Rainy season threat to displaced people in South Sudan

“We are worried for our lives and for the future, if we survive.” 17-year-old Teresa, a Shilluk who recently fled to Noon.

Nomads of war: perpetual displacements of South Sudanese families in Upper Nile

London/Juba, 27 April 2015:  Continuing clashes in Upper Nile state, South Sudan, are leading to deaths and displacement of people, many of whom were already living in dire conditions, warns the international medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF). MSF is concerned that the added pressure on already overcrowded UN sites as the rainy season sets in could make conditions even more dangerous for those seeking refuge from the fighting.

In Malakal, over 6,600 people have fled their homes to seek shelter at the UN Protection of Civilians sites (PoC), while in Melut, a town north of Malakal; over 1,665 families have sought refuge across the river Nile since the beginning of April. MSF is calling on all parties to the South Sudanese conflict to allow for necessary humanitarian access to all parts of the country.

This new wave of displacement, sparked by clashes that started at the beginning of this month, has pushed the total number of internally displaced people at the UN base in Malakal to 26,500, causing living conditions to deteriorate. The newly displaced people are living in big tents, with dozens of families sharing the same space and sleeping on the floor. MSF continues to provide medical care in the UN base’s hospital, while other agencies are on site to ensure sufficient water supply and proper sanitation. However, with the increased numbers of displaced people, the few existing resources are increasingly strained.

“The rainy season is just setting in and we have started to see open defecation and long queues at water points on the site due to low water quantity and pressure. Cases of acute diarrhoea are increasing so we are reinforcing our surveillance measures to ensure that outbreaks are prevented. Last year, MSF launched a cholera intervention and vaccination campaign in the camp and we will do so again if necessary,” said Juan Prieto, MSF head of mission in South Sudan. “However, we are afraid that if fighting continues, there will be more displacement, further congestion at the site and conditions will get even worse”.

In Melut, the over 1,665 families that have fled to the west side of the Nile are mostly members of the Shilluk ethnic group who were previously displaced and living in a camp. These families are living under trees, with extremely limited access to latrines which leads to open defecation. People have to travel long distances to fetch water from the Nile, which is not fit for drinking unless it is treated. Other families are scattered all over the west bank of the Nile in Kaka, Kuju and Toruguang Payams, some 80 km away from Melut. These families have no shelter either, and their food resources are slowly being depleted as they consume what they managed to salvage when they fled at the beginning of the month. MSF teams in Melut treat an average of 150 patients each day for diseases like measles, acute watery diarrhoea and respiratory tract infections.

“The people here have been on the move since the war started, they have nowhere to call home anymore as insecurity has made them nomads, moving from one place to another in search of a safe haven. Whenever clashes start, they are forced to flee again. Children under the age of five years and pregnant women are especially vulnerable during these times,” said Joao Martins, MSF project coordinator in Melut.

MSF has been working in the region that today constitutes the Republic of South Sudan since 1983. MSF responds to emergencies, including large-scale displacement, refugee influxes, alarming nutrition situations and peaks of diseases such as measles, malaria, acute watery diarrhoea and kala azar, in addition to providing basic and specialised healthcare services. Since renewed conflict began in South Sudan in December 2013, two million people have been forced from their homes. Some live in camps while others have fled across the border to neighbouring countries of Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia and Sudan.

“We are worried for our lives and for the future, if we survive.” 17-year-old Teresa, a Shilluk who recently fled to Noon.

Image by MSF