South Sudan´s government is responsible for 97% of all violations of the UN status-of-forces agreement in the country since November, including incidents of detention, harassment and assault, according to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Ban Ki-moon wrote in his latest report filed to the UN Security Council, ¨During the reporting period [18 November 2014 – 10 February 2015], UNMISS registered a total of 39 violations of the status-of-forces agreement, involving staff members, associated personnel, premises and equipment of UNMISS.¨

¨Of the 39 incidents, 20 were related to restrictions of movement, affecting land, air and riverine operations. Other violations included the impound of United Nations vehicles; threats to personnel and/or premises; harassment, assault, and arrest and detention of UNMISS personnel. Of particular concern is the fact that 38 of the reported violations of the status-of-forces agreement were perpetrated by Government security forces, in particular SPLA and national security personnel.¨

Ban noted that UNMISS suffered ¨severe delays¨ in deploying equipment belonging to newly arriving peacekeepers after the government imposed importation restrictions at the border and subsequently impounded UNMISS vehicles and equipment.

¨This had a specific impact on the deployment of the Ethiopian and Kenyan contingents and resulted in severe contractual financial penalties, which by mid-January had amounted to $800,000,¨ reads the report.

Additionally, Ban Ki-moon referred to the continuing detention of UN radio journalist George Livio and two others, without mentioning them by name.

¨The three national staff members who were arrested in August and October of 2014 remain in the custody of the National Security Services in Juba. While UNMISS has regular access to the detainees and is monitoring their well-being, the Government has yet to notify the Mission of the outcome of investigations or of the charges levied against them,¨ he said.

He also noted that the UNMISS national independent contractor, abducted on 10 October while working at the UNMISS air terminal in Malakal, Upper Nile State, as well as a staff member of a United Nations agency who was abducted from Malakal airport on 16 October, both of Nuer ethnicity, remain missing.

An UNMISS internal investigation report has recently found that elements of the former Shilluk militia group led by Major General Johnson Olony was responsible for the abduction of the UNMISS independent contractor. However, Major General Olony has denied the allegation.

¨All other efforts by UNMISS to ascertain the fate or whereabouts of the abducted independent contractor have failed to achieve any result,¨ reads the statement.

According to the secretary-general, UNMISS has been regularly notifying the government of these violations through meetings with senior government officials. ¨Despite those efforts, the government has not revealed to the Mission the outcome of any of the investigations it has committed to undertake,” said Ban Ki-moon.

Photo: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon with President Salva Kiir in Juba, 6 May 2014