Human Rights Council Twenty-first session Agenda item 10 Technical assistance and capacity-building

Summary

The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 18/17 on technical assistance and capacity-building for South Sudan in the field of human rights.
It contains an outline of the human rights challenges faced by South Sudan as a new, underdeveloped State emerging from decades of war. It identifies the priority entry points for assisting the Government of South Sudan in its efforts to promote and protect human rights.

The High Commissioner stresses the importance of supporting ongoing efforts by the Government and development partners to build the capacity of rule of law institutions, and makes targeted recommendations for courses of action to address outstanding capacity shortfalls.

September 12, 2012 (KHARTOUM) — A long-awaited humanitarian operation in the zones held by the Sudanese rebels in South Kordofan, and Blue Nile will be launched during the next two weeks, the Arab League envoy said.

Salah Halima, Arab league representative in Khartoum, made the announcement after a coordination meeting between the delegates of the tripartite humanitarian initiative with the head of Sudan’s Humanitarian Aid Commission, Suleiman Abdel-Rahman in Khartoum on Wednesday..

Halima told reporters that another meeting for the tripartite plan representatives with the Sudanese commissioner will be held next week, stressing that the delivery of humanitarian assistance will start as soon as possible after it.

The Egyptian diplomat further denied accusations against Khartoum of procrastinating the humanitarian access saying that the delay was caused by routine procedures related to the selection of technical committee members.

The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement –North (SPLM-N) accused Khartoum last August of delaying the implementation of un accord reached in Addis Ababa with the United Nations, African Union and the Arab League. The rebel group urged to deliver the aid through Ethiopia and South Sudan.

Also U.S Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice accused Khartoum of obstructing the humanitarian access , saying its Khartoum’s responsibility to care for its own people affected by conflict in the two areas and take into account the urgency the situation requires.

Khartoum strongly reacted to Rice’s accusations and urged the concerned parties explain the reason of the delay.

South Kordofan governor Ahmed Haroun yesterday explained the delay saying that the delegates of the UN, AU and AL were absent from three meetings to discuss the implementation of the agreement.

The Sudanese humanitarian commissioner however accused the rebels of seeking to extend the war into other areas in the two states reaffirming the need to cease hostilities there.

He also said the presence of landmines in the rebel zones might obstruct the food delivery operations.

(ST)

The World Food Program (WFP), has started air-dropping food aid to Yida refugee camp in Unity State.

The WFP is using aircrafts to drop food rations and humanitarian assistance to an estimated sixty thousand refugees (60,000) in the camp after the start of the rainy season made the roads impassable.

The Public Information officer of the WFP in South Sudan, George Ferminyen says they plan to conduct two flights every week. Ferminyen told Radio Miraya that they will airdrop about 3,000 metric tons of cereals within forty days.

"At the moment WFP plans to do an air operation and operation of airdrop of food in the Yida Refugee Camp in Unity State and that operation started this week. We did a test drop on Monday and that basically was to ensure that the drops are properly done. Today (Wednesday) is when we are starting the operation in full gear "

The WFP launched a similar operation to assist refugees in Maban county, Upper Nile State mid-last month.

September 12, 2012 (JUBA) - The UN refugee agency is concerned about the welfare of refugees in the four camps in Maban County, Upper Nile State, which have in recent days suffered the impact of heavy rains.

The unexpected occurrence, is said in a statement, has prompted the agency to closely with local authorities as well as other United Nations agencies to mitigate flooding damage and to put in place emergency response measures.

“Our top priority is to make sure that refugees do not suffer because of this extreme weather, which is already affecting the local population in certain areas of Bunj town,” said Mireille Girard, UNHCR’s representative for South Sudan.

The most affected areas, the statement extended to Sudan Tribune says, are the main road through Bunj, capital of Maban County, to the three camps of Doro, Yusuf Batil and Gendrassa, which are reportedly all flooded.

However, although the road is said to be badly affected, assessment teams from the UNHCR and its procurement counterpart (UNOPS) reportedly managed to reach the three camps, which collectively host about 89,500 refugees.

“We are watching the situation closely and we hope we will be able to continue providing services and relief items as normal to the 108,000 refugees we are assisting in Maban County,” said Girard.

Also underway, she said, is an intensive effort by the agency to involve private companies to assist UNOPS in the ongoing road works.

“With the current flooding in the Bunj area, these engineering teams will be overstretched in the coming weeks to secure vital humanitarian access and complete the all-important work of moving refugees to drier ground,” Girard noted.

