The breakdown of the fragile peace in South Sudan, illustrated by the government’s inability to prevent an attack on American and international aid workers this past July, was highlighted by State Department and human rights experts at a Capitol Hill hearing chaired today by Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04).

     “Peace was never fully established in South Sudan as a result of the August 2015 agreement,” said Smith, Chairman of the House panel on Africa. “In fact, fighting spread to areas that had not previously seen armed conflict.  An estimated 50,000 South Sudanese have been killed since December 2013, more than 2.5 million have been displaced, and 4.8 million face severe hunger.” Click Here for Smith’s Opening Statement.

     In August international news organizations discovered and reported that, weeks earlier, three days of intense fighting occurred in the capital city of Juba, where South Sudanese troops stormed a hotel that was known to house international aid workers. Reports indicated these soldiers focused on Americans, carried out both real and mock executions and raped several women. The U.N. peacekeepers, stationed less than a mile away, did not send aid despite urgent calls for help.

     Smith recently returned from a late August trip to South Sudan where he received a commitment from both South Sudanese President Kiir and Defense Minister Jook to issue a zero-tolerance policy for all armed forces against rape and sexual assault. Smith also pressed for unfettered access to humanitarian workers to the citizens of South Sudan who need them.



    “The exploitation of children as child soldiers must stop as well. According to UNICEF, 16,000 child soldiers have been recruited by all sides since civil war began in December 2013,” said Smith. “Moreover, this year’s U.S. State Department Trafficking in Persons Report gave South Sudan a failing grade—Tier 3—in part because of child soldiers.”

     “We are prepared to support the imposition of an arms embargo on South Sudan in the U.N. Security Council,” said Donald Booth, Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan. “Beyond the arms embargo, we stand prepared to impose visa restrictions on individuals involved in public corruption.” Click Here for Booth’s Testimony.

     Brian Adeba, Associate Director of Policy at the Enough Project, testified the situation on the ground in South Sudan: “Horrific atrocities against civilians continue unabated. As these atrocities unfold, the need to protect civilians has never been so urgent. That is why the proposed peacekeeping force authorized by the UN Security Council is a welcome idea because it not only holds the potential to protect innocent civilians but also to put the peace process back on track.” Click Here for Adeba’s Testimony.

     “We have the deeply disturbing phenomenon of both government and opposition forces perpetuating the terrible humanitarian crisis in the country, in part by forcibly blocking humanitarian programs,” said hearing witness Ambassador Princeton Lyman, Senior Advisor at the United States Institute of Peace. “Even worse, more than fifty aid workers have been killed by these forces, others attacked, and obstacles put in the way of transporting food, medicines, and other help to the millions facing terrible conditions.” Click Here for Lyman’s Testimony.

     The most recent State Department human rights report, as well as similar reports from international organizations and South Sudanese civil society groups, cites widespread human rights violations throughout the country. These include ethnic-based extrajudicial killings, mass displacement of civilians, rape and sexual slavery through unrestrained trafficking in persons, arbitrary arrests and detentions, kidnappings and the recruitment and use of child soldiers.

     “We all thought South Sudan was on the path to democracy,” said Smith. “However, it has now become clear that the international community, under the lead of the U.S. and the U.N., must take action.”

     Smith has held 12 hearings on South Sudan and Sudan, going back to 1996. A recent hearing took place in April of this year and was titled South Sudan’s Prospects for Peace and Security. Excerpts from Smith’s opening statement for that hearing can be found here.

      The hearing was broadcast live by CSPAN. To watch a video of the whole hearing, click here or on image below.