Account
of Visit to Juba: October-November 2014
In addition to our
primary visit to Bishop Gwynne College (reported separately) we also
had the privilege of meeting other groups in Juba.
Justice, Peace
and Reconciliation Commission
We were invited to
attend the overseas partners meetings of the Justice, Peace and
Reconciliation Committee (JPRC) of the ECSSS which included people
(friends) known to us from the UK and USA.
The purpose of this
meeting was to acquaint the partners with the current and planned
work of the commission.
JPRC comes in as
stage two in the process where SUDRA (ECSSS Relief Association)
responds in stage one with immediate humanitarian relief.
It is evident that
the degree of humanitarian response, although not in itself
insignificant, is tiny in relation to the need. (It is estimated that
approaching four million people - half the population of South Sudan-
are suffering from food or other basic needs shortages.)
However in stage two
(JPRC) the churches have a huge advantage over other bodies.
Government agencies are often treated with suspicion and are seen as
one-sided. But NGOs come from outside and it takes time to establish
sufficient trust. However, the churches are already there with their
pastors, women's groups (like Mothers' Union) and other structures
preaching hope and unity in Christ. (We all belong to Christ whatever
our ethnicity.)
It is against this
background that we can see the importance of training not only
pastors but lay-leaders in understanding trauma and its consequences
and how to bring healing and reconciliation to the people.
We were privileged
to visit Juna 3 IDP camp on the outskirts of Juba. This UNMISS camp
shelters a very large number of ethnic Nuer who fled following the
violence of December 2013 when soldiers and others with guns, often
drunk, went on a shooting spree.
Confident
Children out of Conflict
This charity cares
for girls who have been living in danger in the twilight areas of
Juba. Often abused both physically and mentally up to fifty (mostly)
girls aged from one to sixteen reside at the compound next door but
one to BGC. The work is the inspiration of Cathy Groenendijk, a
Ugandan woman, ably supported by her husband Wim and a band of mostly
volunteers from overseas (Europe and the Americas) and Juba itself.
The stories of these
girls are hard to listen to. Their faces tell of the horrors they
have been through – often sometimes in danger of their physical
lives as well as their moral ones. These children can shock, but they
are also aware of what love is because of the work of CCC.
The charity pays for
them to go to school and does everything in its power to protect them
from the predatory world from which they come. At the outbreak of
violence in Juba on 15th December they transported them
all to Yei to a partner hostel. Some of them still remain there.
Since then new girls have taken their place.
This work is totally
reliant on charitable giving. We took new children's clothes donated
by a parent in Wool Primary School, Dorset which were very well
received.
Juba Schools
Despite being in
Juba such a short time Tina was able to get to three schools while we
were there.
Juba Diocesan Model
Secondary School is very near BGC. It now has the reputation of being
the leading secondary school not only in Juba but in the whole of the
country. We conveyed letters from and brought letters back for
sponsors.
The school is in
very good heart and looks attractive. The only disapointment is that
the new girl's dormitory remains closed because the school has
decided that a house containing a large number of teenage girls in a
city where, not so long ago, drunken men with guns were roaming the
streets at night is not a good idea. (It is hard not to
over-emphasise the impact of 15th December 2013 and the
days that followed.)
Tina also visited
Ginana Primary School with a gift of USD $300 from Wool Primary
School. It was our intention to deliver this in a visit in February
last year but circumstances did not let us travel. The area around
this school has deteriorated in recent months with children from very
make-shift housing crowding in. Despite this the school has now moved
on to include a Primary Seven year. They have constructed a mud and
timber building (wattle and daub) to accommodate them.
St. Batholomew's
Primary School, Royal Wootton Bassett also donated USD $300 which
Tina took to a primary school in Munuki payam (district), a western
suburb of Juba. The school is doing well under the stability of the
same able headteacher it has had for the last five years.
Picture link to
follow!
Trevor and Tina
Stubbs
