Displaced South Sudanese waiting to be registered at a Red Cross compound in Wau, in northwestern South Sudan. PHOTO | AFP
By JOSEPH ODUHA
In Summary
Rampant land grabbing is fuelling ethnic strife in South Sudan’s Equatoria State, an official has said.
The National Land Commission Coordinator, Mr Butrus Apollo, said
in Juba Tuesday that the situation could turn tragic if not addressed.
Mr Apollo said some disgruntled politicians were using the land
grabbing issue to foment turmoil as they pursued their personal
interests.
He noted the the matter was difficult to address without a
policy or clear laws on the roles of the various land institutions in
place.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have a land policy in place….that is
the major reason. In 2009, a Land Act was passed into law, but it is not
enough," he said.
The South Sudan transitional constitution provides that land belongs to the people, but the government remains the custodian.
Mr Apollo disclosed that the national land agency had received
at least six cases this year alone, while many others ended up in the
courts.
After the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (2005), Juba experienced
unprecedented population growth, accompanied by expansion and
proliferation of informal settlements, characterised by numerous land
disputes.
The disputes at times erupted into violence, according to the Norwegian Peoples Aid 2011 report on land grabbing.
An independent analyst, Mr David De Dau, said the land grabbing
claims in Equatoria had taken a more political than socio-economic
dimension.
He accused the leaders from the region of being holders of two
passports, a situation that put to question their loyalty to the
war-torn South Sudan.
“The fact that majority of Equatorians are double passport
holders, has divided their loyalty, and a divided loyalty may mean less
of patriotism and nationalism in most cases,” he said.
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