In addition, UNHCR has also joined a flood-response team convened by county authorities, along with experts from the local government and other UN agencies.

UNHCR APPEALS FOR $20m

Meanwhile, up to US$20m is urgently required by UNHCR, between now and end of year, if the critical needs of thousands of refugees in South Sudan are to be fully met, George Okoth Obbo, its Africa Bureau Director said on Saturday.

The fund, Obbo told journalists, will cover the “absolute” critical requirements in form of road repairs and access and establishment of emergency shelters in preparation for an anticipated 30,000 more people who are expected to arrive into the young nation.

“There are competing priorities that have to be met,” he told a press conference in Juba, the South Sudan capital.

“We could have anything between 30,000-35,000 people that could come into the country as the year comes to an end. This is planning figure and certainly we need to preposition ourselves and continue looking for sites in which people can be accommodated,” he added.

Obbo, who was in South Sudan to assess the situations of refugees in the various camps, also acknowledged the extreme hardships these people went through, with many of them reportedly surviving on leaves for days and weeks.

UNHCR, he said, remains financially incapacitated to handle the influx of refugees, saying only 40 percent of the $183m requested by the agency, has so been received.

“We have only got about $73m out of the $183m required for emergency operation and so you can clearly see the gap in the funding,” Obbo observed.

The agency’s Africa Bureau Director also expressed concerns about the high morbidity and child mortality rates in the camps visited, citing food and nutrition, logistics platform, contingency preparedness and scarcity of resources as key challenges that needs immediate address.

(ST)

Situation

Nearly all parts of the Horn of Africa (HoA) are in Stressed and Crisis food insecurity situations - Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) Phase 2 and 3 with a few areas in Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia facing Emergency (IPC phase 4).

In Somalia the gu harvests are expected to be well below average in agropastoral areas of southern and central Somalia due to poor April −June rains. Despite the delayed and below average rains in Ethiopia, the southern pastoral areas are now reporting improved livestock productivity due to good pastures.
Resource based conflicts are reported to be escalating in cropping areas bordering eastern pastoral areas in Kenya and this may adversely affect food security.

Emergency food insecurity levels persist in the boarder states of Sudan and South Sudan. Harvesting of cereals has begun in the latter’s bi-­‐modal rainfall areas, while crops are still in the vegetative stage in the rest of the country. In Djibouti, rains have begun in earnest. However, heavy rains have reportedly left a trail of destruction in several areas including Illisola, Awasa and Ali-­‐Sabieh.

Cereal prices in the entire region continue to rise mainly because of low market supply in line with seasonal trends and high regional demand. Over 17.5 million people in the region are still in need of humanitarian assistance (as of July 2012).

Source: FAO, FEWSNET and FSNWG

September 12, 2012 (KHARTOUM) — An African Union Good Offices team has launched an initiative aiming to support Khartoum and Juba in their negotiations to reach an agreement over the border contested zones.

The stalled process over boundary demarcation is hampering the implementation of security arrangements between the two country and threaten to hamper the whole process.

South Sudanese government has proposed to go before the tribunal of international arbitration but such process requires Sudan’s consent. However Khartoum for the time being decline such approach.

Badr El-Din Abdallah, a spokesperson of Sudan’s negotiating delegation, said the good offices team, which visited the two countries recently, will hear to the two parties and assess the evidences and documents they produce.

Following this process which will last three months, the African experts will present their conclusions over the ownership of the disputed areas to the two parties to decide on it.

Abdallah stressed that the conclusions of the good offices team are not binding to the parties but aim to help them to reach an agreement or a compromise over the contested areas.

He further pointed out that the chief mediator Thabo Mbeki is drafting a framework agreement on the economic issues agreed by the two parties.

He also said the security committee headed by Sudan’s defence minister Abdel Rahim Hussein and South Sudan’s cabinet affairs minister Deng Alor held a four-hour meeting Wednesday and will resume its discussions on Thursday.

The two delegations are expected to end the talks in the third week of September as the mediation will hold a meeting for the two presidents Omer Al-Bashir and Salva Kiir on 21.

The two leaders have to decide on Abyei and other issues the negotiating teams failed to agree on it.

