by various members of security forces. One victim was at home with several relatives who had fled to Gudele, believing it was safe from the fighting in Newsite and Mia Saba. Around mid-day, police came to the home and took everyone from the house. One person who tried to resist was shot.
72. In many reported instances, members of the security forces seemed to know which houses were occupied by Nuer families following discussion with Dinka neighbours; in some instances, the Dinka members of the security forces were neighbours of the Nuers they targeted.
The perpetrators were reportedly primarily from the SPLA and the SSNPS, although some victim testimonies also implicate the NSS, the Wildlife Service, and the Fire Brigade. Many of the perpetrators were recognizable to witnesses as members of the Dinka ethnicity.
73. Several witnesses reported that Nuer men were ordered to come out of their houses and stand in a line, with women specifically left behind. Individuals who resisted were shot. Their clothes were tied together and they were ordered to raise their hands as if surrendering. They were ordered to start walking.
Several witnesses reported that Dinka community members insulted them as they walked by. Many witnesses had all of their valuables, such as money and identification documents, taken from them. One victim stated that Gudele road was closed to traffic and all the people walking in the street were being stopped and questioned about their ethnicity.
74. According to information gathered from various reliable sources, at least 300 Nuer men, possibly up to 450, were rounded up in this way. They were brought to a building nearby, across from the Lou Clinic, which the vast majority of witnesses referred to as a police station.
The facility is, according to sources, located in a building formerly used by the Sudan Armed Forces which now houses the SPLA, SSNPS, and Auxiliary police. This building apparently functions as a centre for joint military/police operations.
One witness reported that there were many dead bodies on the street around the facility. Another victim ran to the police station, fleeing the house-to-house searches in Gudele, thinking that the police would protect him. Once there, the victim's friends were shot, and he was detained.
75. The men were ordered into a small room in the building with several windows. Several witnesses reported that boys were among the crowd. All were Nuer.
One victim reported that some of the men and boys in the room had been brought not only from Gudele, but from other neighbourhoods such as Newsite, Mangaten, and Mia Saba. When some of the men asked why they had been detained, they were reportedly informed that it was because they were Nuer.
76. The door and windows were then locked and the men were left in the room for several hours. It was hot and difficult to breathe. One witness indicated that it was "unbearable". Several men reportedly died of suffocation.
77. At around 20:00 hours, unknown individuals shot through the windows and door into the group of men in the room. According to more than one account, this took place several times throughout the night, for several minutes each time.
After the shooting, individuals in uniform went inside the room with torches to check if anyone was still alive; those found alive were shot again or killed with knives. The vast majority of men in the room were killed. A small number of men were reportedly saved by dead bodies that fell on them, hiding them and providing a shield.
78. A few of these survivors escaped. Others were reportedly released by members of security forces, with various witnesses indicating that it was the SPLA, SSNPS, or the NSS who discovered their presence.
Survivors were taken to hospital in some cases, sometime between 17 and 18 December. It is assessed that at least 12 men survived the incident. The SSNPS has informed UNMISS that it is investigating this incident.
Attack on the residence of Riek Machar
79. On 17 December, the Juba residence of Mr. Machar in the Hai Amarat neighbourhood was reportedly attacked. The former Vice-President departed Juba in the early hours of 16 December. Several members of his security detail, at least 35, including the SPLA Tiger Division and NSS personnel, remained at the residence.
80. Civilians, including women and children, were also at the residence and according to one witness, could have been as many as 60, while others provided lower numbers. Some civilians were brought there by soldiers on 16 December, although it is unclear whether it was for protection or under coercion.
One interviewee indicated that Nuer civilians who arrived in the compound were running from the shooting and targeting of Nuer in other areas in the city, thinking that the residence of Mr. Machar would be a safe place to stay.
81. Several witnesses noted that the security personnel inside the residence were told to disarm by SPLA from the Tiger Division who had deployed outside the perimeter of the residence.
One witness indicated that there were approximately 200 or 250 soldiers. The order was complied with and, as indicated by some interviewees, all those inside the residential compound, both security personnel and civilians, were thereafter not allowed to leave the compound
82. The following morning, a significant number of security forces surrounded the compound. At approximately 09:00, the compound was attacked by a large group of heavily armed security forces. Five sources stated that the attackers were a mix of security forces, including SPLA, SSNPS, Wildlife Service, and the SPLA Tiger Division.
Most of the interviewees stated that they saw at least two tanks as well as pick-up trucks mounted with machine guns and other heavy weaponry. At least one source reported that the tanks broke through the walls of the compound.
83. Multiple sources reported that the attacking security forces shot at unarmed individuals. While they scattered in different directions, it is reported that at least five of the unarmed soldiers were killed and at least five more wounded. One source reported that the security forces shot at the residence where civilians were staying.
The shooting reportedly went on for hours and stopped sometime between 13:00 and 15:00 hours when, according to witnesses, NSS personnel arrived. The injured were taken to the Juba Teaching Hospital while other civilians and security personnel were arrested and taken to different locations. Several civilians, including women and children, were reportedly killed although the HRD has not been able to establish an exact number.
Violations of freedom of expression and censorship of the press
84. In the months prior to the outbreak of conflict, the climate for freedom of expression in South Sudan had progressively worsened. With the outbreak of violence on 15 December, a sharp deterioration was evident.
In mid-January, the HRD was informed of dozens of incidents involving the illegal arrest, detention, intimidation, harassment, and expulsion of national and foreign journalists, as well as the surveillance and censorship of media houses.
Dozens of human rights defenders and local human rights organisations also reported that they were being threatened and that their property had been looted. One was forced to shut down its operations and leave the country.
