South Sudan’s civil war, which started off as a political disagreement veered into a violent conflict based on tribe, “with civilians being targeted on the basis of ethnicity and perceived political allegiance”, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has reported.
As a result, the December 2022 HRW report indicates, “Nearly 400,000 people have died, South Sudan’s social fabric has been torn, infrastructure destroyed and survivors left with mental health scars.”
While the September 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) resulted in the formation of a unity government in February 2020, conflict between the government and the opposition parties has continued, as well as intercommunal violence in some South Sudanese States.
A study conducted by the South Sudan Law Society and the United Nations Development Programme in 2019 reported that more than 40 percent of people surveyed across six South Sudanese States showed symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder, according to the Organization for World Peace (OWP).
In his May 6 input on Emmanuel Radio, Fr. Opi said the “horrific things” that South Sudanese have experienced have contributed to the trauma.
“What they always remember is the horrific things they have seen happening either to them or others,” he said, and added, “Most of them see people being killed, including their relatives in a tragic manner.”
The member of the Clergy of Torit Diocese continued, “People are born in war; they grew up in war and they are living in war; they have seen a lot of things that make them mentally confused,” the Catholic Priest said.
“It’s our responsibility as churches and the community to make sure these people are helped to be productive in the communities,” he further said, and continued, “If these people are not helped, they will resort to unnecessary behaviors and become bad people in the community.”
Fr. Opi said, “It’s only God that will help our people to get out of these situations and get healed.”
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.