(ST)

GENDRASSA, 13 September 2012 (IRIN) - Over 105,000 refugees have fled conflict in Sudan's Blue Nile State [ http://www.irinnews.org/Report/95693/SUDAN-SOUTH-SUDAN-Aid-to-refugees-q... ], seeking refuge in four camps in South Sudan's Upper Nile State, since last September, when government forces clashed with rebels who had previously fought alongside the newly independent South.

Between April and July, a mass influx of people used up pre-positioned food and contingency stocks after rains cut off road access to the camps; the World Food Programme responded by airlifting in food. The UN's Refugee Agency (UNHCR) says that malnutrition and disease are abating, but that recent gains could be quickly undone by another large wave of refugees.

Sheikh Hamis Hamadin Isa Zaag arrived at Gendrassa refugee camp, in South Sudan's Maban County, two weeks ago. He spoke to IRIN about fleeing the violence in Blue Nile.

"The journey was very tiresome and long. I even left most of my people behind to come alone. It took me 20 days as I was helping one of my elder relatives.

"On the way [from Markana, Damazin], I saw that most of the refugees had left most of their parents and old people behind, as many were running from air bombardments or fighting.

"There was also a lot of fighting. I saw people killed in front of me. The refugees went into a village and were killed by soldiers.

"They were killing everyone, mostly with knives. Most of the men were slaughtered using knives.

"At the moment, it seems some of my family have been killed - that's the information I've received - and the others have scattered.

"There is no way for the peace to come, but I wish there was peace coming to this country.

"There is nothing to eat in Blue Nile - just roots and leaves and wild fruits.

"There is no food, and even if you try and get out to get some food, you will be found and jailed.

"There is so much insecurity. It is difficult for them to move and cross the border."

hm/rz

[END]

JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN – On September 12, U.S. Ambassador to South Sudan Susan D. Page and President of the Republic of South Sudan Salva Kiir Mayardit inaugurated South Sudan’s 192-kilometer-long Juba-Nimule Road, the largest infrastructure project ever built in South Sudan, and the young nation’s first paved highway.

The inauguration comes one day after the two governments signed a new bilateral assistance agreement, which provides the legal framework for the U.S. Government's provision of development assistance to South Sudan.

The Juba-Nimule Road was the top infrastructure priority of the Government of South Sudan following the signing of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended Sudan’s civil war. The road has reduced travel time between Nimule and Juba from eight hours to less than three hours, linking Juba with Uganda and providing the shortest, most efficient route to the Port of Mombasa in Kenya.

“This road literally paves the way to South Sudan’s future,” said U.S. Ambassador Page. “The road has integrated South Sudan into East African transportation and trade corridors, bringing to the people of South Sudan ordinary goods they need day to day, humanitarian assistance for those in need, as well as equipment and materials for those who are investing and building in South Sudan.”

President Kiir lauded the continuing friendship of the American and South Sudanese people, as exhibited in the building of this important road. “These are our friends, and they will be our friends for good,” he said. “This is an achievement that should not be forgotten,” he added.

The U.S. Government, through USAID, also helped the Government prepare policy and implementation guidelines for establishing and enforcing axle load controls to prevent overloading of trucks, which can be dangerous and make the road deteriorate more quickly. USAID is also working with the Ministry of Roads and Bridges on allocation of space for construction of weigh stations. The Draft Traffic Act, which is being reviewed by the South Sudan National Legislative Assembly, will provide the legal basis for regulating and enforcing axle load control and other operations and use of the road networks.

The road has generated economic activities along the route, and created employment and training opportunities for South Sudanese communities, thereby enhancing stability. It has also facilitated the return of refugees and internally displaced persons and the delivery of humanitarian assistance, and provides security and improved access to services such as health care.

The project, which began in 2007, included demining; grading and tarmacking the road; construction of eight new bridges built to modern standards to handle truck traffic, replacing dangerous, decades-old bridges; and a road safety education program that won the 2011 International Road Federation global achievement award on road safety.

When the project began, the route between Juba and Nimule was unpaved and difficult to travel. The improved road has not only reduced travel time and enhanced trade, but has brought other benefits to local communities and the government, including boreholes that were drilled in locations so that communities could benefit from them following the road construction, and training of South Sudanese companies in road maintenance, so that local private sector companies will have the skills needed to maintain the Juba-Nimule road and other roads throughout South Sudan. Three construction camps that were used for road building activities have been handed over to the Ministry of Roads and Bridges for use in road maintenance and highway patrol.

