Impunity Endemic In S. Sudan Ahead of Planned Elections: UN Body

FILE - Military trainees parade during the visit of the defense minister to a military training center in Owiny Ki-Bul, Eastern Equatoria, South Sudan on June 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Maura Ajak, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
FILE - Military trainees parade during the visit of the defense minister to a military training center in Owiny Ki-Bul, Eastern Equatoria, South Sudan on June 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Maura Ajak, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Impunity Endemic In S. Sudan Ahead of Planned Elections: UN Body

FILE - Military trainees parade during the visit of the defense minister to a military training center in Owiny Ki-Bul, Eastern Equatoria, South Sudan on June 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Maura Ajak, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
FILE - Military trainees parade during the visit of the defense minister to a military training center in Owiny Ki-Bul, Eastern Equatoria, South Sudan on June 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Maura Ajak, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Armed conflict, violence and entrenched impunity persist in South Sudan as it prepares to hold its first elections, the UN commission investigating human rights in the country said Friday.

The world's newest nation has struggled to find its footing since gaining independence from Sudan in 2011, battling violence, endemic poverty and natural disasters.

"As South Sudan prepares to end its fragile political transition and to hold its first elections in December 2024, armed conflict and gross human rights violations persist," the commission said in its annual report to the UN Human Rights Council.

"Millions of people have been displaced, deprived, traumatised, and continue to live in fear," said the report covering events in 2023, AFP reported.

As South Sudan's transition neared completion, the risk of further mass violence and accompanying gross human rights violations remained ever-present.

"Patterns of violence, violations and entrenched impunity continue to blight the lives of an extremely vulnerable population. The already-dire humanitarian situation will deteriorate further," the report concluded.

The commission, established by the Rights Council in 2016, is charged with gathering evidence on alleged gross rights violations and related crimes, with a view to ending impunity.

One of the poorest countries on the planet despite large oil reserves, South Sudan has spent almost half of its life as a nation at war, and has also endured persistent natural disasters, hunger, economic meltdown and communal conflict.

The commission saw a risk of further gross violations if the factors behind the conflict were not addressed.

Unchecked mass violence and ongoing repression threaten the prospects of durable peace, and must be urgently addressed, the report said.

"Our investigations again found an absolutely unacceptable situation in South Sudan, whereby families and communities are devastated by human rights violations and abuses by armed forces, militias and state institutions acting with impunity," said commission chair Yasmin Sooka.

"South Sudan's immediate and long-term future hinges on political leaders finally making good on their commitments to bring peace, and reverse cyclical human rights violations."

The report said the country's first elections face severe political and logistical challenges.

It warned that while the vote could be moment of great opportunity, it could also bring danger, as electoral grievances may trigger new violence, or compound existing conflicts.

South Sudan's Justice Minister Ruben Madol Arol told the council the report was "deplorable".

It contains "unverified and unrealistic alleged human rights violations which include discrimination against women, inequality, sexual slavery and displacement of millions", he said.

"This description of events does not match the current improvement of the security situation in the country."



EU Leaders Push for Influence at Central Asia Summit

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the region's drift from Moscow's orbit. VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO / AFP
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the region's drift from Moscow's orbit. VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO / AFP
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EU Leaders Push for Influence at Central Asia Summit

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the region's drift from Moscow's orbit. VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO / AFP
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the region's drift from Moscow's orbit. VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO / AFP

Top EU leaders were in Uzbekistan on Friday for a major summit with the heads of five Central Asian states, seeking to press their influence and boost ties in the face of Russian and Chinese competition.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the region's drift from Moscow's orbit, with major powers to both the west and east sensing an opening.

Central Asia is rich in natural resources, on the front lines of climate change and also seen as a key security player as a Muslim-majority region that is trying to contain extremism and shares borders with Afghanistan, Iran, China and Russia.

Leaders from the five states -- Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan -- will meet European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa, head of the European Council.

The summit takes place in the ancient Silk Road city of Samarkand, for centuries a key hub in East-West connections, trade and commerce.

Von der Leyen said she hopes the summit will take Brussels' relations with Central Asia "to the next level" and deepen ties in terms of transport, natural resources, water and energy.

"In these uncertain times, Europe stands for openness and engagement. For Europe, Central Asia is a partner of choice," she said.

Alongside Russia's historic leadership in the region, Türkiye, China, the United States and even the likes of South Korea and Japan are all trying to boost their influence.

For its part, Central Asia -- as large as the EU but home to just 80 million people, one-fifth of those in the 27-member bloc -- has been seeking to boost foreign investment.

Investment

The EU summit offers the countries a chance to get something their neighbors Russia and China cannot yet provide: advanced industrial technology.

Europe, meanwhile, is eyeing the region's precious resources.

On the eve of the summit, Kazakhstan announced discovering potentially its "largest" ever deposit of rare earth elements.

The EU has its sights on uranium deposits, at a time when nuclear power is making a comeback, as well as other strategic metals like titanium, cobalt, and lithium, said Raul Villegas, an analyst at the European Policy Center, a Brussels-based think tank.

As a bloc, the EU is already the region's largest foreign investor, accounting for 40 percent of direct inward investment over the last 10 years.

It is also the largest provider of development aid.

But Russia and China will be difficult to dislodge.

Beijing is pouring cash into ambitious infrastructure projects, while Russia supplies arms and energy, as well as having long-standing cultural and linguistic reach across the former Soviet states.

During a visit to Uzbekistan last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized the United States and Europe for "trying to disrupt our traditionally close commercial, cooperative and cultural ties."

Sanctions, rights

The war in Ukraine and sanctions against Russia will also be on the table, an EU official told AFP.

Central Asia has emerged as one of several hubs through which sanctioned Western goods are re-exported to Russia.

Brussels would like the region to crack down on the flow, as it pushes to keep up the pressure on Moscow at a time when US President Donald Trump pushes a rapprochement with the Kremlin.

Central Asian countries have shown "willingness" to act and "some progress" but "we would like to see a lot more from our partners," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Further action was not a precondition for cooperation in other sectors but "an important element in order to advance our relations," the official added.

Despite pleas from NGOs, human rights were not expected to feature heavily in the talks.

"We're not going there to preach, but we are going to make our concerns known, to work with them, to have a dialogue," the official said.

All five of the countries are classed as "not free" by the Freedom House NGO that tracks democratic rights around the world.