South Sudan army spokesman Lul Ruai Koang has downplayed a United Kingdom (UK) travel advisory calling on its citizens to avoid any travels to South Sudan, while advising those inside South Sudan to leave, saying the security situation is unstable and may deteriorate further.
Ruai told Radio Tamazuj on Thursday although the commonwealth has a responsibility to protect its citizens, many parts of the South Sudan enjoy relative peace and that the advisory does not truly reflect the situation on the ground.
Yesterday the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the UK advised against all travel to South Sudan and called on its citizens in South Sudan to exit.
“Further deterioration in the security situation remains a real possibility, and could be prompted by a number of factors including developments in the ongoing region-led peace process, and the fragile economy,” read the advisory.
“You should be vigilant of the local security situation, monitor the local media, and stay in a safe location,” the advisory continued.
But Ruai said the general situation has improved since the talks in Khartoum began. He said the economic situation has tremendously improved with the SSP gaining value against the USD. He also admitted that there are isolated cases of crimes around Juba but those are not related to politics.
“We only have a few issues in some places like Yei River state, Gbudue, Amadi area and Southern Liech state but the rest of the areas are safe. Secondly, even in Juba there are small criminal activities in specific places. And such crimes can happen anywhere including the UK,” he said.