The U.S. State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, in partnership with the Department of Justice, trained the first-ever Highway Patrol Unit in South Sudan to provide a police presence and enhance road safety on the vital Juba-Nimule Highway. In the fall of 2011, the program provided training to the officers of the Highway Patrol Unit, and in summer 2012, 10 motorcycles and safety equipment were turned over to the officers who use them to patrol the highway.

Related Bureau or Independent Office Bureau for Africa Last updated: September 13, 2012

HIGHLIGHTS

• In South Kordofan, 21 civilians reported killed following renewed fighting.

• In Central Darfur, the number of people affected by recent floods has risen to 26,000, according to humanitarian organisations on the ground.

• In Kutum town, North Darfur, two international NGOs relocate staff following resumption of violence.

By Jenn Christian | Sep 13, 2012

For over a year, the government of Sudan, led by alleged genocidaire President Omar al-Bashir, has denied international humanitarian aid organizations access to the states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile, in which a coalition of armed opposition groups, known as the Sudan Revolutionary Front, or SRF, has been fighting against government forces. Simultaneously, President Bashir’s regime has been purposefully targeting civilian populations, indiscriminately bombing farmland and villages and systematically destroying civilian property. The result: a humanitarian crisis comparable to that seen today in Syria and, less than a decade ago, in the Sudanese region of Darfur.

The United Nations estimates that nearly 700,000 civilians are internally displaced or severely affected by the conflicts in South Kordofan and Blue Nile. Of this number, it is thought that as many as 400,000 civilians may be located in areas controlled by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, or SPLM-N, an armed component of the SRF. Up to today, the Bashir regime remains steadfast in its absolute obstruction of international aid delivery to SPLM-N-controlled areas, leaving civilians there without access to desperately needed food and medical supplies. Meanwhile, almost a quarter of a million more Sudanese have fled the two states for neighboring South Sudan or Ethiopia.

The international community’s reaction, while more vigorous as of late, has proven entirely inadequate in terms of ensuring the delivery of vital humanitarian aid to civilians in South Kordofan and Blue Nile, particularly those civilians in SPLM-N-controlled areas. Initially, the international community used diplomatic pressure in an attempt to persuade Bashir to permit humanitarian aid workers into the two states. When that failed, the United Nations, the African Union, and the League of Arab States, in February 2012, jointly proposed the so-called “Tripartite Proposal” for the delivery of international humanitarian aid to the two states. The SPLM-N immediately accepted the proposal, which provided for the initiation of steps to deliver necessary aid to populations in government and SPLM-N controlled areas. The government of Sudan, on the other hand, made promises to review the proposal, a stalling tactic it maintained throughout the remainder of the local dry season, which ended in June. The onset of rains in Sudan means limited overland accessibility to South Kordofan and Blue Nile until at least October, effectively ensuring that any agreement securing aid delivery concluded in the interim cannot be fully realized until that time.

In the face of the Khartoum regime’s continuing delays in implementing the Tripartite Proposal, coupled with mounting concerns over deteriorating relations between Sudan and South Sudan, the U.N. Security Council, on May 2, 2012, adopted Resolution 2046. The resolution calls for, among other things, the government of Sudan to accept the Tripartite Proposal. Thereafter, in August, the Sudanese government signed a memorandum of understanding, or MOU, with the U.N., the African Union, and the League of Arab States providing for the development and implementation of an action plan related to the delivery of humanitarian aid throughout the two states. The MOU contained a one-week deadline for the development of the plan, which came and went without any action on the part of the government of Sudan. Indeed, today, over a month after the conclusion of the MOU, there is still no international aid reaching civilians in SPLM-N-controlled areas of South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

IOM has completed collection of data on basic services in 30 counties of high return in South Sudan. The data, which has been amassed since February 2012, comes from over 800 bomas or groups of small villages in 30 of the 78 administrative areas in the country.

This is the most extensive survey to date in South Sudan and will provide tools to analyze gaps in services and identify key areas for development across the country. The findings will be released early next year.

The data will be analyzed in relation to returnees' access to livelihood opportunities, protection services, water and sanitation, education, and health in those counties.

The results of this large-scale assessment will help lay the ground for a more coherent and efficient approach to returnee reintegration, which remains a critical gap in South Sudan.

Countless host communities are struggling to absorb hundreds of thousands of returnees who made their way back to South Sudan in the lead up to and following the country's independence last year.

