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Human Rights Watch urges SPLM to negotiate with NGOs

    NAIROBI

    The non-governmental body Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called on the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/M) to talk to NGOs that pulled out of south Sudan last week, rather than sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the rebels. “The SPLA is behaving irresponsibly ... it has imposed an artificial and unnecessary deadline that puts many, many civilian lives at risk,” HRW spokesman Jemera Rone said in a statement. “If the SPLA wanted to expel agencies that provide essential services to the civilian population [of south Sudan], it should have arranged a transition period so that other agencies could be brought in to cover civilian needs.” The 11 international NGOs that pulled out had handled about 75 percent of humanitarian aid in SPLM-controlled areas, and HRW cautioned that it would not be easy for other agencies to overcome the “formidable logistical obstacles” to operating in south Sudan.

    “To reinvent the supply network is not something that can be done overnight,” said Rone.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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