Soldiers evict residents in Aweil town to pave way for road rehabilitation

By Hou Akot Hou

Several residents living along the 40 km road leading to Aweil town center are reeling after being violently evicted by soldiers to pave way for road rehabilitation.

Deng Dut, one of the residents affected by the demolition that commenced Monday, said they were violently evicted by the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces soldiers without resettlement plan.

“They just took one of the men who own phone charging center for refusing to dismantle his shop, now we are surprised it is like the government is not knowing what conditions we are going through,” Dut told Juba Echo on Wednesday.

One of the residents, who preferred to speak on condition of anonymity, said they were surprised by armed security officers storming their residence without prior notice.

“They just came in large groups and now you can see we are outside. They just said the road needs to be expanded,” she said.

The 40 Km road is contracted to Africa Resource Corporation (ARC).

Director for Roads in the Northern Bahr El Ghazal State government, Keer Deng said the evictions are not for any selfish interest but for the public good.

“The expansion is just for the interest of the citizens because the road is narrow,” Deng said.

He said they have not yet determined compensation for those affected by the evictions.