IOM, in partnership with the Government of South Sudan, tracks returns through tracking hubs established at entry points and enumerators verifying returns at a village level. Since January 2012, IOM has recorded over 123,000 new returns to the country.

The states of highest return since 2007 include Northern Bahr el Ghazal (456,542 returnees), Unity (286,146), and Central Equatoria (218,127.) Most returnees return to border areas in states neighbouring Sudan, where much of the infrastructure was damaged during two decades of civil war.

During the first phase of the project, IOM conducted 30 capacity building workshops on data collection for 228 staff from the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission of the Government of South Sudan. In total, 400 staff were trained and involved in the data collection.

"At the beginning of the return movements in 2010 the focus was on the logistics of IDP returns. The issues of reintegration and recovery for returnees was sidelined. The government and the international community now need to concentrate on reintegration to relieve pressure on host communities and returnees in areas where resources were already scarce before the return movements," says Peter Dut, the Director of the Relief and Rehabilitation Commission for South Sudan.

For more information please contact Samantha Donkin at IOM Juba. Tel: +211922406728. Email: sdonkin@iom.int

This is a summary of what was said by the UNHCR spokesperson at today’s Palais des Nations press briefing in Geneva.

UNHCR is working with the Ministry of Health of South Sudan, the World Health Organization and other partners to control the spread of Hepatitis E which has killed 16 refugees in three camps in Maban County in Upper Nile State. There have been 23 confirmed cases of Hepatitis E in those camps.

MSF-Holland first began tracking patients from Jamam refugee camp with acute jaundice syndrome in late July. Jaundice can be one symptom of Hepatitis E, which is a virus that damages the liver. It is transmitted by eating food or drinking water contaminated with feces.

Of the 16 deaths 13 have occurred at Jamam Camp, home to about 20,000 refugees, and where 255 cases of acute jaundice syndrome have been recorded. Two people died at Yusuf Batil, home to 37,000 refugees, and where 77 refugees have come down with acute jaundice syndrome. The other death is at Gendrassa, where 10,000 refugees live and where 52 people have been diagnosed with acute jaundice syndrome. In another camp – Doro, which shelters 43,000 refugees, we have one diagnosed case but no deaths. This refugee came to Doro from Jamam already ill.

Hepatitis E hits young people between the ages of 15 and 40 hardest. In the three camps where we see refugees with acute jaundice syndrome, more than half are between 20 and 39. Hepatitis E is particularly dangerous for pregnant women; their death rate can be 20-25 percent. Among the refugees who have died were five pregnant women.

Together with our partners, we are improving sanitation in the camps, and increasing the amount and availability of safe drinking water.
Flooding and use of contaminated surface water for drinking have been persistent health challenges for refugees in South Sudan.

We also continue to promote improvements in personal and community hygiene practices in all the South Sudan camps. Messages to refugees focus on personal protection against contracting the virus by not drinking untreated water, not eating raw food or food washed in unclean water, and by not washing in communal containers. We are promoting good practices like hand-washing, not defecating in the open, and not letting animals defecate close to homes.

So far there have been no cases among the local population.

STATISTICS

• There are 169,463 Sudanese refugees in South Sudan.

• Of this number 104,960 are in upper Nile State and 64,503 are in Unity State

• UNHCR is seeking $186 million in funding for helping refugees in South Sudan. So far it has received approximately 40 percent of this amount.

The health situation in the Yusif Batil camp in South Sudan is critical as simple diarrhea has become one of the main causes of death. As camp manager the Danish Refugee Council is distributing emergency aid such as soap, blankets and mosquito nets in order to help get mortality rates below emergency levels.

Approximately 110,000 refugees have fled from Blue Nile State and arrived in Upper Nile State in South Sudan since January 2012. The massive influx into one of the most remotely located areas of South Sudan has put both emergency response as well as local resources under much pressure, and there are critical gaps to be covered.

The Danish Refugee Council, DRC is managing the Yusif Batil camp where 35,000 refugees are currently living. These refugees are the most recently arrived and by far the most vulnerable, with much higher numbers of elderly, young children,sick and disabled persons.

“The refugees in Yusif Batil camp are physically exhausted, ill and malnourished after several months of flight by foot to reach South Sudan,” says Kate Norton, Country Director for DRC South Sudan, explaining the alarming mortality rates in the camp:

“Simple diarrheas are among the main causes of death but the risk of cholera outbreaks, dysentery, hepatitis and other serious diseases linked to poor hygiene are also very high.

