Situation Report – South Sudan
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) is poised to respond to the crisis in Jonglei State in South Sudan. Since late December, an estimated 100,000 people have been displaced due to ethnic conflict between the Lou Nuer and Murle tribes, and more than 3,000 people have been killed.
Typically women and children are abducted in raids and cattle are stolen. Authorities have reported approximately 1,800 people have been abducted and nearly 90,000 cattle have been stolen since the attacks began on December 23, 2011.
The troubled state of Jonglei has a long history of ethnic tensions, cattle raiding, kidnappings and sometimes violent competition for scarce resources. The most recent attacks were led by the self-proclaimed Nuer White Army, a group of as many as 6,000 armed youth from the Lou Nuer ethnic group.
The Council of Churches of South Sudan (which includes PC(USA) mission partner churches) and RECONCILE have been trying to reconcile the Lou Nuer and Murle.
Photo by Hannah McNeish, IRIN.
PDA Response
PDA will be responding as a member of the ACT Alliance and will also respond to needs identified by our mission partners RECONCILE, the Presbyterian Church of Sudan and the Sudan Council of Churches.
The most immediate needs are food, shelter, water, and medical supplies and services. PDA’s response will help to provide relief materials to affected populations and explore the possibility of extending other kinds of support, such as improved access to water, sanitation facilities and shelter.
How to Help
Give. You can help in this response through your financial gifts to DR000043 – Sudan; or give to the PDA General Account – DR000148.
Act: Sign up to receive PDA RIN (Rapid Information Network) emails to be aware of current responses and urgent needs you can share with your congregation.
Pray: Specific requests for prayer have been received from our mission partners and can be found on the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations Blog page.
