By Philip Buda Ladu
Survivors and victims of various crimes, are certain to receive justice as government with support from the UN Mission in the country, deploys a mobile court to Renk County, Uppers Nile State to offset backlog of cases.
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) said it’s supporting the Judiciary of South Sudan and the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs to deploy the first Mobile Court to Renk Town from 30 Jan to 22 February 2025.
UNMISS in a press statement highlighted that the Mobile Court will try 52 serious cases for inmates held in the Renk County Prison since 2021, 12 of which include alleged sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) offences.
It emphasized that this initiative will allow South Sudan to dispense formal justice to its citizens irrespective of where they live and to hold perpetrators accountable.
“Decades of conflict, civil wars, and multiple crises have devastated infrastructure and displaced populations, forcing communities to rely on traditional courts. In many cases, this has led to a denial of justice for the most vulnerable populations who have the least access to redress” UNMISS stated.
Mobile Courts provide a temporary extension of the formal judicial system, deliver justice directly to underserved communities, and reinforce the rule of law where it is most needed.
The Judiciary will deploy two High Court Judges, including one female, from Juba and Wau to Renk Town for the constitution of the mobile court.
According to UNMISS the mobile court will utilize existing judicial actors and prosecutors, investigators and other police officers to conduct investigations of the cases under trial, present cases in court, and provide security to the judges and detainees.
This is not the first time UNMISS has supported government efforts in delivering justice to victims of conflict-related violence. These mobile courts, which have been previously deployed in Unity, Western Bahr El Ghazal, and Warrap in 2024 and 2023 respectively.
The UN peace mission underscored that these courts, are transforming justice delivery, changing attitudes towards sexual violence and children’s rights, and instilling hope in communities that fair trials are possible, and perpetrators face justice.
The mobile courts are an innovative solution for the delivery of justice to South Sudanese citizens and build credibility and trust in the rule of law,” said Nicholas Haysom, the Special Representative of the Secretary General to South Sudan and Head of UNMISS.
“The outcomes of past mobile courts, supported by UNMISS, have led to new cases being registered by people who have more confidence that justice will be served,” he added.
As part of its mandate to protect civilians, particularly women and children, and prevent conflict related sexual violence and sexual and gender-based violence, UNMISS supports multiple government partners by providing training and building capacity.
This includes providing technical support to the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs to build capacity on human rights, accountability and the fight against impunity.
UNMISS also provides trainings on human rights investigation, including conflict-related sexual violence and gender-based violence, targeting justice chain actors and security institutions, including the National Prison Service, the National Security Service and the National Police Service.