The Western Bahr al Ghazal State government has announced that rebel operatives are working in the state, disclosing that the state authorities received three captives from authorities of neighboring Northern Bahr al Ghazal several days ago.

Governor Rizig Zacharia said that a group of rebel supporters left recently from the state headed for Abu Matariq, a military base in southeastern Darfur used by the SPLM-IO rebel group led by Riek Machar.  

He described this as part of operations to divide the people of the state and drum up recruits for the rebel forces based in Abu Matariq.

But authorities of Northern Bahr al Ghazal captured three of the group from the Bahr Deleiba area he said, and took them back to Wau.

Rizig was addressing a women’s union event in Wau. He appealed to the women’s conference to help discourage rebel recruitment so that it does not spread throughout the rest of the state, saying the state government does not want to have to deal with the problem by military force.

Meanwhile, some of the captives were allowed to speak to journalists in Wau. They denied sympathizing with the rebels and said they were recruited forcibly. The captives were all under the age of 20.

One explained, “We were just farming. We went to a place called Magla… so there was somebody who came to us just alone, one person. When he came to us he greeted us. Immediately when we wanted to leave he took out a small gun and said ‘We are going.’

The boys wanted to go back home but they were taken instead to a group of men in the bush and made to work as porters, carrying sacks on their heads as they traveled northwards.

One of the boys said that he recognized several landmarks en route including the Sango river which they crossed. He said they ended up in Awada area of Northern Bahr al Ghazal.

Eventually the boys managed to escape from the group whilst traveling through a rocky area and from there made there way to a village of the Jur tribe, where they asked for food. Police at the village took them to Aweil and from there they were taken to Wau.

Another of the abducted youths said he personally recognized one of the gunmen, suggesting he was native to Western Bahr al Ghazal.

The youth insisted that he had not joined the rebels voluntarily. “I personally could not join the military or something like that. They took me by force plainly.” 

File photo: Governor Rizik Hassan