By Hou Akot Hou
Dinka Malual peace committee in Aweil North County, Northern Bahr El Gazal State, is currently detaining two suspects accused of stealing 22 cattle belonging to Dinka herders in Gok-machar.
The committee suspects Rezigat nomads from Darfur, Sudan, of the theft.
Mr. Leek Leek, a resident who herds cattle, commended the peace committee’s decision to recover the missing cows, stating it was “laudable.”
He added that they would cooperate with the peace committee to facilitate the return of the cattle through the joint Dinka Malual and Rezigat peace committee based in Gok-Machar.
“If the peace committee works diligently to bring back our cows, whether in kind or monetary equivalent, we will have no issues with the Rezigat nomads. They have been residing peacefully among us and are like our brothers. All we desire is a peaceful resolution to this theft, which could otherwise escalate tensions,” he stated.
Mr. Leek further explained that their claim is substantiated by the identification of two of the stolen cows at a slaughterhouse in a Darfur market by Dinka individuals from Aweil North, who subsequently informed them about the looted livestock.
Abdallah Sheikh, a Rezigat representative residing in Gok-machar, confirmed receiving two cows from across the border into Sudan and promptly notified the authorities in Gok-machar.
Mr. Sheikh admitted that the peace committee convened and calculated the compensation amount to be 31 million South Sudanese Pounds (SSP), equivalent to 14 million Sudanese Pounds, to compensate for the allegedly stolen cows.
“I received two cows, and the reason these two suspects are detained is because the cows were found in their kraal in Darfur. We have asked them to return the remaining cows, and they will pay for them,” he noted.
The Secretary-General of the peace committee in Gok-machar stated that they are actively following up on the matter.
The two suspects from Sudan are currently in police custody in Kiir-Adem, awaiting the return of the cows or the agreed-upon compensation to the affected herders.
The Dinka Malual, Rezigat, and Misseriya communities have long-standing peace accords that include provisions for compensation in cases of cattle looting or killings, with blood compensation also being addressed within this framework.