UNMISS to open a new camp for IDPS in Juba Posted by admin <http://southsudantoday.net/default/author/admin/> On February 16, 2014 0 Comment<http://southsudantoday.net/default/2014/02/16/unmiss-to-open-a-new-camp-for-idps-in-juba/#comments> *By Baker Lule*
The humanitarian coordinator and head of *UNDP* and also the deputy Special Representative of the secretary General in South Sudan Toby Lanzer revealed that UNMISS is in final stages of opening up another internally displaced people's camp in Juba which is more spacious in order to avoid an outbreak of am health crisis. "We are in discussion with the government; there has been a piece of land that has been identified in Juba. It is not our preferred option but if worse comes to the worst and people don't feel safe enough to go back to their homes, certainly the development of a new site which is larger will be one way to make sure people have more space and thereby reducing the risk of health crisis so we need to move quickly" Said Toby Lanzer. He added that they are concerned that the rains are to begin getting steady in Juba and the humanitarian situation is very severe usually in a camp setting. "It is recommended to at least have space of 45 meter per person. We are down to less than 10. The likely hood of health outbreak is very high and this is why we have vaccinated people against measles and cholera. But whatever we do; it will be almost impossible to avert a considerable risk of public health crisis inside the bases if they continue to be so crowded." Lanzer. He admitted that many children have died of measles in the recent past although he said that they have now vaccinated twice against measles. "When you get a measles vaccine it is successful in about 85% cases, when you administer a cholera vaccine it is only successful in 60% of the case. So when we vaccinate somebody it is still possible that they get measles or cholera which is sometime why we continue to administer the vaccine." Lanzer "It is true that people have died and particularly children from measles and the management has handled this crisis properly" He said no matter how effective their humanitarian work is it is not going to solve South Sudan's central problem. That the problem in the country to end the blood shade needs reconciliation and lasting peace. "There are a couple of UN agencies which are increasingly providing support to national institutions that are working on reconciliation. UNDP and UNICEF are working with the independent committee on national healing peace and reconciliation headed by Archbishop Deng. We are also working with the national legislative council committee on reconciliation and so we are engaged quietly behind the scenes lending support because we fill we cannot focus on humanitarian effort alone although vital" He are called upon all the leaders in this country at all levels to do everything they can to enhance the possibility of reconciliation. "To any civilian who has been struck by violence the process of reconciliation is agonizingly slow but it is better to go slowly and get it right than to push something through and it doesn't stick. Reconciliation in an environment that has been so violent during much of the 50 years can't happen overnight" Lanzer Stressed. He also revealed that they will not provide education services to children in UNMISS bases for the time being because the bases are so crowded that there would simply be no space to have education happening. He also clarified that the UN has not helped people in its bases leave the country and for the time being they wouldn't do that because they don't think that that is a durable solution. "The durable solution is the people to go back to their homes but not to put them on buses to take them to Kenya. However, the people themselves have made those arrangements for themselves but ultimately it is their right to decide their own destiny and if they fill that the best option for them is to hire bus and move to Kenya or elsewhere we have to respect that decision but it is not something that UN is facilitating" Said Lanzer -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "South Sudan Info - The Kob" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/SouthSudanKob. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/SouthSudanKob/CAJb14opp3tpj6YXtYoS7voC%3DnhXtB3cUAgE-eYuSicyeg%3Doafw%40mail.gmail.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
