Pandang Community Union Condemn the Massacre of Dinka IDPs in UNMISS Malakal PoC Site
4 min readPANDANG COMMUNITY UNION EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
CONDEMNATION OF MASSACRE OF DINKA IDPS IN UNMISS MALAKAL POC SITE
February 20, 2016 (SSB) — We, the Padang Community leadership strongly condemns in all strongest possible terms the brutal and cowardly attack carried out by elements the rebels Shilluk supported by their leadership in the national parliament on the innocent civilians in UNMISS IDPs camp in Malakal on 17th February 2016.
This organized element of Shilluk carried out inhumane attack on residents, targeting the children, the age and women among the Dinka IDPs from Pigi County, where they killed many innocent and armless IDPs. The rebels inside UNMISS were preventing the IDPs to leave or returned to Malakal UNMISS PoC at the watch of the UNMISS forces.
The primary reason for executing this unprecedented attack was to justify the claim over the ownership of Malakal. The organized elements from Shilluk Kingdom transported guns to the UNMIS POC site to carry out the attacked at the watch of United Natons forces. The objective of this attack is justifying Shilluk’s unfounded claims and conversely entrenches illegal and unjustifiable way of annexing Malakal to Western Nile State Administration, which is just a mere imagine and unattainable dream comes rain or shine!
Second reason why the Shilluk organized elements attacked the civilian in Malakal UNMIS POC sit is again to make it looks like as if the administration of Eastern Nile State is instigating a tribal animosity in town which in any way is not true. Malakal used and is still a place for all those who have been living there and it will never be wish of any leadership of newly established state to chase people away anybody from the town on the basis of ethnic affiliations. Hence, the attack of civilians in UMNIS POC is not legally justify and must be condemned by the United Nations in strongest possible terms, otherwise, failure to do so will be indication of their support towards animosity in town.
It is not the first time for UNMISS authorities to fail in their mandate to provide protection to all IDPs are under their protection without discrimination. Precisely last year over six IDPs from Dinka were brutally and cowardly murdered and while reasonable number of elderly and women and children were wounded inside the UNMISS protection camp by the rebels of the SPLM-IO at the watch of the UNMISS forces.
Furthermore, the Padang Community at this point in time holds the leader of Minority in the National legislative assembly accountable for barbaric massacre. He is responsible for inciting ethnic violence over issue of Malakal and manpower distribution among the new state of the old Upper Nile State as he stated in his last interview with Sudan tribute a week ago
Therefore, we urge all the peace loving people of our nation to join us in condemning this barbaric act by Shilluk elements that are escalating more unrest in the town at this time when our people need to live side by side with one another. We also urge all the people of south Sudan to condemn in the strongest term possible the killing of innocent Padang peace loving community in south Sudan.
There are procedures that need to be followed if the Shilluk needs to live peacefully in Eastern Nile State, they should approach the legitimate authority of Eastern Nile without intimidation and cause of insecurity in pretext of annexing/appending Malakal to Western Nile State administration.
We urge the United Nations which is safeguarding the IDPs to be protective and objective in approach issues related to fighting in the POC site, otherwise if the attack continues without proper mitigation mechanisms, they will bear the responsibility if the magnitude of the conflict takes a different adversary dimensions.
Padang community wants to assure her neighbors building a peace and prosperous society cannot be achieved by killing people that matter to you in all dimensions of life. Padang will always continue to work for peace and peaceful co-existence. We call upon Shilluk leaders to cease mobilizing their people against Padang Community. This will yield any positive outcomes but rather destructions to two sisterly communities which have a lot of things they shared in community. Padang community is the only community that Shilluk community has a lot in community in the republic of South Sudan and we must build on our commonalities and not on differences.
May the Almighty God take the souls of our brothers and sisters who died during the skirmishes rest in eternal peace. Amen
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