NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF INSECURITY ON SOUTH SUDAN
7 min readBy Simon Akoy Chagai Biar
July 21, 2015 (SSB) — South Sudan had been in civil war for the last five decade between Khartoum and Sudan people liberation movement/Army (SPLM/A). Southerners were fighting against oppression, shortfalls of so many needs demanded for the improvement of their living standard. The main objectives they fought for, were basically equal right to health facilities, quality education, freedom of worship, abolition of slavery, equal distribution of national resources and equal right of taking part in national duties but consequently, the war was based in southern part of Sudan which ruined the normal way of living of the entire region of south Sudan distractively.
As south was the field of war, the rate of insecurity increased heavily because our common enemy (Khartoum regime) and Neighbouring countries as well as south Sudanese by themselves became extremely ferocious and more extrajudicial, fratricide started. Communities developed hatred and became predators to one another. Life changed from the normal way were common man used his/ her hoe to dig a piece of land to generate all his/her needs to sustain life but unfortunately, south Sudan was the war zone of conflicting parties. As quoted by one of the Author (Claudio Zaninotto) that “When two elephants are fighting, it’s the grass that suffers”. Almost everyone became curious and tried to get a possible way of possession to firearms including civilians.
Insecurity became a terrible threat to the local citizens because holding firearms had been out of control, every individual got himself a gun illegally. The penetration and spreads of the guns all over the region paralysed sustainability of their simple way of living. they turned guns into economic purpose by which it was the means of acquiring necessities for life, hostility dominated the region as communities became enemies by themselves and leave the common enemy (Arab) behind which was the first target to do away with by all of us, but burred the spirit of brotherhood, patriotism and developed destructive spirit of killing one another, raping, abducting women and children, looting of firm produces and turned arms against innocent unarmed civilian since 1956………..No one can tells the last day for the sound of gunshot to be heard in South Sudan.
Ninety per cent (90%) of the population in south Sudan are farmers but their farming activities had been interrupted by the insecurity caused by the fighting going on in the area. Farming was abandoned because huge number of population got displaced. Some went to exiled and majority scared by the insecurity which has subjected the local population into extreme poverty.
The highly increase of hunger and poverty resulted negatively into inter-clan clashes and cattle raiding among the communities which brought about hostilities, hatred among people, many life lost, destruction of properties. When comprehensive peace agreement (CPA) was signed in 2005, many citizens were celebrating with a lot of joys, dance and happiness, they welcome its warmly expecting that peace will reaches up to the grass root and life would come back to normal but unfortunately, it had bear no fruits.
Increase of insecurity caused rural-urban migration, due to rampant killing and looting of people belongings as poverty as well on the other hand, local population flees their respective villages to urban centres to safe their dearly life from the insecurity threat and also to look for green pastures because shortage of food is another insecurity added on top of the previous problem faced by the people.
Lack of health facilities was another reason which contributed to rural-urban migration of our local population where by majority of them went to Khartoum, Wau, Malakal and juba among other cities in former Sudan in search of better medication but settlement in town became another misfortune and miserable because life in the city was not that easy due to so many challenges facing people.
Population became crowded caused repellent situation amongst the people. They settled at country sites and built Ghettos for themselves. Slumps estates came up due to huge settlement and life in the slump became horrible. Everyone became hopeless and frustrated due to the results of that poor living conditions, as the results of that hardest life, it created street families and street children, some few cases of prostitution and involvement of youth in criminal activities which were not part of the culture came to light.
Corruption and tribalism emerged with rapid rate of increase as a results of insecurity in the country. If you can imagine, when we talk of current situation. All the ten states capital are crowdedly populated, large number settled in big cities such as Juba, Take good example with life in juba.You can get one household accommodating twenty jobless persons, in which ten of them might be youth getting their basic needs from the pocket of one person, ( maybe general working in the government).
Some women are sleeping along the street in juba market queuing at the commercial banks and forex to exchange their small amount of south Sudanese pound (SSP) for dollar and takes them to the so called black market to get a little profit so that life can move on, if that general whose life has been based on, realised that he/she cannot manage to provide all their financial needs, the only way is to reduce the burden of supporting such huge number and try create some job opportunities by eliminating none relatives qualified worker and let his/her redundant kin-man take over the position to be financially independent so that to start handling some responsibilities in the family, that why we see now, some department in the government and private sector are lined up by some fellows from the same family. This situation has promoted corruption and tribalism highly.
However, the hostilities amongst the people has also affected political, social and economic interaction between the societies, trade, social activities ( inter- marriage) and sport activities (wrestling) used to be practices for wellbeing and mutual benefits among the people but insecurity dismantled that togetherness and social way of one community depending on one another and became sceptical.
In this scenario, different cultures emerged into our societies from different continents around the world and altered norms, unique cultures and diverse style and ways of living drastically diminished and reinvent the image of the communities, reputation has been lost and everyone became desperate after his/her right denied specially the youth because most of the them are jobless /staying idle instead of utilising their energy in agriculture field but the issue of insecurity is a threat to them.
This has led to many negative impacts to the nation, roaming/loitering of the jobless youth in urban centre fuelled up the rebellion in the country because most of them are desperate for jobs. Individuals can be easily cheated/ deceived and given a negative promises, as quoted “idle mine is a devil workshop”. They can be tempted and takes wrong offers, ultimately mobilised and cheaply recruited for unnecessary war by some selfish individuals to fight on their behalf for personal interest/ benefits, at the end of the day, the unwilling fellows become victims bearing the consequences of that useless war.
Solution to this problems, the government of south Sudan should be cautious and take some measures to address the issues of insecurity because everyone has capacity and capability of doing his/her own job that avail his/her daily bread on the table if security is stable, one institution like government cannot provide job opportunities to each and every citizen of South Sudan but the only service it can give sufficiently to the people is security so that everyone can enjoy the freedom of movement within the country.
Reconciliation should be the second priority when security is achieved, interaction amongst the local will pave the way for peace to prevail within the societies so that they redeemed their social and economic activities as usual. I can conclude that freedom of movement is a wealth.
A free moving man is more productive and preeminent than a stranded fellow.
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