85. The Juba Monitor's distribution was temporarily suspended in February and copies of the newspaper were confiscated by NSS personnel several times. On 16 January, for example, copies were reportedly confiscated after the publication of an article referring to the 2015 elections.
On 24 March, copies were reportedly confiscated at the Juba airport after arriving from Khartoum where they had been printed, reportedly because the newspaper was believed to contain statements critical of the Government. A staff member was ordered to follow NSS personnel to their offices, where the papers were held for about three hours before being released after review.
The next day, the HRD was informed that the NSS had told media houses that newspapers would be closed if they published articles that were condemnatory of the Government or written by four identified opinion writers who are considered to be critical.
86. By mid-February, sources reported that only two radio stations in Juba were broadcasting their usual programming due to surveillance and intimidation by NSS personnel.
On 3 March, the Arabic- language newspaper Al-Maghar Asiysia was reportedly suspended by the Ministry of Information indefinitely on the grounds that it had published false information, failed to comply with Government policy, and covered stories on the rebels. Legal efforts to revoke the suspension have apparently not been successful to date.
87. On 11 March, numerous media outlets reported that the Minister of Information had warned journalists in a telephone conversation not to broadcast or publish interviews with armed opposition leaders in South Sudanese media.
He added that this constituted 'subversive activity' and 'an offence', although he did not cite a specific legal provision to substantiate the assertion. The measure seems to have been applied retroactively.
On 13 March, an international correspondent was questioned and briefly detained by NSS for an interview he had conducted with Mr. Machar on 9 February. He was released after a few hours following pressure from the embassy of the country of his nationality.
Related:
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MAY 19, 2014
By Skye Wheeler - Human Right Watch
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Civilians flee from renewed attacks on Bentiu, South Sudan on April 20, 2014.© 2014 Reuters
"It's like nothing before," one woman who saw her sister-in-law gang raped told us. She is just one of many women who have said they had been raped - or witnessed rape - as they fled an area of South Sudan where government forces and their proxy Darfuri rebel group had burned and pillaged villages and attacked civilians.
South Sudan's conflict has been dominated not so much by fierce battles between government and opposition forces, as by brutal attacks on civilians, often because of their ethnicity. Starting with round-ups and a massacre of ethnic Nuer in Juba, the conflict has spiraled into a series of revenge and counter-attacks on ethnic Dinka, Nuer, and other communities, plunging the country into a human rights and humanitarian crisis. As donors meet on May 20 to try to address needs and avoid further catastrophe, they should also ensure funding is directed to address an under-acknowledged dimension of the conflict: rape and sexual violence.
Early in the conflict, government soldiers in Juba, the capital, targeted Nuer women. Witnesses told us that one group of soldiers gang raped one woman and that others abused another woman and abducted three others, who are still missing. Another woman said that soldiers threw stones at the motorbike she was riding, causing it to fall. Then four of them dragged her into a car, drove to another part of town and raped her.
Fighting forces have killed thousands, along with the rapes and pillaging, forcing 1.3 million people out of their homes. Thousands have run to hard-to-reach areas, where many face drastic food shortages. People have been unable to plant crops and the country faces famine.
About 86,000 people are still in crowded UN bases, but they don't always provide safe haven for women and girls. Within the camps on these bases, overcrowding and poor lighting create conditions that can increase the risk of sexual violence. Reports of harassment have been increasing over the months.
Aid workers have reported cases of rape and sexual harassment immediately outside of the UN bases, where government security forces in the towns of Bentiu, Bor and Juba have continued to bully, arrest and shoot at displaced Nuer, even during periods of relative calm. Women leaving camps to collect firewood or grind their food have been subjected to sexual violence and harassment. UN peacekeepers should increase their patrols around the camps and in markets and main roads the displaced people use, with special attention to preventing sexual assault.
Rape carries with it enormous stigma in South Sudan and has always been under-reported. A report by the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) released this month has helped shed light on the situation by documenting over 80 cases, by both opposition and government forces.
In Juba, the UN reported, three girls were gang-raped by soldiers who broke into their home. Opposition soldiers in Upper Nile captured women, held them for many days in a house, and raped them. The report documents a horrific case, among many others, in which soldiers and members of the Darfuri rebel group, the Justice and Equality Movement, raped women and then urinated into the victims' mouths.
Vengeful opposition forces, in an attack on the Unity state capital, Bentiu, attacked women and used a local radio station to incite sexual violence. Amnesty International in a new report has also documented cases of rape in Juba and Malakal and in Unity state.
Vengeful opposition forces, in an attack on the Unity state capital, Bentiu, attacked women and used a local radio station to incite sexual violence. Amnesty International in a new report has also documented cases of rape in Juba and Malakal and in Unity state.
Both parties to the conflict should hold abusive forces to account and put an end to these crimes of sexual violence. Medical, psychosocial and counseling services for survivors of sexual violence were sparse to begin with in South Sudan. In four major towns, fighting forces have targeted the main hospitals and offices of humanitarian agencies. Numerous other medical facilities across the conflict area have been pillaged or burned, reducing already very limited services.
Medical staff and humanitarian agencies desperately need funds to scale up support for rape survivors. Community groups should be funded to work with men and women to reduce the stigma that surrounds rape and collect evidence of cases of sexual violence, to be able to refer survivors to services and with an eye to providing accountability. Donors at Oslo should ensure support flows to meet these critical needs.
Displacement has brought suffering of many kinds to South Sudan's women and girls, and sexual assault only adds to their torment. Funders have an opportunity to ensure support for services for the survivors of these attacks in locations such as the UN bases. They should take this opportunity also to try to reduce the stigma of rape and the abusive power of men with guns over South Sudanese women and girls.
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