A member of Lakes State Human Rights Commission has quit his job citing lack of respect for rule of law in the state.
Barnaba Magok Mabor says he was disappointed by rampant unlawful procedures of arresting and detaining civilians in a military facility instead of the police and courts.
Magok said he could not continue his roles that he ran for the last two years after civic education trainings and advocacy they offered on the rule of law and constitution often met resistance from authorities.
“It is not differentiated whether this one is a civil case or a criminal case. Civilians are being detained in the military cell instead of the police cell. This is the part that is so difficult. For example, last year, teachers were detained in the military detention for almost 42 days”. Magok said.
In his parting words, the former Human Rights Commission officer urged Lakes state leadership to sensitize all the executive members, and other relevant authorities to conduct their duties in conformity with the law.
Magok’s resignation highlighted the unreported human right violations happening in various detention facilities allegedly set up across the state where civilians especially dissident voices against governor Rin Tueny’s iron fist rule are detained and tortured. Some detainees starved to death more than a month ago at the Panda military facility.
Many reports say the police hardly receive cases because the military police has hijacked the role of detaining civilians irrespective of the nature of the case.
Some of the detention facilities include Panda, Akuocok, Rock City in Rumbek Center, Baburzied in Yirol West County.
Some secret locations run by the military and hardly accessed by human rights bodies are said to be in Awerial, Wulu, and Cuiebet Counties respectively.
