Two girls and a boy were abducted in Ngasire Boma, Imurok Payam of Torit County in South Sudan’s Eastern Equatoria State on Saturday night.
Authorities say three gunmen stormed the area at 1 am and attacked a home some five kilometers north of Torit town where they found 3 children sleeping and took them away.
Major Justine Kleopus Takuru, the state’s police spokesman told radio Tamazuj earlier today, “these people came well-armed around 1 am and entered into the home of an old man called Peter Ngolok. They found young children sleeping, they scared the old man and took the three children. A 13-year-old girl named Jane Peter and his grandchildren who were visiting, a 6-year-old boy called George Abui and another girl called Sebilla Abui.”
Kleopus said the community tried to pursue the abductors suspected to be from the Murle community but they did not succeed.
“The community tried to follow and they found these people had gone but they found some of their belongings like a stick. The stick is meant for going to the bush and it is specifically used by the Murle tribe. They also found plastic boots so they suspected that it is the Murle because the stick and the boots are used by them,” he added.
Major Takuru said plans are underway to station a police force in the area to monitor the abductors.
Joseph Lokang Philip, a resident of Imurok, said people in his village are vulnerable to child kidnappers and blamed the organized forces for not responding quickly to rescue abducted children. He demanded that the government deploy more soldiers in Imurok to protect the people.
“It is the government which is at fault, when we give them information about these people so that the government comes and follows, they do not come. Can I go without a gun? They will kill me and take my child. What I want to tell the government is that if such things happen we need them to respond quickly,” Lokang said.
The Executive Director for Women Initiative Development Organization (WIDO), a women-led organization in the state Lachimi Rose Tukai, condemned the practice of child abduction.
“I offer my condolences to the family and we pray that these children return but as civil society, we condemn this act of the abduction of children that happened at 1 am,” Lachimi said. “The government should deploy police at Ngasire to protect civilians and their children especially during the coming dry season because this is when they will start taking these children,” she added.
A Member of Parliament representing constituency number 2, Torit South-West in the Eastern Equatoria State Legislative Assembly, Dominic Otwari Theodore, described the incident as human trafficking used by certain individuals to enrich themselves.
“It is a very bad situation, it is human trafficking, and this is not a very good thing that takes the country behind it is like slavery. What is coming up now is human trafficking where other people use other human beings to raise money for themselves,” Otwari said.
He said it is the role of the government to ensure security and advised the community to be vigilant and look after their children.
About 70 children have been abducted from Torit West since 2008.