The Bishop of Yei, Erkolano Lodu Tome, urged military commanders to punish immediately any soldiers who abuse their role, following the killing of Sister Veronika Rackova last week by SPLA forces.
Erkolano was speaking at a mass to celebrate the life of the late nun, who hailed from Slovakia. The church leader told the congreation that security personnel should not let wrong elements provoke citizens into “unncessary reactions.”
The mass was held over the weekend at Yei’s Christ the King Cathedral. Veronika was a medical doctor at St Bakhita Health Centre in Yei. She was remembered for her years of service to the community in Yei particularly to young mothers and children.
She was shot at and severely wounded on 16 May by SPLA soldiers who were on night patrol in Yei Municipality at around 1:00 am.
The shooting happened while Sr. Veronika was driving the St Bakhita ambulance on her way back from Harvester’s Health Centre, a more specialised facility for women and children. She had just delivered a patient with a complicated case of delivery for specialised treatment and care.
Veronika died on 20 May at the Nairobi Hospital in Kenya, where she had been flown for emergency treatment.
Yei River state infomation minister Stephen Ladu Onesimo said the culprits in the killing “must be brought to justice.”
Earlier this week, the government said it arrested three SPLA soldiers suspected of taking part in the shooting.
Reporting by CRN