Futhermore malaria and water borne diseases contribute during the rainy season as it is especially cold at night at the moment.” The Danish Refugee Council is working closely with health actors to support the coordination of vital medical services, furthermore DRC is doing targeted distribution of non-food items; blankets and mosquito nets to help families stay warm and to prevent malaria; soap, water containers and buckets to help improve hygiene and access to clean drinking water and grinding mills to support the refugees in grinding the food rations they receive from World Food Programme.

“The high mortality rates are strongly correlated with poor hygiene and inadequate nutrition. Our team in the camp has discovered that some refugees sell food items in order to buy soap or to get their food rations grinded. As a result the food rations are being dramatically reduced and the most vulnerable refugees are therefore extremely vulnerable to disease,” says Kate Norton.

The Danish Refugee Council has operated in Sudan since 2004. When South Sudan gained independence in 2011, the Danish Refugee Council was already present in the country, the organization is now active in three states in South Sudan - Upper Nile State, Northern Bahr El Ghazal and Warrap states.

This report covers the period 1 July to 31 December 2011.

In brief

Programme outcome

Strengthened programme and management capacities of the South Sudan Red Cross (SSRC) in the process of recognition contributes to save lives and increase the resilience of vulnerable communities to recover from disaster and crisis.

Programme summary

Recognition: Immediately after independence of the Republic of South Sudan, the process towards recognition was launched in a very broad and inclusive process throughout the country and led to the adoption of a Red Cross Act by Parliament (signed by President Salva Kiir in March and gazetted officially in June 2011. A draft Constitution and the preparation for a membership drive, branch assemblies to elect governance boards preceding a General Assembly are ongoing this year.

Disaster Management: By the end of the year, a Disaster Management Department including a Coordinator as well as an Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) and a DRR Officer was established and began working on policies and guidance for the branches particularly with regards to needs assessments, selection of beneficiaries and distributions of non food items (NFIs).

Health: The previous National Community Health Volunteer Programme (NCHVP) – now named Community Based Health and First Aid (CBHFA) – was continued in several states but awaits re-focusing and further expansion in 2012. As part of the South Sudan Red Cross (SSRC) Health and Care programme, the National Society (NS) worked closely with the Ministry of Health (MoH) to promote preventive measures such as maternal and child health (MCH) and support vaccination campaigns. The Japanese Red Cross contribution was earmarked for maternal health care.

National Society and Volunteer Development: Tedious and often inconclusive recruitment processes for core management staff slowed down the process to develop policies and regulations for human resources, finance, volunteers, etc.

Coordination, Principles and Values: As of October 2011, the Secretariat Delegation consolidated in its human resources and began to take a stronger support and coordination role for SSRC and Movement partners. For the lack of funding, no activities could be implemented in the dissemination programme (0% coverage) while – luckily – ICRC continued its efforts through the branch communication officers.

The newly appointed Special Representative of the Secretary-General for children and armed conflict, Leila Zerrougui, called for greater protection of children affected by armed conflict.

While presenting the annual report of her predecessor, Radhika Coomaraswamy, to the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Zerrougui also advocated for greater accountability for perpetrators of human rights violations against children in times of conflict.

“Two verdicts passed by the International Criminal Court and the Special Court for Sierra Leone this year against the Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga and former Liberian President Charles Taylor, respectively, set important international jurisprudence on the war crime of recruiting and using children,” she said. “In Lubanga’s case, it also made a significant contribution to the development of the right to reparations in international law.”

Zerrougui stressed, however, that international justice can only complement national accountability mechanisms, specifically when national authorities are not willing or not able to bring perpetrators to justice. “The challenge of conflict-affected developing countries is not always lack of will, but often of capacity,” she added.

She also made recommendations to States on how they could respond to child recruitment. These included criminalizing under-age recruitment, and prosecuting and investigating perpetrators; raising awareness of child protection at the community level; as well as addressing the root causes of ‘voluntary’ recruitment, such as poverty, social grievances and survival, and providing children alternatives to enrolment.

“In many contexts, children join armed forces or groups due to a lack of options. Conflict-affected countries continue to lag behind in the realization of the Millennium Development Goals, including on education, health and child mortality,” she said. “These factors lead many young people to see mobilisation as their only opportunity to provide for themselves and their families.”

The Special Representative added that poverty often also meant a lack of access to education and other basic services, and therefore the possibility of any other form of social mobility often did not exist. Education and employment creation, she said, should be major components of national strategies to address the stabilization of conflict affected areas.

