Southern Sudan needs to respect rule of law

Lawlessness in Southern Sudan has long been the single greatest challenge to the region’s economic revival. Everything from business to humanitarian relief work is complicated by the potential for criminal acts committed by Sudanese nationals against foreigners. The aspect that worries us most about this is the lack of commitment to changing this by the autonomous Government of Southern Sudan.

The crisis sparked by the murders of three Kenyans in Juba is a culmination of years of unpunished harassment, extortion and other offences against persons or property. Where business-related disputes have erupted between a foreigner and their local partner (often an unhappy arrangement mandated by law), locals have on many occasions chosen violence over courts or arbitration as dispute resolution measures. Little recourse is possible where property is forcibly taken over or individuals thrown out of the region without legal sanction. This is no way to run a country or encourage foreign direct investment.