UN urges South Sudan government to create a hybrid court for war crimes News
UN urges South Sudan government to create a hybrid court for war crimes

The UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan [official website] on Monday urged [UN report] the South Sudan government to create a hybrid for adjudicating war crimes.

Earlier in September the South Sudan government signed the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan [text, PDF] recognizing the need for reform. In support of South Sudan’s agreement to bring about peace, the Commission urges the government “to use the opportunity created by the renewal of the peace agreement to ensure justice and accountability for the victims of the many crimes committed against its population.” However, according to the Commission, less than 24 hours after signed the agreement, fighting among the conflicting sides continued.

The Commission urges the government to recognize that the only way to usher in peace is to provide justice to “the many victims of the five-year conflict” by holding those accountable and “addressing impunity.”

Since the outbreak of violence due to an internal power struggle between government leaders in 2013, more than four million civilians have fled their homes to escape the rampant violence plaguing the country. The report documents acts of murder, torture, unlawful seizure of property, sexual violence and unlawful detention committed by members of the country’s rival military factions.

The Commission calls for the African Union [official website] and South Sudan government to fast-track plants to form the hybrid court, which was agreed to by the government under Chapter V of the peace agreement. However, the government has continued to block the Union’s ability to form this court.