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SOUTH SUDAN / JONGLEI DISARMAMENT
STORY: SOUTH SUDAN / JONGLEI DISARMAMENT
TRT: 3.01
SOURCE: UNTV / UNMISS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / ARABIC / NATS
DATELINE: 14-15 MARCH 2012, BOR, JONGLEI STATE, SOUTH SUDAN / NEW YORK CITY
FILE – 2011 NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior, United Nations headquarters
15 MARCH 2012, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in South Sudan Hilde Johnson approaches microphone
3. Cutaway, journalist typing
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Hilde Johnson, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in South Sudan, Head of UNMISS:
“The government's policy on disarmament is the following: They are going for a civilian voluntary disarmament process that is led by the community leaders and the county commissioners supported by the police with the SPLA standing by and protecting those that are conducting the disarmament process and where the SPLA will only use force as a last resort.”
5. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Hilde Johnson, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in South Sudan, Head of UNMISS:
“In Bor, the city of Bor, the capital of Jonglei, they have used a combined SSPS/SPLA disarmament operation because here you don't have community chiefs that can lead it. So it's an urban environment where they use a different methodology.”
7. Cutaway, journalist typing
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Hilde Johnson, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in South Sudan, Head of UNMISS:
“From our side, we are monitoring this very carefully. We are - we have our troops on the ground. We have a presence of 7 out of 15 companies in mobilized and committed to be present and verify what's happening.”
9. Cutaway, journalist typing
10. Med shot, Johnson leaves microphone
14 MARCH BOR, JONGLEI STATE, SOUTH SUDAN
11. Wide shot, guns lined up
12. Close shot, guns on the ground
13. Close of pistols on the ground
14. Wide shot, Jonglei State Governor Kuol Manyang Juuk looking at display of weapons
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Kuol Manyang Juuk, Governor, Jonglei State:
“Our people have been killing themselves, simply because the guns went to the hands of the civil population. We tried in the past to persuade them to hand over their guns in a peaceful manner, but they ignored it. This is finally the government of South Sudan decided to order direct the SPLA to make the search and collect the guns from the hands of the civil population.”
9. Wide shot, guns and ammunition
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Kuol Manyang Juuk, Governor, Jonglei State:
“These guns were collected without any resistance, without resistance from anybody. People were happy at least to see the SPLA taking the guns from their houses.”
11. Med shot, pile of guns in front of building with soldiers and police officers standing around
12. Close shot, heap of guns on the ground
15 MARCH BOR, JONGLEI STATE, SOUTH SUDAN
13. Wide shot, men in hut playing cards
14. Med shot, Emanuel Panchol and friends playing cards
15. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Emanuel Panchol, Resident of Bor:
“If it is like this throughout the Jonglei, we will be very happy. Disarmament is good but if someone hides their gun and later counter-attack, it will be a problem.”
16. Wide shot, women lining up for water in residential area
17. Med shot, women pumping water at well
Two days after the South Sudanese government launched a civilian disarmament exercise in Jonglei State, state officials say thousands of weapons have been collected in the capital Bor.
Describing the government operation across Jonglei State at United Nations headquarters today, UN special envoy for South Sudan Hilde Johnson stressed that the government was using civilian voluntary disarmament process that “led by the community leaders and the county commissioners supported by the police.”
She said the SPLA (Sudan People’s Liberation Army) was “standing by and protecting those that are conducting the disarmament process” and would “only use force as a last resort.”
In Bor, however, she said a combined policy and army disarmament operation was being used because there were no community chiefs to lead it. The urban environment required a “different methodology.”
Johnson, who is also head of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) said peacekeeping troops were “monitoring this very carefully” and currently has seven companies that are mobilized and committed to verifying the initiative.
More than 4,000 arms were handed over to uniformed forces included mortars, machine guns, rifles and pistols, according to Jonglei State Governor Kuol Manyang Juuk and Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) Commanders Gen. Koul Deng and Gen. Boutros Bol.
SOUNDBITE (English) Jonglei State Governor Kuol Manyang Juuk
“Our people have been killing themselves, simply because the guns went to the hands of the civil population. We tried in the past to persuade them to hand over their guns in a peaceful manner, but they ignored it. This is finally the government of South Sudan decided to order direct the SPLA (Sudan’s People Liberation Army) to make the search and collect the guns from the hands of the civil population.”
The disarmament exercise was launched by South Sudanese President Salva Kiir on 12 March to tackle persistent insecurity and inter-communal violence in the state. Actual weapons collection began early the next day.
The exercise would continue until security forces were satisfied that all guns had been collected, Governor Manyang said.
SOUNDBITE (English) Jonglei State Governor Kuol Manyang Juuk
“The search is going on throughout the State and people are giving in their guns. Some are giving in their guns. These guns were collected without resistance from anybody. People were happy at least to see the SPLA taking the guns from their houses.”
Adding that the state government had sensitized people ahead of the disarmament process, the governor said he was confident communities would hand over their guns peacefully and voluntarily.
So far, residents had shown strong commitment to the process, and no security incidents had occurred, he said.
If people refused to hand over weapons voluntarily, he said government agents might use force to disarm them. Governor Manyang said the government had deployed sufficient forces to handle the exercise.
He urged residents to continue cooperating with government forces for the sake of peace and stability in Jonglei.
Bor resident Emanuel Panchol, said the exercise would assist people to focus more on development.
SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Emanuel Pancholt, Resident
“If it is like this throughout the Jonglei, we will be very happy. Disarmament is good but if someone hides their gun and later counter-attack, it will be a problem.”
Deadly clashes between the Lou Nuer and Murle communities in late December and early January displaced tens of thousands of civilians in Jonglei and prompted UN agencies to launch a major humanitarian operation to assist those in need.
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