South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Simon Deng
The Chairperson of the Land Commission, Robert Benjamin, has revealed that the establishment of specialised courts for land will help resolve issues related to land, including rampant land grabbing.
“If you have specialised courts on issues of land in the judiciary and also in all ten states and three administrative areas, the issues of land will be resolved, whether it is land grabbing or others,” said Benjamin on Friday at the Afex Hotel during the closing of the two-day dialogue for women parliamentarians on land, environment and disaster risk.
Benjamin stated that the draft Land Policy seeks to establish a sustainable framework for allocating and protecting the collective and individual land rights of all the people of South Sudan, in addition to addressing controversies over land ownership.
“All IGAD countries have agreed to establish special courts to handle issues of land; the judiciary must be strong. We do not want a situation where judges have no salaries or means of transport,” he said.
Viola Samuel, the Chairperson of the Women Parliamentary Caucus, said the consultative dialogue for women parliamentarians on land, environment and disaster risk will help change the narrative where only men own land.
“We are now ambassadors; let us educate our sisters on land issues. We need to reach out to our sisters in the states. We know the custodians of land are in the rural areas, and without reaching out to them, nothing will be achieved,” said Samuel.
David Kwaje, the Head of Mission for the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), said that the ownership of land, particularly by women, is critical for improving livelihoods, especially in rural areas.
“Land is one of the main issues affecting our country. We have climate resilience and gender issues occurring. We, as partners and others, have been working to address issues of land, particularly for women who are disadvantaged,” said Kwaje.
“The study found that the law in South Sudan does not prevent women from owning land, but the issues affecting women are ignorance, lack of resources, and others. We have to look into the issues faced by women in South Sudan,” Kwaje said.
