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STORY: SOUTH SUDAN / BUNJ REFUGEE SETTLEMENT
TRT: 01:30
SOURCE: UNMISS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH
DATELINE: 28 JUNE 2017, BUNJ, SOUTH SUDAN
1. Wide, Bunj town
2. Med, Men on motorcycle and bicycle riding thru Bunj
3. Wide, Boy on donkey cart with firewood
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Andreas Fiadorme, Senior Protection Officer in Bunj, UN refugee agency (UNHCR):
“Bunj is a small town with very limited resources such as water, health facilities, education facilities, not adequate for the host community and then with the refugees this creates a bit of conflict between them while the host community perceives the refugees as intruding or competing for the same limited natural resources.”
5. Wide, Rwandan Peacekeepers assembled in Bunj
6. Close, Rwandan Peacekeeper
7. Med, UNMISS SRSG Addressing Rwandan Peacekeepers
8. SOUNDBITE (English) David Shearer, United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary General to South Sudan:
“It’s a cross roads for a lot of different conflicts that are happening and that makes it very volatile and it also therefore makes it very important that we have our presence here and that they are able to provide some confidence to the humanitarian agencies that are working here.”
9. Med, Women holding babies walking past UN Peacekeeper
10. Wide, UN Peacekeeper patrolling in Doro Refugee Camp
11. Wide, Driving shot, Doro refugee camp
The rainy season has brought heavy downpours that are giving life to new grasses and crops in the small town of Bunj in the north of South Sudan.
But it has also created significant challenges for the 140,000 refugees whose presence dwarfs the local population with everyday chores becoming much more difficult to navigate.
The town of Bunj is in the Upper Nile region, just 30 kilometres from the border with Sudan. Refugees began fleeing there from Sudan in 2012 when violent conflict erupted between the armed forces of the Sudanese Government and a rebel group, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, which was fighting for South Sudanese independence.
At times, the presence of the refugees in the town creates significant tension, including outbreaks of ethnic fighting within their own camps as well as clashes with the host community.
SOUNDBITE (English) Andreas Fiadorme, Senior Protection Officer in Bunj, UN refugee agency (UNHCR):
“Bunj is a small town with very limited resources such as water, health facilities, education facilities, not adequate for the host community and then with the refugees this creates a bit of conflict between them while the host community perceives the refugees as intruding or competing for the same limited natural resources.”
A 150-strong UN peacekeeping contingent, mainly from Rwanda, operates from a small base in Bunj. They patrol the roads and provide a secure environment for the local community, refugees and humanitarian workers in the midst of ongoing civil violence.
SOUNDBITE (English) David Shearer, United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary General to South Sudan:
“It’s a cross roads for a lot of different conflicts that are happening and that makes it very volatile and it also therefore makes it very important that we have our presence here and that they are able to provide some confidence to the humanitarian agencies that are working here.”
A joint peace council has been formed by UNHCR and local authorities to help both groups work together until the refugees are able to return to their homes to live safely, with dignity, and hope for a brighter future.
