A three-day conference to find roadmap for sustainable peace, security, development and restoration of hope for the Kajokeji citizens returning home from the refugee camps in Uganda has been concluded.
The event was held at the Diocese of Kajokeji compound, with the aim of setting a roadmap for the peaceful return of the people of Kajokeji from the refugee camps in Uganda and how to develop the county.
The 3 days conference started on Wednesday and ended on Friday last week.
The peace event brought together the local chiefs, religious leaders, SSRC, people with disabilities, peace partners, youths, land lords, returnees, Kajokeji refugee leaders from Uganda, government officials, military leaders- national security, army, police, prisons and fire brigade.
During the discussions, the participants aired out the root causes of the conflict in the county and also came up with resolutions on how the county can realized total peace and development.
Among the root causes of conflict identified by the participants in the conference were; leadership crisis, armed cattle raiding, abuse of power, lumbering, land and border dispute with neighboring Uganda.
Yanta Daniel Alisha who is the Secretary of the committee read out the resolutions at the end of the conference.
“Armed cattle herders should return to their places of origin immediately and that peace conference should be organized in Kajokeji County for political economic and social reconciliations,” Alisha recited one of the resolutions.
“In response to the plight of limited police in Kajokeji County members resolved that local recruitment for community police should be conducted with initiatives from local contributions to keep law and order in the area.”
He said the participants have also resolved that there should also respect for the rule of law, and that government should address land and border disputes in consultation with the land lords.
They also resolved to have dialogue between security and local community of Kajokeji; army should be transferred regularly, and that military barracks to be relocated from civilian population among others.
Gonyi Anthony James, Acting Boma Chief in Kajokeji County said border issues with neighboring Uganda needed to be addressed by the South Sudan’s government.
“We undergo a lot of problems with boundary issues. Right now the Aringas of Yumbe District and parts of Moyo are entering deep into my Boma, so they even stopped my returnees from settling in their places. They are claiming that land belongs to them. So the route that we used to come into Kajokeji is where they (Ugandans) are settling,” he said.
Konga Rose Jackson, a returnee from Palorinya Camp in Uganda says their lives in the refugee camp are getting harder as food ratios per person have been reduced to 4 kilograms.
“I have come to here to see how Kajokeji is because life in the settlement is getting harder and harder more especially the issue of food ratio. The food ratio is given only 4 kilograms per person for the family in which that food is very little and the children are not fit enough,” she explained.
An initiative known as the ROMOGI declaration came up with political, social and economic resolutions.
It was founded and funded by the United Agency for Community Development board members, patriotic descendants of Kajokeji including honorable descendants and well-wishers.
It compromises of four members from each payam in the county representing elders, women, youth and persons with disability.
