President Salva Kiir has appealed to the greater Jonglei communities to end abduction of women and children.
The UN children’s agency – UNICEF – revealed last week that over 800 women and children were abducted in the last three months in a series of intercommunal conflict between Pibor and Jonglei State.
Jonglei State government says they have returned 85 abductees after authorities engaged the armed youth to return the abductees this month.
Kiir, in is address during the Saturday visit to Bor, described child abduction as “painful” experience to lose a child to captives.
“If someone took my child, I would not love it. It is very painful and it is not acceptable in the world,” Kiir said.
This week, the United States on its annual awareness program on human trafficking, renewed its call on South Sudan government to end abduction of women and children and bring the perpetrators to book.
In a statement issued on Friday by the US Embassy in Juba, US ambassador to South Sudan Michael J. Adler said the US government was deeply concerned about the reports of abduction.