Hundreds of small-scale businesswomen in Aweil town in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State demonstrated and clashed with organized forces on Wednesday against an order by the town council relocating them from operating along roads to the Aweil main market.
According to sources, several women were manhandled and injured by the soldiers who broke up the demonstration. Aweil Town Council ordered the women traders to relocate to Hai-Salam, Sika-Hadid, Naivasha, Maper, and Malou Aweer, an order they are opposed to.
Some of the women Radio Tamazuj talked to on Wednesday condemned the state government’s plan to have them vacate the main and other streets in Aweil town and said they were widows who survived by trading there.
Protestor Alima Bol says she is not happy with the way they are treated by the state government. She added that most women have no husbands and people who take care of them and their children are affected so much.
“I am not happy with the demolition of our market because some women who operate here do not have husbands, they just bring up their children with the little they get from here,” Alima Bol said. “I am asking if this order came from Governor Tong Akeen or the town council authorities. If the governor knows the issues, he is supposed to first prepare a place where the women can go and conduct their business to support their children.”
She added: “They soldiers should not come surprisingly and destroy our properties so that our children will starve. If they don’t want women in Aweil, let them show us where to go and we leave Aweil for them (authorities).’’
Another demonstrator, Nunu Angelo, admitted that there was a small space that was given to them by the government and that they were promised that the place will be enlarged, which was not done.
“There was a small space where we used to work and the government informed us earlier that it will enlarge the market and we waited for many years without implementation,” Nunu said. “If some of us try to operate along the roads, we are mistreated by the soldiers and our things are confiscated and they force us to go to Naivasha, Maper, Maper, Mathiang, and Hai Salam.”
For his part, Aweil town Mayor Garang Deng Diing said the order was to help in reopening the alleyways and roads that small-scale businesswomen have taken over. He revealed that the women were given several ultimatums to vacate and relocate to the market since August.
“We started the reopening of roads and passageways in Aweil town yesterday (Tuesday),” Mayor Deng said. “We made a plan in late August and gave deadlines to everybody who operates on the roads to be ready when we come for implementation. We warned them to remove their things by 1 October but they failed. We gave them another deadline which is 7 November.”