The commissioner of Kapoeta East County in South Sudan’s Eastern Equatoria State has warned of fresh conflict between the Toposa and Turkana pastoralists from Kenya after the latter entered South Sudan territory with their herds earlier this month.
Earlier this year, 3 people were killed and 7 others injured when the two neighboring pastoralist communities clashed over grazing land and watering points.
Commissioner Abdalla Angelo Lokeno told Radio Tamazul Friday that Turkana herders have driven their cattle into and occupied the eastern and western parts of the Nadapal border. He urged the national government to expeditiously intervene to avert clashes.
“The Turkana have now occupied the mountain and they now own all the grazing land around the mountain. There is tension and they are stealing the cattle of our people who have not retaliated,” he said. “The Toposa are annoyed by the Turkana incursion but are waiting for the government to act because they said that the Toposa should not fight these people (Turkana). The government promised that they will intervene and demarcate the border and bring an end to tension between the Toposa and Turkana.”
Lokeno however warned that if the government does not act first, violence will erupt and armed Toposa youth will be forced to defend their land.
“The government should speed up resolving the issue of border points because all the cattle from Kenya have been brought to South Sudan territory and our cattle also need the grass in Nadapal,” he counseled. “This is where tension will erupt if this issue is not solved, big tension will arise soon.”
Meanwhile, Peter Lokeng Lotone, the Eastern Equatoria State Minister of Local Government and Law Enforcement, confirmed that armed Turkana herders have been occupying South Sudan territory since the beginning of April.
“There is tension and the Turkana came back to the same area they encroached on earlier in the year. The area belongs to the Toposa,” he said. “The government of Eastern Equatoria is still waiting for the national government to act and we know the governments of South Sudan and Kenya will solve the issue amicably. We do not want to have into tension.”
“Our advice to the people of Kapoeta East County is to remain calm until the issue is resolved by the two governments,” Minister Lokeng said.