Possible developments of movement and settlement patterns and humanitarian needs in the next six months (January – June 2021) after the redesignation of the Protection of Civilians sites. Download

On the 4 September 2020, the Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) in South Sudan announced in a press conference that UNMISS had begun to ‘progressively withdraw its troops and police from the Bor and Wau PoCs’, and to redesignate the sites ‘no longer PoC sites but camps for internally displaced people (IDP) under the jurisdiction of the government’ (UNMISS 4 September 2020). Later on in September UNMISS also removed its troops and police…

Nyachangkuoth Rambang Tai, representing the organization Assistance Mission for Africa, was invited to provide a civil society perspective and recommendations when the Security Council met to discuss the situation in South Sudan. The NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security facilitated her statement but she did not speak on behalf of the NGOWG. Download

This report explores urbanization in Bentiu and Rubkona towns in Unity State, South Sudan. Using a host community perception survey and qualitative interviews conducted in August of 2018, this case study examinesthe impact that the introduction of a Protection of Civilians site has had on urbanization, establishes the perception of the host community, and clarifies what constitutes urbanization in a South Sudanese context. The findings revealed that insecurity in the area had interrupted development in…

This memo addresses the future of the nearly 200,000 residents of the Protection of Civilians Sites (POCS) in South Sudan in the context of the implementation of the current peace agreement which envisages the closure of the POCS and the return of the residents to their former homes. The authors draw attention to the changing nature of public authority in the POCS during the five years since their establishment, and the significant role these local…

At the time of writing in March 2017, the lack of physical humanitarian space in the PoC is having a major impact on service access with congestion cutting across and linking the different problems faced in the difference sectors. At the same time, overcrowding is increasing the dependency of people on UNMISS and humanitarian agencies, while also leading to a reduction in peoples resilience and ability to recover from the shocks produced by the now…

This article examines the public authority of chiefs’ courts within the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) Protection of Civilians Sites (PoCs). After December 2013, UNMISS peacekeepers opened the gates of their bases to around 200,000 civilians fleeing war. This unintentionally created a legal and political anomaly. Over time, conflicts and crimes rose within the sites, and UNMISS improvised a form of administration. But while the internationals sought technical solutions, people displaced within the…

This publication is a first step in enabling the humanitarian and peacekeeping communities to be better prepared for future protection of civilians (POC) sites. It reflects on the experiences of the POC sites in South Sudan, but is designed for humanitarians and peacekeepers working in other crises and at the policy level. It challenges actors to think critically about the complex issues that emerge inside and around protected sites. It provides suggestions and lessons that…

This executive summary presents the main findings from the Independent Special Investigation, mandated by the UN to examine two aspects of the outbreak of armed violence in Juba, in July 2016: violence against civilians, including sexual violence, within or in the vicinity of the UNMISS Headquarters, known as “UN House” and its two adjacent “protection of civilians” (POC) sites, which house more than 27,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs), and the attack on Terrain camp, a…

This paper examines the initiatives of people living in PoC sites – functionally, internally displaced people (IDPs) – to invigorate their own authority structures and security and justice mechanisms. In particular, we focus upon the practices of customary chiefs’ courts. Download

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