SOUTH SUDAN: Bishop of Malakal Described the Humanitarian Situation of Refugee’s from Sudan as Dire

Ginaba Lino

The Catholic Bishop of Malakal Diocese has raised concern on the humanitarian situation of refugees fleeing from Sudan’s conflict describing it as dire despite Church Intervention.

Bishop Stephen Nyodho Ador said the humanitarian situation in Malakal is dire despite the intervention by the Catholic Church.

Speaking to the media in Juba, Bishop Nyodho explained that, after the outbreak of the conflict in Sudan, many people have been forced to flee and seek refuge in the area of Malakal town.

“When the returnees and refugees entered the country, they were stationed at Renk and needed to be transported to their states of origin.”

The national government airlifted some and the Catholic Church of Malakal Diocese also responded by sending a cargo boat with a capacity of up to 900 passengers but the situation remained tough, “Bishop Nyodho stated.”

“Right from the beginning, many people wanted to go to their states but transportation was difficult, the Diocese of Malakal responded by sending a cargo boat but the situation is still tough.”

According to Bishop Nyodho, at least five children have died on the way during the process of transportation to their destination due to a long journey that takes almost three days.

The Malakal prelate calls on the South Sudan Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs to look into the situation of Malakal.

He regrets lack of support from the national government to the State government of Upper Nile which contributes to low responds to the humanitarian crisis.

“We call upon the ministry of humanitarian affairs in the country to look specifically into the issue of Malakal because the government of Upper Nile is finding it difficult to answer the situation.”

Bishop Stephen revealed that the Catholic Diocese of Malakal is in trouble as they are running out of funds and the number of the people fleeing Sudan continue to increase.

Much as it is not enough, the Catholic bishop appreciated the support rendered by the humanitarian organizations who joined the Catholic Diocese of Malakal in providing the support to the people.

Malakal has been one of the areas affected badly by numerous factors including subnational conflicts, floods and the influx of refugees and returnees from Sudan.

Over thousands of refugees are forced to return to South Sudan as the conflict in Sudan escalates.

As the conflict in Sudan continues into its third month, over 250,000 people have crossed international borders to seek safety in neighboring Egypt, South Sudan, Chad, Central African Republic and Ethiopia. Among them, over 67,000 South Sudanese who had sought asylum in Sudan have decided to return to South Sudan.

Before the conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out on 15 April, Sudan hosted over 803,000 South Sudanese refugees.