She highlighted recent developments in preventing grave human rights abuses against children in armed conflict, including the signature of plans of action between the United Nations and the Central African Republic, Myanmar, Somalia and South Sudan, to halt and prevent the use of children during conflict. Nepal, she added, was removed from the UN Secretary-General’s list of countries that recruit children.

“More long-term and sustainable support for reintegration of conflict-affected children is needed, including through swift support to the implementation of action plans between the UN and parties listed in the annexes of the SG’s annual report on children and armed conflict,” Zerrougui said.

MAG delivers a range of projects globally dealing with different aspects of human security issues, providing appropriate responses in post conflict countries through Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) destruction projects as well Physical Security and Stockpile Management (PSSM) activities. This coordinated and integrated approach supports states to develop sustainable solutions to armed violence, and is an essential contribution to local, national and regional security and aspects of Armed Violence Reduction (AVR).

MAG is currently undertaking projects in Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Iraq, Somalia and the Republic of South Sudan.

September 14, 2012—UMCOR has been working in South Sudan since 2006. Its focus has been on improving conditions for thousands of internally displaced persons, who live in camps and often lack access to basic hygiene and education. UMCOR has built schools, constructed latrines, and worked with communities to build self-sufficiency. UMCOR is currently developing programs in maternal and child health.

This is because, right now, the outlook for new life in South Sudan is bleak. Fifteen percent of babies die in childbirth. A third of the babies and toddlers that survive become underweight due to malnourishment. Malaria, diarrhea, and respiratory infections are widespread, and only 17 percent of children under five get immunized.

When all is said and done, 25 percent of children born in South Sudan die before their fifth birthday. Even for those that survive childhood, the average life expectancy is only about 42 years. And mothers risk a 2 percent chance of death during childbirth—the highest maternal mortality rate in the world.

Why is the health situation so dire in South Sudan? It has been a land in conflict since the eighteenth century, when many African nations fought territorial wars. In the late nineteenth century, European colonial powers divided up the map of Africa without regard to existing ethnic and cultural boundaries, and combined South Sudan with the Arab desert to its north. The resulting country, Sudan, gained independence from Britain and Egypt in 1956. Conflicts between the Arab north and the Christian/animist south led to two civil wars and South Sudan’s independence from the north in 2011. Interethnic warfare is still widespread.

South Sudan’s recent wars have killed as many as two million people and displaced an estimated four million. They have destroyed physical infrastructure and virtually all of the medical facilities (except those controlled by the military). Most of South Sudan’s population practices subsistence farming, but land mines limit agricultural production. As a result, 90 percent of South Sudan’s population lives on the equivalent of less than $1 per day.

UMCOR Global Health’s top priority in South Sudan is to “prevent maternal deaths and improve child survival.” UMCOR plans to build and renovate health facilities, equip local clinics to deliver babies, provide family planning, and hire health professionals.

In addition, UMCOR is considering initiating school health services and Mobile Health Services Units, which can serve rural villages and refugee camps. UMCOR will seek to identify strengths of local communities and health clinics, encouraging them to build capacity and become independent.

Through these specific strategies, UMCOR hopes to improve delivery of maternal and child health programs and nutrition programs. Here’s what you can do to help: Donate to Advance #184385, the Sudan Emergency fund, and choose South Sudan from the drop-down menu. Consider making a recurring monthly gift. Write a newsletter article or make an announcement about South Sudan for your local church, raising awareness and encouraging donations. The West Ohio Conference is working with UMCOR to build and equip a new clinic in Piol. Meet with your pastor to talk about partnering with UMCOR.

By Julia Kayser

Maize, sorghum, wheat, and groundnuts are the most important food commodities in South Sudan. Sorghum, maize, and groundnuts are the staple foods for the poor in most rural areas. Maize flour and wheat (as bread) are more important for middle-income and rich households in urban areas. Sorghum and maize are generally substitutable for one another but preferences are shifting towards maize over time, especially in the southern half of Southern Sudan. Groundnuts are important for the rural poor in Northern Bahr El Ghazal, Warrap, and Lakes states. Short-term sorghum is harvested in July – August in Greater Equatoria states and in September – October in Greater Bahr el Ghazal, Greater Upper Nile states and Jonglei states, and long-term sorghum in December – January particularly in Lakes, Western Bahr El Ghazal, Warrap, and Upper Nile states. Maize grain and flour from Uganda are available throughout the year because of the bi-modal rainfall pattern and carryover stocks. The main retail markets are in the state capitals, namely, Juba, Aweil, Malakal, Wau, Torit, Kuajok, Bentiu, Bor, Rumbek, and Yambio, but historical price data sets (2006-2010) are only available for Juba, Aweil, Malakal, and Wau only. The most important local wholesale market is in Renk, a mechanized cereal producing area in Upper Nile state. Aweil, Wau, Kuajok, and Bentiu are mostly supplied in cereals from Khartoum and El Obeid, while Malakal is also supplied by Renk through Kosti. In Juba, Torit, Bor, and Rumbek, cereal supplies mostly come from Uganda.

