This archive report was first published on 18 December 2019.
South Sudan's Corruption-Fueled Violence ¶
South Sudan, one of the most unequal societies in Africa, has been plagued by violent conflicts for many years. At the heart of this violence is corruption, which has been a driving force behind the country's instability.
The liberation struggle, which lasted from 1983 to 2005, laid the foundation for the country's current problems. During this period, competing armed groups within the liberation effort engaged in predatory practices, taking resources from the population and leaving behind a legacy of violence against civilians.
After South Sudan gained independence in 2011, the country's elite continued to compete for power and resources, leading to a cycle of violence and corruption. The Sudan Peoples' Liberation Army (SPLA), the country's defence forces, became a bottomless money pit, consuming over 40% of the country's total expenditure. Despite this, soldiers went unpaid for months, pushing some into a life of crime or anti-government militias.
The theft and mismanagement of the country's resources have been the crux of the deadly violence that has made South Sudan a fragile country. The misuse of oil revenues, which came into the hands of the freedom fighters after the liberation war, has been a major contributor to the country's instability.
Between 2010 and 2013, President Salva Kiir Mayardit took steps to ensure security was restored, but these efforts were short-lived. The integration of rebel movements into the SPLA became a conduit for grand theft, with numbers of absorbed soldiers and military ranks being inflated.
Today, South Sudanese may disagree on what fuels conflict, but they agree that corruption is at the root of it all. To address this issue, it is essential to recognize that corruption does not happen in a vacuum, but rather in a climate where political leaders and the country's entire system thrive on corruption.
— Leila Jok Madut Jok is a professor of anthropology at Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University.
