From Civil War to Civil War – South Sudan and the United Nations

Kimberly Webb

Introduction to International Politics

12th April 2020

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On July 9th, 2011, we saw an end to Africa’s longest civil war in history. In 22 short

years, an estimated 1.5 million Sudanese people lost their lives to brutal, guerilla warfare

[CITATION BBC16 \n \l 1033 ]. Finally, after extended mediation from the United Nations

between the Sudanese rebels and the government, South Sudan was granted independence. Still

today, 9 years later, South Sudan is the world’s youngest country. While now an independent

nation, South Sudan’s struggles are far from over. According to the World Population Review,

South Sudan is one of the most dangerous countries in the world, topped only by Syria and

Afghanistan [CITATION Wor20 \n \l 1033 ]. Now fighting a civil war within its own, new

country, South Sudan is laden with refugees, civil unrest, violence, and a flagrant disregard for

human rights. United Nations peacekeepers have been stationed in South Sudan even before it

gained independence, but have yet to help this war-wracked country find peace.

The goals of the United Nations in South Sudan have evolved with the young country’s

development. Originally, the primary prerogative of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan,

otherwise known as UNMISS, was to help support the new government and to aide in the

country’s development[CITATION Uni20 \n \l 1033 ]. In 2013, it became clear that the United

Nations needed to reassess and shift their focus in South Sudan.

Political tension in South Sudan had been bubbling since the country’s conception before

finally boiling over in December of 2013. Some, including South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir,

allege that Vice President of the country, Riek Machar, had attempted a coup d’état, which lead

to the violent outbreak. Machar denies these claims. [CITATION BBC13 \n \l 1033 ]. Regardless

of the validity of these allegations, it is clear that political hostilities between Machar and Kiir

erupted that December and, just 18 months after gaining their own independence, South Sudan

plunged into yet another vicious civil war.

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Throughout the civil war, parties on both sides attacked civilians mercilessly. Schools,

health care centers, churches and other public institutions were intentionally target, looted, and

destroyed. Civilians homes were burned to the ground. Sexual assault and rape were common

weapons of war, with little accountability or consequence [ CITATION Ken19 \l 1033 ]. Over

400,000 people died during the five year long civil war, and an estimated 2.24 million were

displaced, now refugees in their own country or seeking asylum elsewhere [ CITATION Rub20 \l

1033 ].

In May of 2014, just months after the outbreak of the civil war, the United Nations

recognized the need to change their objectives in South Sudan [CITATION Uni20 \n \l 1033 ].

Their goal was no longer to work towards economic stability and governmental development.

The United Nations Security Council voted to deploy an additional 6,000 peacekeepers to South

Sudan [CITATION Rub20 \l 1033 ]. Their prerogative now is to protect the civilians of South

Sudan, monitor human rights, help provide humanitarian assistance, and help to implement the

Cessation of Hostilities Agreement reached between the two warring parties in August of 2018

[CITATION Uni \n \l 1033 ].

A peace agreement was signed in South Sudan in 2018, putting an end to the 9-year-old

countries second civil war. Even so, South Sudan remains one of the most dangerous countries

in the world [ CITATION Wor20 \l 1033 ]. The United Nations reports that they still have 19,180

peacekeepers stationed in South Sudan[ CITATION Uni20 \l 1033 ]. Over 100 of these blue

helmets have been killed in the country since the civil war first erupted, making South Sudan the

most dangerous place for a humanitarian to be. [ CITATION Ken19 \l 1033 ].

A signed peace treaty and the increased presence of peacekeepers has done little to

improve the dangerous conditions the South Sudanese live in. There is still continuous armed
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conflict and civil unrest, as well as frequent burglaries, carjacking’s, kidnappings and the like

[ CITATION Wor20 \l 1033 ]. There are even some who argue that the peace treaty has actually

amplified the already volatile climate in South Sudan [ CITATION Emm19 \l 1033 ].

Peacekeepers are not only combatting civilian unrest, but government attacks on human rights as

well. Sudanese civilians are subjected to grotesque conditions when detained, including electric

shock. Other civilians and peacekeepers are fighting towards freedom of speech under the

oppressive South Sudanese government [ CITATION Ken19 \l 1033 ].

Peace agreements, treaties and solutions continue to be presented to help ease the woes in

South Sudan to no avail. These policies or solutions consistently lack accountability and

penalties for not following the guidelines that have been put in place. The most recent suggestion

was the implementation of a transitional government, set to be put in place by May of 2019. This

implementation has been met with postponement after postponement, and there still are no real

solutions to the peace crisis in South Sudan [ CITATION And19 \l 1033 ].

South Sudan is a fragile country, war-torn from the moment it came into existence. With

displaced citizens all across the country, extreme poverty and food instability, volatile and

violent politicians and the splintered remains of militias roaming the streets it is hard to imagine

a near future in which South Sudan will find itself at peace. It seems to be that direct, consistent

UN involvement, both in accountability and in the creation of governmental systems, is the

country’s best chance at peace. [ CITATION And191 \l 1033 ]. While this type of solution may

seem extreme, we have yet to see South Sudan be successful in their attempts at peace without

extreme external intervention.

Works Cited
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BBC News. (2013, December 18). South Sudan Opposition Head Riek Machar Denies Coup Bid.
Retrieved from BBC News: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-25427619
BBC News. (2016, April 27). South Sudan Profile - Overview. Retrieved from BBC News:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14019208
Brigety, R. E., Campbell, J., & Frazer, J. E. (2020, April 10). Civil War in South Sudan. Retrieved
from Council on Foreign Relations: https://www.cfr.org/interactive/global-conflict-
tracker/conflict/civil-war-south-sudan
Farge, E. (2019, September 16). United Nations Sees an Increase in Child Soldiers Recruited in
South SUdan. Retrieved from Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-southsudan-
un/united-nations-sees-increase-in-child-soldiers-recruited-in-south-sudan-
idUSKBN1W12BG
Mednick, S. (2019, October 23). South Sudan's Former Child Soldiers Struggle to Move On.
Retrieved from ABC News: https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/south-
sudans-child-soldiers-struggle-move-66480152
Roth, K. (2019). South Sudan. Retrieved from Human Rights Watch:
https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2019/country-chapters/south-sudan
Tchie, A. E. (2019, November 17). Why South Sudan's Attempts at Peace Continue to Fail.
Retrieved from The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/why-south-sudans-
attempts-at-peace-continue-to-fail-126846
Tchie, A. E. (2019, March 13). Why the Latest Peace Deal in South Sudan Won't Hold. Retrieved
from The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/why-the-latest-peace-deal-in-
south-sudan-wont-hold-113125
United Nations Peacekeeping. (2020, January). UNMISS Fact Sheet. Retrieved from United
Nations Peacekeeping: https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/mission/unmiss
United Nations. (n.d.). UNMIS - United Nations Mission in Sudan. Retrieved from United Nations
Peacekeeping: https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/mission/past/unmis/background.shtml
World Population Review. (2020, February 17). Most Dangerous Countries in the World 2020 .
Retrieved from World Population Review:
https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/most-dangerous-countries/