In response to an outbreak of Hepatitis-E Virus (HEV) confirmed this week in Maban County, South Sudan, International Medical Corps rolled out an Outbreak Preparedness and Response Strategy for HEV and other potential outbreaks such as cholera and shigella in Gendrassa refugee camp. HEVcauses an infection of the liver and can be transmitted by consuming water and food contaminated with feces – it generally spreads in places with poor hygiene. To date, there have been 31 confirmed cases of HEV throughout camps in Maban and 16 deaths recorded with the number of cases increasing daily. International Medical Corps’ outbreak strategy includes active surveillance, treatment, management and referral protocol. International Medical Corps is also establishing a 24-hour, 10-bed isolation unit to manage hemorrhagic jaundice cases.

Social mobilization, community outreach and active surveillance of acute jaundice cases are ongoing. As part of efforts to raise awareness, International Medical Corps conducted a series of community leader trainings focused on HEV signs and symptoms, measures to prevent HEV and the importance of timely referral particularly for pregnant women. International Medical Corps trained 25 community health and hygiene volunteers on health education, hygiene promotion and acute jaundice active case finding. The organization works closely with health, protection and water and sanitation partners on coordinated response, active case finding, health and hygiene promotion, and support for vulnerable groups. International Medical Corps is also providing primary health care, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene services in Gendrassa camp.

For more information, visit the International Medical Corps website

Marthe Van Der Wolf

ADDIS ABABA — Sudan and South Sudan are reaching the final stages of their negotiations. Agreements can be finalized next week on most issues, except for the border.

The two countries recently resumed negotiations on economic questions, border areas, oil and security.

"Through this round, we are going to finalize the issue of oil if we manage to go quickly and finalize the supplementary agreement," noted Dr. Mutrif Saddiq of the Sudanese delegation. " Hopefully we finalize also the issue of security and I don't think that it s far from the reach because we are working hard with the panel and its experts to address the contested area of the 14 miles [22 kilometers] south of Bahar Alarab."

On oil, trade and economics, the two countries are drafting agreement frameworks in specialized committees. But a compromise on the dispute over borders is going to take a while. Prominent matters, such as the Abyei region, have not yet even been discussed.

Michael Makuei, the South Sudanese minister for parliamentary affairs and the chairman of the Border Committee, says says that a compromise on the border is just not happening yet.

"We have two main sticking issues," said Makuei. "The most important is the issue of the claim areas. The other sticking point on the border is Kaka town. Kaka town is a town inside South Sudan, which was thought to be a disputed area. Now the government of Sudan is talking of Kaka area. Kaka area is different from Kaka town and aside we are saying, if you are talking of Kaka area than you delete Kaka town from the disputed areas and take it to the claim areas."

Both countries face sanctions if they don't reach an accord by the United Nations deadline of September 22. Makuei says South Sudan believes that the government of Sudan will change its mind at the last minute and accept the United Nations map, because there is no other option.

"This is supposed to be a comprehensive agreement that encompasses everything," Makuei said. "Even the agreed ones will not be operational unless we agree on the other outstanding issues."

But Dr. Mutrif Saddiq of the Sudanese delegation doesn't think that it will be a problem if the two countries don't make the deadline.

"If we don't finish, the panel is at liberty to advise or to recommend to United Nations Security Council their recommendations and their views about the way forward," Saddiq explained. "Even the issue of the border, just for the experts, it will take months so the time is for the design of the way forward on the uncompleted issues, not necessarily to resolve the issues."

South Sudan gained independence in 2011 from Sudan, ending the Sudanese civil war. The presidents of both countries are expected to arrive in Addis Ababa just before the deadline, but a date has not been confirmed yet.