“It’s really shameful”: Catholic Bishop in South Sudan on Killings in His Diocese

“You cannot kill someone because of a simple issue that can be settled in the way of dialogue,” the 52-year-old Catholic Bishop who started his Episcopal Ministry last year on May 15 said.

He explained, “If the cattle are not destroying the farms they would have stayed but the animals are destroying the farms of those depending on agriculture.”

According to Reuters, the February 3 violence in Kajo-Keji County started after fighters from a rebel group killed six people from a herding community. The herders retaliated by killing 21 civilians in a nearby area, 

The victims included five children and a pregnant woman, Kajo-Keji County Commissioner, Phanuel Dumo, was quoted as saying. 

In his February 12 homily, Bishop Lodiong said, “South Sudan is very big; there is no need to go from place to place looking for pasture for the animals which will lead to losing innocent lives.”

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He called on the warrying communities to strive “to live together in peace and harmony since they all belong to God.”

“We should live together in peace and harmony because it’s not good to take away someone’s life because of a simple issue,” Bishop Lodiong said.

Patrick Juma Wani is a South Sudanese journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. Patrick holds a Diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication from Makerere Institute for Social Development (MISD) in Uganda. He has over 7 years of extensive experience in leading the development and implementation of media, advocacy, communication and multimedia strategy and operations, with an excellent track record of editorial leadership, budget management, and stakeholder outreach. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.