VZCZCXRO3648
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #0979 1151015
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 251015Z APR 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2466
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000979 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV SOCI EAID PREF SU
SUBJECT: CG Juba Round-up April 24 
 
 
¶1. Ethnic Fighting in Western Equatoria:  During a 
routine patrol, 11 police officers returning to Yambio 
were attacked by Dinka bandits about 30 kilometers west 
of the town.  UNMIS has located the bodies of two of the 
officers, and it presumes the other 9 dead.  Because the 
police officers were all Zande, it is believed that the 
attacks were ethnically motivated.  The culprits have not 
been caught. 
 
¶2. Mundri Becoming Hub of Trade:  The county of Mundri, 
located roughly halfway between Rumbek and both Yei and 
Juba, is becoming a hub of trade between Lakes State and 
Uganda.  Roads in the county are in good condition, with 
most of the laterite surfacing intact.  The county is 
currently divided by the Yei River, whose only bridge was 
destroyed in the war.  The river can be forded by small 
trucks in the dry season, but is impassable when the 
water rises.  This has blocked commercial road traffic 
between Rumbek and Juba, although trade should increase 
once the new bridge, currently under construction, is 
completed.  The roads are also relatively good on the 
other side of the river and it is only about four hours 
by road to Juba, just over 100 km away. 
 
¶3. Ikotos Slowly Recovering from Long War:  Located at 
the base of an 8,000 ft peak near the Ugandan border, the 
small village of Ikotos is beginning to recover from the 
wars and insecurity that have plagued it for decades. 
During the civil war, the town was known to host many 
internally displaced persons (IDPs) who sought refuge in 
the mountains from the frequent fighting around Torit, 
located just to the north.  These border mountains also 
served as a major sanctuary for Uganda's Lord's 
Resistance Army (LRA), which frequently raided the area. 
According to Celesio Ohisa, the County Commissioner for 
Ikotos, the situation is stabilizing as most of the IDPs 
have returned home and the LRA is no longer operating in 
the area.  Within the town, a bustling new market has 
recently sprung up and villagers who moved onto the 
mountainside for protection are beginning to rebuild 
their homes on the plains, closer to their fields.  The 
town lacks appropriate health care, educational 
facilities, and basic sanitation, and sick or injured 
residents must be driven over bumpy roads for several 
hours to reach the nearest hospital. 
 
¶5. USAID Branding:  While touring several State 
Department-funded refugee projects in remote corners of 
the South (septel), CG Juba officials have noticed that 
the USAID name and logo is prevalent in even the remotest 
parts of Southern Sudan.  From AIDS prevention t-shirts 
with the USAID logo -- worn by many villagers and every 
participant in a regional health committee meeting in 
Tambura -- to a sign at the entrance of a renovated 
girl's school in Lui, there is ample evidence of the 
assistance given to Southern Sudan "from the American 
people." 
 
STEINFELD