Several government and military officials in South Sudan have perpetrated human rights violations but none have been held accountable for their crimes, a United Nations report has said, noting that those officials still remain in office.
The UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan's report published on Tuesday said the world's newest country has experienced instability for almost a decade.
Despite a peace agreement in 2018 aimed at ending the violence, the situation remains problematic, the report says.
The Commission has been monitoring the situation since March 2016, and its most recent report covers the past year and investigates six states.
“Over several years, our findings have consistently shown that impunity for serious crimes is a central driver of violence and misery faced by civilians in South Sudan,” said Yasmin Sooka, Chair of the independent expert group.
“So, we have taken the step of naming more of the individuals who warrant criminal investigation and prosecution for their role in gross human rights violations,” she added.
The report provides more detailed information on specific locations where human rights violations, including attacks against civilians, killings, sexual violence, and mass displacement, occurred.
Despite the South Sudanese government's creation of special investigation committees to look into these situations, no one has been held accountable, and officials implicated in these crimes remain in their positions.
“Once again, hundreds of South Sudanese shared with our Commission their experiences of being subjected to a range of human rights violations. Their suffering is immense. The State continues to fail in its duty to protect civilians, and to ensure accountability for violations,” Commissioner Andrew Clapham said.
“We call upon the authorities to properly investigate alleged perpetrators of serious crimes, no matter their rank or office, and to establish and strengthen the justice mechanisms for holding them accountable.”
The government has in the past accused the commission of meddling in its internal affair.
South Sudan struggles to emerge from a ruinous civil war two years after gaining independence that killed 400,000 people before a peace deal was signed in 2018.
The implementation of the peace deal has been slow as incidents of fighting continue to kill and displace vast numbers of civilians.
