Renewing the mandate of the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan and addressing the need for accountability for past and on-going crimes under international law and human rights violations in South Sudan
Published: 23 Feb 2017
(23 February 2017) We, the undersigned South Sudanese, regional and international non-governmental organisations, write to urge your delegation to renew and strengthen the mandate and capacity of the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan (the Commission) to address the continued lack of accountability for severe, widespread and on-going crimes under international law and human rights violations and abuses, many of which amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, during the upcoming 34th session of the UN Human Rights Council (UN HRC). Since July 2016, the political, humanitarian and human rights situation in South Sudan has deteriorated. The return of Riek Machar to Juba in April 2016 was the starting point for the implementation of the August 2015 Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (ARCSS). However, an outbreak of fighting in July 2016, which culminated in the flight of then First Vice-President Riek Machar from Juba and eventually from South Sudan, seriously jeopardised the implementation of the ARCSS and its transitional justice components.
During the July 2016 clashes between government and opposition forces in the capital Juba, the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Army (SPLA) and opposition soldiers killed and rapedcivilians and extensively looted civilian property. Since then, the security situation in the country has continued to deteriorate, including in the Equatoria region, forcing hundreds of thousands to flee. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), as of December 2016, there were over 3.3 million South Sudanese civilians displaced internally or to neighbouring countries.
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