Violence-Phobia: What triggers recurrent fear and panic in Juba?
Hon. Atem Garang Deng Dekuek
By Atem Garang D. Dekuek, Juba, South Sudan
Sunday, 01 December 2024 (PW) — Since 2011, the residents of Juba city have been living under fear because of the never ending killing of people by the mysterious ‘unknown gunmen’ and the disappearance of people without trace. The other sources of fear are the events of 2013 and 2016 when two factions of the SPLA clashed resulting in the deaths of many innocent civilians across the city.
This latent fear of the unknown enemy, disturbingly resurfaced on the evening of Thursday, 21st November 2024, when heavy shooting occurred around the residence of General Akol Koor, the former chief of the National Security Service’s Internal Service Bureau. The shooting took place in Tongpiny, a leafy, if not sensitive residential suburb of Juba where the most privileged reside. The shooting reignited the persistent fear in the city and caused panic that sent residents—who were not at their homes at the time—running in all directions to seek safety. It is still not publicly known what caused the shooting.
Again, on Tuesday, 26th November, at about 4 PM, a rumor claiming that an imminent armed confrontation between a group loyal to the current head of military intelligence Marshal Stephen Babanen, and loyalists of the President Salva Kiir, was going to take place at Bilpam, the SSPDF Headquarters. The whole population of Juba was again seized by a frenzy of fear, and those who were not at their homes started to run in all directions heading to their residential areas; some people abandoned their vehicles on the road. The situation was confusing and chaotic; some people were running because they had seen others fleeing the city center and from various market places.
The fear, panic, and horror that seized the residents of Juba during the two episodes, is a worrying phenomenon that requires our attention. If the population feels insecure, unprotected, and suspicious of each other, then we must find the root causes of this phenomenon.
Why are the people afraid and appear to have no confidence in the law-enforcement agencies to protect them? The answer is difficult to pinpoint. In my view South Sudanese have developed what I called ‘violence-phobia.’ This means the people perceive that any violence and hostility accompanied with the usage of firearms, would negatively affect them regardless of where they stay and who they are!
However, the fear that possesses the residents of Juba originates from the following triggers, in my opinion:
- My first perception is that ‘violence-phobia’ is historically tied to the usage of firearms, which is engraved in the psyche of the people of South Sudan. During the period of the occupation by foreign militaries (1821-2011), all generations of South Sudanese have experienced violence, hostility, terror, and fear, starting from the slave trade era of the Turco-Egyptian and Mahdist states, through the oppressive rule of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, and exacerbated by harsh wars of national liberation. Thus, most South Sudanese born and brought up in South Sudan have experienced and have been subjected to violence and hostility, albeit with varying magnitude and impact. Therefore, fear is deeply ingrained, and South Sudanese have been afflicted by generational trauma that has been transmitted to them from their forefathers.
- But why do people fear each other after liberating their country? The security sector in independent South Sudan is mostly dominated by two ethnic groups, namely: the Nuer and Dinka, who have exhibited their hostility to each other during the war of national liberation, 1983-2005 and 2013-2018. Hence the security sector is perceived by South Sudanese who are not Nuer or Dinka, to be lacking characteristics of a national institution that is qualified to protect them. Subsequently, other South Sudanese citizens are involuntarily forced to fear these two antagonized heavily armed ethnicities; meanwhile, the Nuer and Dinka are suspicious and distrustful of each other!
- There exist in the urban centres, armed criminal elements behind the killings, disappearances, and looting, which are linked to the mysterious and infamous unknown-gunmen, who have been terrorizing Juba residents since 2011, and exploiting the confusion.
- The 2013 and 2016 incidents where the mass killings of innocent people based on their ethnicities in Juba, Bentiu, Bor, Malakal, Yei, and Akobo happened, is still fresh in people’s memories, so, they fear targeted violence from armed groups and unknown gunmen.
- Regionalism, the tribal culture of cocooning, self-image, hatred plus perceived tribal armed militias inside Juba and around it.
- Besides regional and ethnic-groupings, there are other three distinct and unfriendly (temporarily) social classes: (A) class of those who do not have (IDPs, veterans of war of national liberation, former militias, public servants who have not received their salaries for nearly one year and a multitude of unemployed youth) (B) rich tycoons and their associates, (C) foreign business cartels and money launderers enriching themselves through ignorant and corrupt officials, and syphoning hard currency. Each group has reason to fear the other!!
- The villagization of Juba city. This means before the city could get rehabilitated from the effects of the long war (1983-2005), people from all parts of South Sudan started to converge on it following the CPA. These people settled unsurveyed and unplanned residential areas, where they established new tribal villages lacking all urban features. Each ethnic group has a suburb that it dominates, and village culture and attitudes prevail, including chauvinism and mistrust of other ethnic groups.
- The SPLA/IO recent threat to pull out from the peace agreement, was misconstrued by the people to be a precursor to military confrontation and violence between the IO and the government (Dinka vs Nuer). A letter dated 11/11/2024, addressed to Hon. Tut Gatluak Manime, Chairman of the National Transitional Committee (NTC); that include: 1. Recall to the cantonment sites of SPLA/IO NUFs units 2. Redeployment of IO forces 3. Withdrawal from participation in the meetings of R-JMEC / CTSAMM with immediate effect. The letter was authored and signed by eight generals.
- The role of modern communications and mass media especially social media is very effective in spreading rumors and misinformation particularly in a society affected by tribal stereotypes and hatred. Many young South Sudanese have inadequate knowledge of geography, history, and nationalities of South Sudan, that make them to believe some disinformation that might have been created by non-South Sudanese. It is observed with regret that some educated youth do not differentiate between what is individual, tribal, government, and nation. They look at these issues through tribal lenses, which usually leads to misrepresentation of facts.
These are some causes that I think triggered fear and panic in Juba on 21st and 26th November 2024.
Atem Garang Deng Dekuek is currently an MP at the National Legislative Assembly of South Sudan, formerly Deputy speaker in Khartoum on SPLM ticket after the CPA era, and later clerk of the national assembly in Juba, South Sudan before his resignation.
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