45 people including military officers were arrested in Juba County of Central Equatoria State last week on suspicion of trying to grab community land illegally, local officials and police said.
The transitional constitution states that all land is owned by the people of South Sudan, and charges the government with regulating land tenure, land use and exercise of rights to land.
Although South Sudan has passed laws recognizing community or customary land rights, campaigners say these legal protections are often undermined in practice.
Alessandro Jada, the executive director of Rodolo Boma, told Radio Tamazuj on Friday that the suspected land grabbers were arrested by police officers in Mangalla Payam, located about 75 kilometres by road northeast of Juba.
He pointed out that the suspects were rounded up during a crackdown on land grabbers in parts of Mangalla, after complaints by community leaders over land grabbing by certain groups there.
“Grabbing of land in parts of Mangalla started on November 2, 2020. We notified the government last year but the land grabbers continued to divide and lease our ancestral lands. Now, the locals live in panics, and as the rainy season approaches, we cannot access our farmlands,” Alessandro said.
Paulino Lukudu Obede, the state information minister, said the suspected land grabbers were arrested following a tip-off from the locals, revealing that eight suspects had been convicted.
“Land grabbing has become a headache for us. So, as a state, we formed a committee to resolve the issue. So far, 45 people have been arrested, most of whom were armed,” Paulino Lukudu said. “Eight of those arrested have already been convicted in court on charges of land grabbing. And the committee is still going on with its work because peace can only prevail when the issue of land grabbing is resolved.”
The government official urged local residents of Mangalla to be patient as the crackdown on illegal land possession continues.
“We want to assure the people of Mangalla that the government is working to stop this issue of land grabbing. Land grabbing is a crime. So, my message is that anyone who wants to get a piece of land should follow procedures so that they do not find themselves in a problem,” he said.
For his part, Colonel James Dak, deputy spokesperson for National Police Service, confirmed the arrests. He said that investigations by the state police into the land grabbing are ongoing.