Four boys on Tuesday went missing while herding cattle in the outskirts of Motot Payam in Jonglei State’s Uror County, a local official said.
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Thursday, Tang Chatim, the Uror County commissioner, said the boys, aged 11 to 14, were herding cattle in the Pulngere area only to go missing since Tuesday afternoon.
“The four boys, aged between 11 and 14, went missing while herding their 46 cows since Tuesday at 2 PM,” Commissioner Chatim said.
The county commissioner claimed that cattle raiders from the Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA) were involved in the disappearance of the boys.
“Some of our local youth have been pursuing the footprints of the animals towards GPAA. So, my message to the counterparts there is to monitor the situation and retrieve those boys as soon as they arrive,” he said.
Col. Gatbel Machar, the county police inspector, said: “Generally, the situation has been calm since the beginning of the year. About the missing children, no case has been opened with us.”
For his part, Nyang Korok, the deputy head of the GPAA human rights commission, condemned the recurring attacks in Jonglei State and reiterated that their government is committed to working for peace.
“The chief administrator was recently in Nanaam to engage youth on peace. We cannot deny that some of our youth might have been involved in cattle raids. So, we are working with Jonglei State to bring peace,” Korok said.
Source: Radio Tamazuj