Rights group accuse South Sudan Lakes state authorities of unlawfully
detaining, beating civilians
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June 24, 2013 (JUBA) – A US-based rights entity has openly accused
South Sudanese soldiers (SPLA) of allegedly detaining unlawfully and
mistreating, since February, more than 130 civilians in its Lakes
state.
JPEG - 46.7 kb
Human Rights Watch Director for Africa Division Daniel Bekele, May 29,
2011 (ST/Uma Julius)
The move, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a recent report, was in
response to armed violence and inter-communal fighting that occurred
in the state.
Soldiers, it said, rounded up dozens of young men, often detaining
others if they couldn’t find the suspects they were seeking, and held
them in harsh conditions for weeks or months without charge.
Witnesses told HRW that soldiers who made the arrests in February held
the detainees in the Langchok military detention facility, about 10km
from the Lakes state capital, Rumbek.
“At least some were severely beaten,” the body said, after it
reportedly interviewed more than 15 former detainees and family
members of current detainees, government officials and other witnesses
to the arrests in the state between April and May.
“Having soldiers round up, detain, and beat civilians is no way to
resolve conflict or to strengthen the country’s justice system,” said
Daniel Bekele, Africa director at HRW.
“Civilians should never be held in military detention or subjected to
this kind of illegal, inhumane treatment,” he added.
The rights body, in the statement, also accused the state governor,
Matur Chuot Dhuol of stirring up the problem, citing the arrest of 50
men from each side of the two villages involved in inter-communal
fight on 10 February.
The arrest, it said, occurred regardless of whether there was evidence
they participated in the fighting. Many of those arrested, it added,
were relatives of people who participated, but had fled.
The human rights body, however, urged state authorities to
“immediately” release those in detention, or prosecute them, but
ensure the process is not in violation of their rights.
“Any detainee not released, should be informed of charges against
them, be given access to counsel, and brought before a judicial
authority,” partly says the 24 June release.
The detainee should also be allowed to see family members and receive
any needed medical treatment, it adds, while urging South Sudanese
authorities to ensure that no civilians are held in military detention
facilities.
The new caretaker governor was appointed early this year, after South
Sudan president, Salva Kiir issued a decree relieving the elected one,
Chol Tong Mayay over rising insecurity concerns.
Soon after his appointment, however, Dhuol initiated a series of
security reforms in the state, mainly using soldiers and other
security forces to restore order in a region awash with cattle raids.
Gun violence in Lakes state since South Sudan’s independence in 2011,
according to Human Rights Watch, has resulted in numerous deaths and
displacement, thus hampering development in the region.
The new governor has, on numerous occasions, been criticised for his
“heavy-handed” approach to restore law and order in the state, which
many claimed undermines citizens’ rights and the rule of law.
The police, according to South Sudan’s Transitional Constitution, may
detain suspects for 24 hours or produce them in court, and should
promptly inform suspects of the reason for the arrest and any charges.
However, none of the former detainees who spoke to HRW were charged
with a crime or had met with a lawyer.
“This kind of ‘rough justice’ violates human rights and undermines the
country’s fledgling criminal justice system,” Bekele said.
This example of militarized response to crime completely ignores the
established laws of South Sudan, he added.
International law, the US-based rights body stressed, prohibits all
ill-treatment of prisoners, including corporal punishment and
prolonged chaining of prisoners, while South Sudan law also prohibits
disciplinary measures that are cruel or degrading or could compromise
the physical or mental health of a prisoner.
“What has happened in Lakes state should be a wakeup call to South
Sudan’s government and to international donors,” Bekele said.
“The military is stepping in because the police, judiciary, and
prisons are failing to meet justice needs. But the solution is to
bolster the capacity of the police and prisons, not resort to a
militarized response that is violating people’s most basic rights”, he
added.
ARMY REACTS
But Phillip Aguer, the spokesperson of the SPLA dismissed as untrue
the findings of the HRW report, which was released on 24 June.
“I think the army has tried to maintain law and restore order in a
region where cattle raids are rampant. It is the duty of the army to
restore calm in inter-community fights,” he told Sudan Tribune by
phone.
(ST)
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