South Sudan Human Rights Monitor (May-August 2021)

(17 January 2022)

This report is based on research conducted onsite in South Sudan by internationally trained local monitors working for a national human rights organization. The monitors and the organization must remain anonymous given present security concerns. The information reported meets the threshold for initiating an investigation before a judicial mechanism, as there is a reasonable basis to believe that the following incidents occurred.

Introduction

Civilians in South Sudan continue experiencing displacement and suffer from widespread human rights abuses and international crimes, including conflict-based ethnic, political, sexual, and gender-based violence. These human rights violations and international crimes have occurred since the beginning of the conflict in South Sudan. This Newsletter addresses incidents recorded by local monitors from 1 May to 31 August 2021.[1] During this reporting period, local monitors working anonymously covered incidents from the Juba, Torit, Yei (Equatoria Region), Rumbek, Tonj (Western Bahr el Ghazal Region), and Bor (Jonglei State). From the reports received, at least 98 human rights abuses and International crimes have occurred. This includes crimes against humanity such as rape, murder, looting or pillaging, abduction, arbitrary detention, torture, ill-treatment, forced disappearance, forced displacement, damages to property, and recruitment of child soldiers.

As last reported, due to Covid-19 and the corresponding travel restrictions/lockdown adopted by the South Sudan Government (herein “Government”), local monitors and United Nations Mission in South Sudan (herein “UNMISS”) investigators continued to face challenges with mobility and accessing witnesses.[2] Additionally, the situation further deteriorated after recent flooding that caused mass displacement and high levels of acute food insecurity. [3] Of recent development, the Government has reportedly harassed activists, journalists, and their families – including freezing their assets to disrupt their work after a crackdown on civil society following calls for protests in late August 2021.[4] Due to this situation, the monitors could only document incidents until August 2021 and had to stop thereafter considering security risks. Therefore, September 2021 could not be documented as initially planned, resulting in a shorter newsletter.

Read full report 2021_May-Aug_South Sudan Newsletter