The
people of South Sudan have been “deliberately starved” in different
parts of the country for ethnic and political reasons, and sexual
violence against women and men as a weapon of war is ongoing, UN
investigators said on Thursday.
The three-member commission,appointed by the UN Human Rights Council,also said South Sudan’s political elites are ‘oblivious’ to the suffering of civilians.
They warned
of intercommunal conflict and terrible rights violations “in large
swathes of territory”, as a new deadline approaches the formation of a
unity Government after years of conflict.
Basis for a war crime
“The fact of destruction of crops or taking away the possibility of
getting access to water through boreholes and so on, that can constitute
the war crime of starvation, because your intention is to starve the
civilian population….in this case by both sides, as we’ve documented,”
said Professor Andrew Clapham, a member of the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan.
In the Commission’s report, which will be presented to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council
on 9 March, both the Government and armed groups are described as
having pursued policies “responsible for the starvation of the
population in Wau and Unity states”.
The tactic is part of a wider strategy “to deprive enemy communities
of resources and thus force their capitulation”, along with a denial of
humanitarian access and related displacement.
WFP/Gabriela Vivacqua
Food
distribution in Pieri, South Sudan, where WFP is assisting 29,000
people, of whom 6,600 are children under five. (5 February 2019)
Hundreds of thousands affected
This has “significantly exacerbated famine in different parts of the
country”, the report notes, “depriving hundreds of thousands of
civilians of vital needs, including access to food”.
At the same time, the investigators describe how soldiers and
militias have also been allowed “to reward themselves” and forcibly
displace communities from ancestral lands, who have had little option
but to join any of the many factions engaged in the conflict.
Other abuses include attacks on villages by forces loyal to the
Government and opposition in Western Bahr el Ghazal, Unity and Jonglei
states, that have driven displacement “at alarming rates”.
The Commission also documents extensive violent campaigns in Warrap,
Western Bahr el-Ghazal and Unity States linked to Government forces who
have forcibly recruited men and boys, as have opposition militia.
Sexual violence follows ‘pattern of terror’
In the Commission’s fourth report on South Sudan for the Human Rights
Council, the investigators also warn that conflict-related sexual
violence has continued to be “widespread and pervasive”.
The practice follows “a recognizable pattern of terror and
subjugation used as a tactic of war”, the report explains, such that the
environment remains “insecure and deadly”.
But with mechanisms for justice and accountability for sexual and
gender-based violations still lacking in South Sudan, denials by
perpetrators and stigmatization of victims remain a major challenge.
“Entrenched impunity and lack of accountability, characterized by
failure to address past and ongoing violations, has been the key driver
of violence in South Sudan,” Professor Clapham told journalists in
Geneva. “This needs to change to stabilize and democratize South Sudan.”
Plundering public coffers
Massive corruption – which has siphoned off “millions of dollars”
from the National Revenue Authority – also amount to economic crimes by
senior Government officials, the investigators say.
“High-ranking officials have used their official positions to
influence decisions on the allocation of State resources and official
procurement, diverting public funds for personal gain and advantage,”
said Commission Chair Yasmin Sooka.
UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan / Twitter screen grab
The UN Commission on Human Rights in Sudan (from left) Yasmin Sooka, Chair, Andrew Clapham and Barney Afako (2018).
Over 1.4 million internally displaced
Today, more than 1.4 million civilians remain internally displaced in South Sudan.
They are “languishing in camps unfit to meet their basic needs and subsisting on diminished humanitarian aid”, the report notes.
In addition, the conflict has made approximately 2.2 million people refugees and asylum seekers, it says.
The Commission’s recommendations include the assertion that one key
to securing a durable peace will be reaching agreement on the number and
boundaries of states, as these will determine the distribution of power
across the country.
South Sudan, the world’s youngest nation, has been mired in
instability and conflict for nearly all eight years of its existence.
President Salva Kiir and his former Vice-President and long-time
political rival, Riek Machar, signed a new peace accord in 2018, and
hopes have been high that the deal would finally end the crisis and
deliver better and safer conditions for millions that have been left
homeless and hungry.
Violence has eased over the past year, though reported human rights
violations have continued, and just today, three United Nations agencies
warned
that some 6.5 million people in South Sudan – more than half of the
population – could be in acute food insecurity at the height of this
hunger season (May-July).
♦ Receive daily updates directly in your inbox - Subscribe here to a topic.
♦ Download the UN News app for your iOS or Android devices.
The expert leading UN efforts to stamp
out sexual violence committed during wartime has welcomed the release of
78 women and 50 children by an armed group in South Sudan.
No comments:
Post a Comment