Chairman Smith, Ranking Member Bass, and members of the committee, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to testify today about South Sudan. I focus on South Sudan and Peacekeeping for the organization Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC), which works to improve protection for civilians caught in conflicts around the world. Over the last year, I have interviewed several hundred civilians affected by the conflict in South Sudan, as well as officials from the U.N. peacekeeping mission, the Government of South Sudan, the opposition, and local civil society.
Two years of armed conflict in South Sudan have inflicted devastating harm on the civilian population. Government and opposition forces both often waged war through targeting civilians, frequently along ethnic lines. They have killed, injured, and raped civilians; burned villages; destroyed or damaged schools and health clinics; and looted property, including cattle, food, and humanitarian supplies. More than two million people have been forced to flee their homes, with about 186,000 still sheltering in U.N. compounds. At the end of my testimony, I have included the story of one woman I interviewed, to provide a sense of what people have gone through.
The much-delayed return of former Vice President Riek Machar would represent a notable step in the peace process, but just that—a first step, and one that does not in itself greatly reduce the risk of further violence and civilian harm. Over the last year, including after the signing of the peace agreement, fighting has spread to new parts of the country, often with government forces responsible for continuing patterns of abuses against civilians. In many locations, rising interand intra-communal tensions have also led to violence.
While the formation of the Transitional Government of National Unity is important, it will not inherently address what underlies much of the ongoing civilian harm, including deep divisions that have fueled violence in South Sudan. It will therefore be critical that the U.S. and other countries, including those in the region, remain engaged and apply pressure to ensure tangible progress in a number of crucial areas, such as security sector reform and accountability. An arms embargo and the establishment of the transitional justice mechanisms outlined under the August 2015 peace agreement are both critical starting points.