South Sudan Update
Peace is holding, but a severe lack of aid money is hampering repatriation.
By the Hot Zone Team, Thu Sep 21, 4:45 PM ET
When Kevin Sites reported from southern Sudan in fall 2005, it was a time of high hopes for the troubled nation. A peace deal in January 2005 between the rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army and the government of Sudan had ended a 21-year civil war, one of Africa's longest and bloodiest.
Hot Zone reports from south Sudan focused on a region bracing for a massive influx of returnees in the wake of peace. Aid agencies warned at the time that the remote and primitive region was unprepared to handle the strain. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that war in south Sudan displaced 350,000 people in neighboring countries and over 4 million internally.
Unfortunately, aid agencies say the situation in south Sudan has not improved much over the past year, and that the majority of displaced people have not been able to return home.
Last week, UNHCR issued an urgent appeal for funds, warning that its program will run out of money by the end of September. Without UNHCR help, hundreds of thousands of displaced people will be unable to return to their homes.
Those that have returned still face shortages of water and supplies, according to the International Rescue Committee.
As the crisis in Darfur continues to dominate headlines related to Sudan, a rare success story is still possible in the south, but not without international help.
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