'Our People Are Afraid to Gather': South Sudan Churches Reel After Rumbek Clashes
Weeks after fighting between two communities in Lakes State left dozens dead, pastors say some believers have stopped coming to services and churches are carrying the grief.
See where this is ›RUMBEK, South Sudan —
Churches in South Sudan's Lakes State are struggling to keep worship going and to help displaced families after deadly clashes between the Nyang and Pakam communities in and around Rumbek, the state capital, Christian Daily International reported Nov. 9, drawing on a report by International Christian Concern (ICC).
See where this is ›The fighting began Oct. 8 in Rumbek and grew worse the next morning, according to the report. Places named in the coverage include Nyangkot village on the edge of Rumbek and Amok Payam, north of the town.
“Our people are afraid to gather. Some have stopped coming to services because they do not know when the next gunshot will sound,” a local pastor working with ICC said. The pastor added that the conflict “has left the church wounded.” Children who attended Sunday school are now described as hiding in fear.
Another pastor told ICC that the roots of the fighting are land, cattle and revenge. “We bury our dead and try to comfort the wounded, but the fear remains,” a local pastor said. The pastors were not named in the report.
Death counts differ. South Sudan's Ministry of Information first put the toll at about 71, including four soldiers. Rumbek Central County Executive Director Padhil Maker reported 46 dead, among them three women and a girl, and 65 hurt, according to Radio Tamazuj. Army spokesman Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai Koang estimated about 40 deaths. The U.N. Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) said Oct. 13 that state authorities had recorded 60 deaths and 78 injuries from Oct. 8 to 9.
UNMISS said about 500 families were temporarily displaced. U.N. peacekeepers protected Rumbek State Hospital, and the mission evacuated 17 aid workers who were trapped in Amok Payam.
ICC also pointed to the appointment of Alapayo Manyang Kuctiel, a former archbishop and bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Rumbek, to a government post over gender and social welfare after he retired earlier this year. Earlier, in an Oct. 6 statement reported by Radio Tamazuj, the South Sudan Council of Churches raised alarm over killings, abductions and displacement in Upper Nile, Jonglei, Unity and Warrap states; Justin Badi Arama, primate of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, was among the leaders raising those concerns.
What we don't know yet: The final death toll is still unclear, with official counts ranging from about 40 to about 71. The report does not name the churches or the pastors affected, and Watchman News has not independently confirmed the pastors' accounts.
