The mayor of Bor town has banned movements of vehicles during the Christmas – an order civil society activist describes as “very strange”.
On Thursday, Samuel Ateny Pech announced the order, saying it was meant to protect Christians during processions.
According to the mayor, anyone suspected of violating the bylaw will be tried by a special Christmas court and sentenced to three-month jail term if found guilty.
“Anyone found violating the order will be arrested by the security forces and will be taken to court…that was set up with the help of John Yel, the High Court judge,” Ateny told Mingkaman FM on Thursday.
The order comes into effect from 2PM on Saturday and will end on Monday.
Commenting on the order, the chairperson for the Civil Society Network said three months in jail is too much for such a traffic violation.
“The order from the Mayor is very strange. Locking up someone for three months is not helping yet it is not a serious crime. Driving around cannot be punishable in such a manner,” argued Bol Deng , chairperson for the Civil Society Network.
Deng said the mayor should instead deploy police to guide the movements of people and the motorists during the Christmas celebrations.
“There is no need to impose such laws. The best way is to find a way to help people, and one of which is deployment of police. There is heavy deployment already in place and the role of the police is to keep law and order,” he added.