Governor Rin Tueny’s Successful Disarmament Program in Lakes State Could be Replicated Across South Sudan

By Malith Alier, Kalgoorlie, Australia

Sunday, February 20, 2022 (PW) — Who imagined years ago that this unlikely “silencing of the gun” would happen in restive Lakes State? Complimentary songs are being composed and sung in honour of the SSPDF unit overseen by Gen. Rin Tueny Mabor for the success or bringing a semblance of peace in Lakes.

National and international tributes are flowing to the MI general who had unlocked the secret to bringing the widespread insecurity under control. We should only be however, optimistic that the unprecedented violence won’t return to Lakes State before or after the magnanimous general is gone.

Our optimism is premised on the notion that the people of Lakes would consign the gun culture to history. The relic guns were left behind by the more than 20 years of civil war in the Sudan. The Lakers should instead, accept centralisation of the South Sudanese state for their permanent protection.

The central question to the disarmament in South Sudan generally is, what happens to the guns collected? I will show how to effectively deal with weapons of disarmament later in this piece.

Gun violence became a nightmare to South Sudan state before and after gaining independence from Sudan. All sorts of deadly weapons, mostly Russian made, were left in the hands of civilians after the peace agreement. The unprecedented gun violence was the legacy of the SPLA drawn out war fought between the Islamists and southern Christians.

The unintended consequence of the war was recognised in the 2005 peace agreement and disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration, DDR, programme was incorporated in CPA. This well intention DDR went awry in the first years of the agreement coming to force.

Effective and long-lasting collection of arms from civilians is a prerequisite for tranquillity and calm in South Sudan. It therefore need not be overemphasised.

A dramatic disarmament approach in UNMISS camps also known as Protection of Civilians Camps, POCs, is worth consideration go forward. During 2013 eruption of armed conflict in the country, civilians in major conflict towns of Juba, Bor, Malakal, Bentiu, Wau et cetera ran to UNMISS camps fearing for their dear lives.

The said conflict unexpectedly took an ugly ethnic turn and the mortal fear of these groups was real.

The government, a party to the conflict, later discovered that it was not only the civilians who escaped to those protection sites but also the soldiers who joined their kith and kin in the fracas. For this reason, the government accused the UN body of harbouring combatants – something UNMISS denied for months.

When the UNMISS finally gave in, it proposed self-disarmament instead of the government that owned the suspected arms. Remember, according to an agreement, SOFA, establishing UNMISS in the country, the government cannot enter the peacekeeper’s premises for any reason including pursuit of armed groups or individuals.

The same document restricted the government from interfering with UNMISS operations whatsoever. The government cannot search UNMISS marked vehicles and air traffic.

The suspected armed groups or individuals who ran to UN compounds are considered as being under its permanent protection. I believed the SOFA, in addition, incorporates the Geneva Convention of 1949. Note that the Geneva Convention does not address the issue of arms of war in this regard.

To shorten the long story, UNMISS quietly set out to disarm the ex-combatants in its own terms and means. The armed so surrendered where destroyed as in the Bibilical times. For Isaiah 2:4 prophesied, He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords to ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. UNMISS, the peacekeeper just did that.

On the other hand, we don’t know what happened to the weapons collected by Gen. Rin Tueny. Were those weapons collected and treated the UNMISS way or the South Sudan way? If those guns were collected South Sudan way, there is 100% chance that they will re-enter the system and armed violence will re-emerge. Lakes state will be back to the vicious circle!

Armed violence was not confined to Lakes state alone. It is something that is widespread all over the country. Jonglei state is one of those extremely affected by intertribal armed conflict. This perennial armed strife drives devilish child abduction, systematic cattle theft and even wanton killing of innocent civilians.

Late last month, the Murle, the most dangerous tribal grouping in the state, killed over 30 innocent civilians in Baidit Payam of Jonglei state.

The wild Murle are no longer part of Jonglei for they back in 2015 got their administrative enclave in what is called Pibor Administrative. They now come to Jonglei for raids characterised by hate and greed for cows or children. Jonglei state is like a farm for the incorrigible Murle. In fact, the Murle is more powerful than the national army and police combine. This is the reason why the government has shied away from confronting it all along.

General Rin has succeeded where many governors before him failed since 2005. The secret for this unlikely initial success is the political will from the centre. After many years of failed peace conferences, the central government has finally mustered the wherewithal for the task.

The effective use of the meagre resources like military equipment and logistics can rightfully be attributed to general Rin Tueny. This rare victory by the army in Lakes state can be used as template elsewhere in the country if the government is serious about finally bringing peace to the whole country.

The author, Malith Alier, is a concerned South Sudanese Australian public intellectual and political commentator who can be reached via his email address: alierjokdeng@gmail.com

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