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SOUTH SUDAN / MINE ACTION PROJECT
STORY: SOUTH SUDAN / MINE ACTION PROJECT
TRT: 2:26
SOURCE: UNMISS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 19 NOVEMBER 2019, AMEE, MAGWI COUNTY, SOUTH SUDAN
1. Various Shots, Land of Amee Community
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Tobiolo Alberio Oromo, Governor of Torit:
“Land mines were planted and anti-personnel mines were planted all over the country. And now, it has become a problem for us now to utilize the soil.”
3. Full Shot, Welcome dance
4. Full Shots Delegates
5. Med Shot, Shaking Hands
6. Med Shot, Explaining about mines
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Richard Boulter, UNMAS Senior Programme Officer:
“We are extremely grateful for the support of Japan in the clearance and their assistance to us in working with the National Mine Action Authority to build up the capacity of South Sudan.”
8. Various Shots, Residents of Amee community
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Seiji Okada, Ambassador of Japan to South Sudan:
“One of the focus[es] here is nation-building, and for nation-building, Japan believes one of the most important things is agriculture and education.”
10. Med shot, Japanese ambassador
SOUNDBITE (English) Seiji Okada, Ambassador of Japan to South Sudan:
“[For] safe farming agriculture, cleaning the ground is essential.”
11. Various Shots, destruction of explosives
12. SOUNDBITE (English) David Shearer, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for South Sudan:
“We hope to continue this process as we go further on so that South Sudan is completely free of mines, and so everybody can walk around safely and get on with their agriculture and else they want to do with their lives.”
A delegation that included officials from the United Nations Mine Action Service, the UN Peacekeeping Mission, and the Government of Japan visited a village in the south of South Sudan where efforts are underway to clear a 20-hectare area of cluster munitions.
This village of Amee was once home to a thriving agricultural community that produced staple crops like maize, beans, eggplants, and many others. It provided both physical and fiscal nourishment for the community, and many others. But today a very different reality prevails. Much of the farming land in Amee and in the south of the country has been devastated by years of war, particularly due to contamination from explosives – known as cluster munitions – forcing the majority of farmers to flee in search of better opportunities.
Tobiolo Alberio Oromo, Governor of Torit said South Sudan has been heavily, heavily bombarded, and also "land mines and anti-personnel mines planted all over the country. It has become a problem for us now to utilize the soil.”
Today, however, there is cause for celebration as efforts are underway to reclaim the land. Peace partners from the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan, the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), the government of Japan, and others have gathered in the village’s outskirts to recognize the progress made towards making the country cluster-munition free by 2023.
263 cluster-strike sites have already been cleared. Ten more sites are presently being cleared, including an area of 20 hectares in Amee, expected to be cleared by next June.
Richard Boulter, UNMAS Senior Programme Officer, said “We are extremely grateful for the support of Japan in the clearance and their assistance to us in working with the National Mine Action Authority to build up the capacity of South Sudan.”
Nearly 25,000 refugees from Amee and the greater Torit area yearn for the day they can return home.Yet they are paralyzed to do so by fears over insecurity brought on by ongoing volatility and delays in the implementation of the September 2018 peace agreement. Programs like these play a particularly important role in rekindling the confidence needed by the displaced to restart their lives.
Seiji Okada, Ambassador of Japan to South Sudan, said South Sudan was almost getting out of a long tunnel adding that "the focus[es] here is nation-building, and for nation-building, Japan believes [some] of the most important things is agriculture and education. For safe farming, cleaning the ground is essential.”
Despite its many outstanding challenges, the nascent nation has proven to be resilient, much like the soil of Amee. The partners here are hoping that with continued support such as demonstrated today, the seeds of peace can be sowed and will undoubtedly sprout and flourish.
David Shearer, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for South Sudan, said “We hope to continue this process as we go further on so that South Sudan is completely free of mines, and so everybody can walk around safely and get on with their agriculture and else they want to do with their lives.”
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