By Akol Madut Ngong
A civil society activist has strongly condemned the act of deadly inter-communal violence between armed members of Nyirol and Ayod communities.
In a press release seen by this newspaper, the Executive Director of Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), Mr. Edmund Yakani said this trend of armed deadly cattle raiding will perpetrate serious human rights violations.
According to the statement, the deadly inter-communal violence took place between community members of Nyirol’s Pulturuk Payam and their neighbors in Mogog Payam of Ayod County which resulted to the death of four people from Nyirol and others injured while 11 people killed from the Ayod side.
Besides, over 2,000 cattle were also raided as confirmed by Simon Hoth Duol, the Jonglei State Minister for Local Government and Law Enforcement Agencies
The activist called on the leadership of Jonglei State to double their efforts at the level of counties’ commissioners to established serious early warning system to prevent deadly armed inter-community cattle raiding.
“Within the available local resources is easy to setup early warning system for early response within the capacity and capability of the state local government. The trend of human rights violations commitment under armed deadly inter-community cattle raiding is registering trouble records across the country among the cattle keeping communities,” the activist said in the press released.
Mr. Yakani further stated that County Commissioners of Jonglei States should be innovative and creative enough to end deadly armed cattle raiding to prevent further loss of lives and properties.
He said that his civil organization has realized that all these deadly armed cattle raiding are known in advance in terms of armed youth mobilization for expected armed attack.
Similarly, Yakani said that based on this early information then Counties Commissioners should be involved in early response to prevent the armed deadly cattle raiding among the communities.
He therefore called on the leadership of Jonglei State to step up efforts and strengthen counties’ commissioners in deadly inter-community violence.
CEPO Executive Director stated that among the practical efforts is investment on establishment of system early warming and early response system. “Finally, CEPO will partner Jonglei State government to establish conflict early warning and early response as a strategy of preventing this year,” he said in the press released.