Rescuing the Peace in Southern Sudan

2009 was an extremely violent year for southerners: more than 2,500
people were killed and 350,000 fled their homes. This is a higher toll
than currently reported in Darfur, the better-known conflict in western
Sudan, where the humanitarian situation is also extremely concerning.
Much of the violence is taking place in remote rural areas, where
communities are often poorest and most difficult to reach. Many of the
victims have been women and children. In one attack in a village in
Jonglei state in August 2009, some 161 people were killed, most of them
women and children.
The violence stems from multiple and sometimes overlapping sources.
Tensions between northern and southern Sudan, including over CPA
implementation, have resulted in clashes within joint north–south
military units. Competition over natural resources combined with
widespread ownership of small arms is fuelling violence between
southern Sudan’s many tribes. The region also continues to be badly
affected by attacks from the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a vicious
rebel group with origins in northern Uganda.