The number of civilians killed in shootings in Maridi County in Western Equatoria State has reached at least nine, prompting South Sudan’s national parliament to form a delegation to visit the scene and assess the situation.
Many civilians have also been wounded and displaced, but a full investigation is yet to be carried out, a local official said. Reports say there may be more bodies still unaccounted for.
Radio Tamazuj earlier reported that unknown gunmen on Sunday night attacked a cattle camp, about 500 meters from Maridi town killing seven cows and injuring six. More shooting in the morning resulted in the killing of at least one man.
Maridi County’s Executive Director Jonas Tiya Bol told Radio Tamazuj yesterday that the death toll and displacement of civilians has since increased.
He added dead bodies were collected by a security force deployed in the area and some bodies were handed over to their relatives for burial.
Jonas said the security forces deployed in the area managed to control the situation, but admitted that many families have not yet returned home after the violence. He added that all the houses near the scene of the killings were torched while citizens’ properties were lost.
State Governor Joseph Bakosoro today announced that the clash was triggered when someone threw a hand grenade at the cattle camp prompting the cattle keepers to respond with gunfire.
“This is only to ignite trouble in Western Equatoria state, but we hope that the army together with the police will do their best to arrest the situation and arrest the culprits and bring them to book,” he said, quoted by Radio Miraya.
Parliamentary delegation formed
Meanwhile, the national parliament formed a delegation to visit Western Equatoria state and meet with citizens on the ground to carry out a full assessment of the situation.
Members of Parliament from Western Equatoria appealed for restraint and called upon authorities to cease what they termed as illegal detentions of citizens from the area.
“The people of Western Equatoria should be calm. We don’t want this issue to be taken as ethnicity whereby the problems between groups because the government is serious addressing the issues,” said Chairperson of the Western Equatoria Caucus Pasquale Clement Batali today, speaking to Radio Tamazuj.
“We are making contacts with the people in the security so that the issues should be addressed and the situation can go back to normal,” Clement said.
The Western Equatoria leader also spoke against the arrest of local NGO director Driuni Jakani who was arrested in Juba over unrest in Mundri, saying it is against the law to detain citizens in a ‘ghost house.’
“If somebody committed an act, the provision is very clear: arrest him and make his relatives know about it and take him in appropriate court. So this issue of random detentions, somebody arrested, disappearances: no we don’t allow this,” Clement said, adding that laws are in place for dealing with crimes so extrajudicial renditions are unnecessary.
Photo: Hon. Pasquale Clement Batali
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At least 1 man, 7 cows dead in Maridi shooting (8 Jun.)