Just Juba

A country no better off .....

 

A friend joked recently that an updated situation report from South Sudan was really just the same one from 20 years ago with only the date changed. It's true - little has changed in the world's newest country that has known only war and conflict since inception and many decades before that. I chucked when I checked the local news source for opinion pieces and found none.  Journalists brave or stupid enough to present an opinion are increasingly rare in this part of the world as the collapse of the both the economy and government structures continue.



Almost no one relies on or uses the government rate for exchange even though it's illegal to do otherwise. The current official rate is 6.68 to 1 USD but even the local supermarket offers 150. Above pictured is $75 converted to South Sudanese pounds. Bricks of currency are required for a visit to get a bit of food leaving a disconcertingly conspicuous bulge in your pocket as you move about. This is particularly concerning as the government workers including soldiers have not been paid in 4 months and a robbery is certainly tempting given the tantalizing wad of cash.

My work here is very interesting - very intense  - and very challenging. I readily admit to finding the demands of the job overwhelming as I do the context and environment I work within. Interpersonal relationships are strained and somehow odd - as people are thrust together to live and work together in compounds hopefully safe from the world outside the gates..  We all know that
's not the case, as compounds are regularly broken into and everyone robbed. The desperation turns to violence at time resulting in beatings and rape of the women but more often than not it's the money and easily sellable items that they want. The windows have heavy steel shutters capable of keeping small munitions if fired on. Heavy steel gates block the entry of both the work and living areas. I do my best to keep complaints to myself - as it does no good. Morale is a delicate flower in a mud field with tanks approaching inadvertently but certainly about crush and pulverize the dainty sprout



Away from the capital, things are much more challenging for my colleagues. The fighting continues in pockets throughout the country disconnected from any kind of national or collective strategy. It's about power - and the ability to get from the situation. Is Humanitarian Aid fueling the conflict 
is the question raised in my mind and as I read Simon Little's article on the same I felt helpless and futile as the reality washes over me. The poor pay the ultimate price of the few who are opportunistic and kleptocracy n their behavior. Is it despicable? Yes ...Is it unconscionable? Yes... but is it unexpected in a situation where billions (1.7 billion in 2017) pour into the country to alleviate suffering. How can the world do otherwise. It's a loophole being exploited by the powerful...and the solution appears impossible.




 One could complain about the venomous snakes and scorpions but it does no good to do so. They are as prevalent as they are deadly. Just stay out of the way of the green or black Mambas, or 2 meter cobras by avoiding carefree skipping through long grassy areas. Now the weather - well -  that indeed is really something else. At times, hot beyond belief (50 is not uncommon)  and when it rains with thunder and lightening it is as if the universe has finally had enough of the stupidity of those fighting and seeks to punish in the most draconian manner. Alongside is the street where I work after 5 minutes of rain...

Below are pictures sent to me from the Supply Manager in Pibor 400kms to the north. "An Antonov (2.5Ton) is too heavy and the wheels too thin to land this morning" he explained... but it should be fine for a 1 ton caravan. Looking at the pictures I knew that the pilots were going to be pissed as they usually are. And understandably so. It's not a runway really  - it's a mud field like the surrounding area without too many rocks on it... just that. The supply team often has to do manual labor to get ready to take a plane given the incessant rain and the fact that we have to land here 2x a week minimum. On occasion we employ helicopters but that takes time...and lots of money. Lots and lots of money actually so to be avoided if at all possible. The pilots put their lives on the line with every rotation but of course we sent the plane. What else can you do?

I have great hopes for South Sudan but see no real progress or solutions. As I become more and more familiar with the context, real peace seems less and less likely. I read today of the violence in Charlottesville and at the same time the deaths of many innocents in Kenya over the past days. Naked self interest and intolerance continue to be the casualty of our modern capitalist social democracy.

Thanks for reading ....... Layno!!!