IDPs afraid to reoccupy their homes

Many displaced residents in South Sudan’s capital Juba are choosing not to return to their homes since President Kiir called a ceasefire on July 11. Reports of unexploded ordnance in areas such as Jebel Kujur, where much of the fighting was concentrated between July 8-11, have spread fear among potential returnees. Others say they will not return because they lost everything during the fighting.

Ayub Unyinda Clement moved from Jebel Kujur to a western suburb when the clashes erupted at the heart of his neighbourhood on July 8. He says he lost everything when he left his home, yet he does not want to return. “I’m just gambling with life. Right now, I’m just struggling to get money where I can. Most of all, I’m trying to keep myself safe,” Unyinda Clement told The Niles.

Unyinda Clement says he has returned only once since leaving his home, but found unexploded bombs on his property. Despite SPLA government soldiers patrolling his street, he does not feel it is safe to return. He says he lost everything and has had to borrow clothes from friends.

Many residents who fled the clashes between warring soldiers sought refuge in UN camps, in churches or with friends.

The deadly clashes in Jebel Kujur, which devastated the neighbourhood, erupted near the residence of opposition leader and the former First Vice President in the transitional government, Riek Machar, whose whereabouts remains unknown.

Wilson Hissen, a father of three, fled Jebel Kujur and now lives with his relatives in a suburb of Juba, High Jalaba. He says he may not be able to return to his home in Jebel Kujur because of fear. “My plan is to stay in a safe area. I will go back when I realise there is a tangible change,” said Hissen. Only when security officials and the police are patrolling his street, will he feel safe to return, Hissen told The Niles.

Thousands fleeing to Uganda

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 4,000 South Sudanese people are fleeing daily to Uganda. A total of 37,491 people have fled to the neighbouring country since clashes erupted on July 8. UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards says the information UNHCR is receiving from recent arrivals in Uganda is that the situation in South Sudan is still bad. 

“Inside South Sudan the intensity of the violence has subsided since early July, but the security situation remains volatile,” Edwards said in a press briefing from Geneva. “The new arrivals in Uganda are reporting ongoing fighting as well as looting by armed militias, burning down of homes, and murders of civilians.”

According to Edwards, reports from new arrivals suggest that militias are recruiting new soldiers. “Some of the women and children told us they were separated from their husbands or fathers by armed groups, who are reportedly forcibly recruiting men into their ranks and preventing them from crossing the border.”

UNHCR is building a new settlement for refugees in Yumbe district, Uganda, that will have capacity to host up to 100,000 people. There are currently more than 1.5 million IDPs in South Sudan and more than 800,000 refugees outside the country, according to UNHCR data published on July 26.