Delegations from Mayom county in Unity State and Aweil East in Northern Bahr el-Ghazal state recently met to discuss the peace process with their Sudanese neighbors.

John Jeach Bang, the executive director from Mayom County, explained that Unity State wants to discover and learn how communities from Northern Bahr el-Ghazal live in peace with members of the Misseriya and Reizegat tribes. At the same time, he acknowledged the specific context of Unity State:

‘Solving problems in Unity State may be different than conflicts that are happening elsewhere along the border’, Bang said. He stressed the lack of soldiers and police patrolling between Unity State and South Kordofan and said there is no protection for civilians who are coming from the North. Bang mentioned the robberies on traders, looting of vehicles as examples of insecurity.

The county commissioner of Aweil East, Awet Kiir Awet, said the Dinka Malual in Aweil East have a common understanding with the Sudanese nomads: ‘The Misseriya, Rezigat and Dinka Malual all accept the same law. They agreed when somebody is killed, the attacker will face justice and has to pay 31 cows for compensation. This law is accepted and used on their side and our side. If a Dinka man kills one of the Misseriya or Reizegat, he or she will also be asked to pay them 31 cows.’

He added that a series of conferences previously took place in Aweil to discuss cross-border issues and that people from his state now reside peacefully alongside residents of the bordering Sudanese states. Awet advised his guests from Unity State to ‘use the same spirit’.

Photo of Unity state delegation of seasonal migration peace in Aweil (Radio Tamazuj)