Advocacy group urges Washington to withhold assistance to South Sudan
over rights abuses
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July 11, 2013 (WASHINGTON) – Refugees International (RI), a Washington
based international advocacy group for lifesaving assistance and
protection for displaced people, has urged the American administration
to withhold assistance to the government of South Sudan over alleged
human rights abuses by its army (SPLA) in Jonglei state.
JPEG - 24.9 kb
Internally displaced people are seen in Pibor January 12, 2012. (Reuters)
The report points out that widespread human rights violations, mainly
attacks on civilians in Pibor county and denial of humanitarian access
to the affected civilians are committed by the SPLA which has launched
a military offensive since February against rebels led by David Yau
Yau.
"The U.S. government should withhold a portion of its foreign
assistance to South Sudan until the [US] Secretary of State certifies
that the government has made progress toward halting SPLA human rights
abuses in Jonglei", reads a report released on Thursday by Refugees
International.
RI points out that ignoring these atrocities would not be helpful for
the future of democracy in the two-year-old nation, instead it says
Washington, which the largest donor to South Sudan, and the United
Nations have the leverage and duty to put pressure on Juba to curb
human rights abuses.
The group calls on the US Administration to withhold a portion of its
non-emergency foreign assistance until the Secretary of State
certifies that Juba government has made progress on halting human
rights abuses by its regular army in Jonglei state.
The report, which also calls on the UN Security Council to condemn
these abuses, says that “for fiscal year 2014, the Obama
Administration is seeking $280 million in Economic Support Funds to
South Sudan but Refugee International urges the US government not to
give South Sudan the expected level of funding unless the country
stops the rights abuses by its army in Jonglei".
Presenting the outcome of a research conducted last May in Jonglei to
assess the humanitarian and human rights situation there, RI says they
found that the SPLA was involved in widespread rights abuses ranging
from the killing of civilians, burning of homes in Pibor town, looting
of property and denying aid group access to the needy.
"The abuses by government forces have been well documented by
organisations with operations in Pibor County. On January 27,
following a clash with a rebel faction affiliated with David Yau Yau,
SPLA soldiers burned down 110 homes in Pibor town. Nearly all of
Pibor’s civilian residents fled the violence, and most of the
humanitarian agencies operating within the town were evacuated," says
the report.
In a commentary for CNN website the author of the report, Caelin
Briggs, asks the US government to be tough on South Sudan now and not
wait to be tougher in the future.
"It will be much easier to address these challenges now, rather than
waiting until human rights violations have become an accepted
practice. The U.S. and the United Nations must step up and begin
showing South Sudan the tough love it badly needs", she writes.
Briggs also recommends that the UN Security Council should take action
on South Sudan so it can allow humanitarian organisations to access
those displaced by violence in Jonglei.
"U.N. Security Council members, both collectively and independently,
must also press South Sudan to give the Red Cross, aid groups, and
peacekeepers unimpeded access to Jonglei. They should remind Juba that
it is bound not only by the Geneva Conventions, but also a Status of
Forces agreement with the U.N. Mission in South Sudan that allows
peacekeepers to travel anywhere in the country without government
permission or authorization."
The United Nations Mission for South Sudan (UNMISS) is mandated to
protect civilians and strengthen state authority, but Refugee
International says even UNMISS has been denied permission to patrol in
Pibor county contrary to South Sudan’ s obligations under the Status
of Forces agreement with the UN.
Reacting to reports about fresh fighting in Jonglei state this week,
US acting Permanent Representative to the United Nations Rosemary A.
DiCarlo, who chairs the Security Council for this month, told a
reporter on Thursday that Washington is deeply concerned about the the
intra-communal violence in Jonglei state.
"We have called on the government of South Sudan to protect civilians.
We have said it is the responsibility of the government to protect
civilians. We have been very clear on that," she said.
She added that although UNMISS has a Chapter VII mandate to protect
civilians, the primary responsibility lies with the government.
South Sudan celebrated her second independence anniversary on Tuesday.
But even as the country celebrated independence reports of tribal
violence, corruption, cattle rustling and other forms of violence
remain rampant particularly in Jonglei.
While congratulating South Sudan on the second anniversary, the US
Secretary of State John Kerry said the country should remain focused
and committed to democracy, respect for human rights and
accountability.
"The vision that South Sudan laid out for itself two years ago
requires a sustained commitment to democracy and good governance,
justice and accountability, and respect for the rule of law and the
human rights of all of South Sudan’s people", Kerry said.
Kerry affirmed that the United States remains committed to helping
South Sudan build a more prosperous, inclusive, and democratic society
– one that is at peace internally and with its neighbours.
(ST)
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