By Chinasaokwu Helen Okoro
In the far northern town of Renk, South Sudan, a new mobile court has become a beacon of hope, delivering much-needed justice to an area where it has been long absent.
Over the past three weeks, the court, a collaboration between the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), national and state judicial bodies, and international partners, has processed 54 cases.
One mother, whose child was a victim of rape, spoke about the importance of justice. She firmly believes that those who commit such crimes must face the consequences:
“If the accused man can’t accept the impact of what he did, he must go to prison. This is my belief, because I don’t know what consequences might be experienced by my child in the long term. Even if he apologizes for his crime, something bad may happen to my child, and I cannot afford the burden and responsibility for this. So, I say let him face the sentence he is given for his crime,” she explained.
South Sudan has endured decades of conflict that have devastated infrastructure and displaced communities, leaving many to rely on traditional courts. Roufeita Zubeir Mohamed Nur, a prosecutor in Renk, highlighted the challenges the local court has faced due to a shortage of judges:
“Since 2021, the Renk County Court has faced a lot of challenges due to the lack of a High Court Judge. The pending cases had risen to more than 60, including murder, rape, and drug abuse. The prisons were very congested, so we are pleased the UNMISS-supported mobile court is here because it reduces the burden placed on us due to the delay of many cases that have waited too long to be heard and for justice to be delivered,” said Nur.
The mobile courts help build credibility and trust in the rule of law, demonstrated by the fact that new cases are being registered by people in the wake of the hearings because they have more confidence that justice will be served.
UNMISS is also providing technical support, training and new infrastructure to help transform all South Sudan’s justice chain in the longer term, including strengthening community policing, building the capacity of judicial, corrections and prison officers, as well as constructing police posts and courthouses.
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