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Atrocities prompt mass exodus in Central Equatoria

Thousands of civilians flee as a result of the increasing insecurity and an escalation in violence.

Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
Thousands of Kajo-Keji and nearby villages residents cross the Ugandan border daily at Afoji and Lefori areas, on foot, by bicycle or motorbike. Northern Uganda has been the main reception area for refugees from South Sudan since the outbreak of the civil war in 2013 and a new surge of fighting in July 2016. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
By Natalia Jidovanu
Published On 15 Feb 2017

South Sudan – Once a symbol of peaceful coexistence between South Sudanese from different origins, Central Equatoria, on the southern border of South Sudan has become a scene of a massive exodus of the local population towards neighbouring Uganda.

Thousands of civilians have fled, and continue to flee, the area as a result of increasing insecurity in the region, due to an escalation in violence in and around Kajo-Keji between the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) loyal to the government of President Salva Kiir, and the SPLA-in-Opposition forces loyal to the former First Vice President Riek Machar.

Uganda has seen the rate of new arrivals increasing over the last weeks, with a total of 25,400 South Sudanese refugees being received in Uganda between the February 3 and 9, with an average daily rate of 3,657 new arrivals, bringing the total number of South Sudanese refugees and asylum-seekers in the country to 736,953.

UN: Refugees from South Sudan cross 1.5 million mark

Newly arrived refugees entering Uganda’s northern region report that armed soldiers wearing the uniform of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) are perpetrating systematic and widespread attacks against civilians moving towards Ugandan border, forcing civilians to travel through the bush and to use a number of informal border crossing points in Moyo district.

Refugees crossing the Ugandan border at Lefori and Afoji areas report that thousands of people from different locations are sheltered in several internally displaced persons sites outside Kajo-Keji, while many elderly people remain trapped in their villages, as they cannot make the journey towards the Ugandan border.

UN officials have been warning since last November that ethnic cleansing is under way in the Central Equatoria region and in Yei River State, specifically, and that the conditions are being created for a genocide in South Sudan, with Juba strongly denying such claims.

Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
A South Sudanese woman carrying her baby crosses Kaya stream which draws the border between Kajo-Keji County in South Sudan and Moyo district in Uganda, heading to the nearby Afoji collection point. Refugees report that, due to insecurity and systematic attacks on civilians, they are unable to use the main roads to the border and are forced to walk up to several days in the bush to reach Uganda, in an attempt to avoid road ambushes. Refugees report that while travelling through the bush to reach Uganda, armed soldiers wearing the uniform of the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) prevent them from harvesting food left in abandoned gardens and farms. They also report that armed forces are burning the bush, including farms and gardens, in order to clear the ground of rival groups. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
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Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
New arrivals at Afoji border, Moyo district, report killings of civilians by SPLA soldiers, sexual violence perpetrated against women and young girls, nightly attacks on homes, looting of livestock and property, arrest, abduction, unsubstantiated accusations of collaboration with opposition groups and fear of torture as reasons for leaving South Sudan. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
Refugees report continued attacks on their communities perpetrated by government soldiers acting on the assumption that they are sheltering and supporting the rebels. 'Young men are taken and shot in the bush, houses are burned, women are raped. I was in the house with my father when they arrived to the village. We heard gunshots and left the house to run to the bush. My father was shot in the compound. I saw him falling on his own blood. After the soldiers left the village I went back to look for my father and found him lying on the ground. They killed him.' told Anthony L, 23, Lefori collection point. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
Most refugees arriving in Uganda come from peaceful agro-pastoralist communities living in very simple circumstances. 'We were a farming family for the entire life. I was at the borehole, fetching water, when the SPLA came. When I reached home I found my husband, my son and my daughter-in-law lying dead in the compound. They were shot by the soldiers. The children hid in the bush, I found them with the help of my neighbours.' Jeceline P, 60, could not bury the bodies of her husband Angelo K, son Moses S, and daughter-in-law Bety G. She ran with her two grandchildren - Kenyi and Innocent, five and 10 years old, an old blanket, three cooking pots and a small suitcase. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
A woman rests next to her luggage before crossing Kayo stream in Moyo district. Most refugees, 86 percent, fleeing South Sudan are women and children, including survivors of violent attacks and sexual assault, and children that have been separated from their parents, travelled alone or have become primary caregivers to younger siblings. Many refugees arrive exhausted and in need of urgent medical care after walking in the bush without food or water for several days. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
A group of refugees wait for their turn to cross Kayo stream in Moyo district, which represents one of the most clearly defined stretches of the border between Uganda and South Sudan. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
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Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
Some refugees use motorbikes and bicycles to carry luggage, furniture, household items and animals. Refugees crossing at Lefori area reported having seen the bodies of three men who were killed on Bomure-Lefori road and their bodies left by the roadside. One of the men killed, originally from Bomure and known as Abusala, was reportedly shot on Sunday, February 5, by uniformed soldiers, while trying to leave Bomure with his wife, a bicycle and a mattress. His body was still on the road on February 8, his head and hands cut off, as reported by several refugees using Bomure-Lefori road to cross into Uganda. 'After killing Abusala, they tried to shoot his wife. Fortunately, she was able to run and hide in the bush. They took his money and his bicycle and left the mattress,' told Jackson, M, 37, from Bomure. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
Several men cross Kayo stream carrying luggage and furniture on their motorbikes and bicycles. Some families take several days to move their belongings across the border, moving back and forth between their villages and the crossing border points, facing the risk of being attacked while travelling. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
While some refugees use bicycles and motorbikes, not all of them can afford to pay for transport and are forced to walk for long distances carrying household items and heavy luggage on their heads. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
An elderly woman crosses Kayo stream after a long walking journey to reach the Ugandan border. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
A young girl carrying cooking utensils follows the members of her family in the direction of Afoji collection point. From the collection point, refugees are transferred to their allocated plots in the new Palorinya settlement. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
A child sleeps on the floor after reaching Afoji collection point in Afoji town. The local market has been transformed into a collection point where refugees can access basic facilities including shelter, water, latrines, medical attention and transportation to the settlements. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
A 10-year-old boy receives treatment for a foot injury at Medical Teams International health post at the Lefori collection point, after a 14-hour barefoot journey to the Ugandan border. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]
Massive exodus of Central Equatoria population/ Please Do Not use
A group of women and children cross the Ugandan border, heading back to South Sudan with the intention of rescuing their personal belongings from their village that was attacked in the previous day by uniformed soldiers. Refugees report that when the armed soldiers arrive at the villages, they have to run and hide in the bush, leaving all their properties behind. 'The market, the schools, the hospitals are closed. My village has become a ghost place. All my neighbours have left. Only a few residents can be seen around,' said Justin T, 32, at Afoji collection point. [Natalia Jidovanu/Al Jazeera]