JUBA – The South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) said on Wednesday that it have collected at least 1,200 illegal firearms from former militias turned civilians in Western Equatoria State during an ongoing disarmament campaign.
Speaking to media outlets on Wednesday, SSPDF spokesman Lul Ruai Koang said that the collected weapons include various types of AK-47 rifles, different variations of AK-47s, homemade guns, and machetes.
The disarmament exercise, which began over a month ago, has covered more than five or six counties in Western Equatoria State, according to Ruai.
He acknowledged that the disarmament process initially yielded around 700 weapons but attributed the recent surge to the threat of forced disarmament and fines exceeding 750,000 South Sudanese pounds for possessing illegal firearms.
“Well, disarmament started over a month ago, if you recall. Sure. And it covered more than five or six counties of Western Equatoria State,” Lul said.
Ruai explained that the threat of fines played a role in encouraging civilian participation.
“After the grace period elapsed, the locals were threatened with the imposition of a fine of about 750,000 [South Sudanese pounds] and that guns would be also collected forcefully,” he said.
“So that made them quite scared because conceding from peaceful disarmament, which is about handing over a gun voluntarily without consequences, was going to be a double punishment. You give your gun, your gun is collected forcefully, and you pay a fine,” he added.
Lul also highlighted the logistical challenges faced by the SSPDF due to Western Equatoria’s vast size and limited infrastructure, hindering rapid deployment or spontaneous deployment of security forces.
“He noted that Western Equator is a big state, and the infrastructure does not allow for rapid deployment or spontaneous deployment of security forces,” Ruai said.
