Africa-Press – South-Sudan. The Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) has resolved to summon the Minister of Defence and Veteran Affairs, Chol Thon Balok, along with relevant institutions, to address what it described as an urgent matter of public importance concerning the welfare of South Sudan’s war veterans and victims of the liberation struggle.
The decision followed a motion tabled by lawmaker Michael Tot Ruot Wei, who raised alarm over the worsening living conditions of former fighters and survivors of past conflicts. He said many veterans have been left destitute, homeless, and without sustainable livelihoods.
“Both veterans of the liberation struggle and other war victims feel abandoned, having received neither resettlement benefits nor pensions for their retirement from military and public service,” Ruot told parliament.
He lamented that many veterans continue to suffer in silence and that their plight has not been treated as a public priority. “The living conditions of our veterans are deteriorating every day, and the suffering of other war victims is real in this country because their welfare is not being paid attention to or addressed as a public concern,” he added.
Ruot expressed dismay that a significant number of veterans have died without ever receiving retirement benefits. Reports, he said, indicate that between 2019 and 2024, many succumbed to illness and other hardships, leaving their families without support. The motion identified several affected groups, including combat veterans, ex-political prisoners and detainees tortured for supporting the liberation movement, as well as cadres who spent years in refugee camps during the struggle.
The lawmaker called on the government to give priority to pension schemes by enforcing the South Sudan Pension Act of 2012 with amendments to provide a regulatory framework for both public and private pension schemes.
He also appealed for the passage of pension laws covering organized forces, parliamentarians, presidents, and vice presidents. In addition, he urged the government to allocate gazetted land to veterans in all ten states and three administrative areas as a “lifetime dividend” for their permanent settlement and the benefit of their surviving family members.
His appeal comes months after Speaker Jemma Nunu Kumba, while speaking at the Requiem Mass for the late Lt. Gen. Amb. Bior Ajang Duot on August 20, 2024, urged the government to create a financial redemption package for veterans. She stressed that such a legislated system was vital to support those who sacrificed their lives for South Sudan’s independence.
Several MPs, including Deng Dau Deng of Twic East and David Yen of Uror North, endorsed Ruot’s motion. Parliament later adopted the proposals with amendments, paving the way for a possible review of laws and welfare policies affecting veterans and other victims of the liberation struggle.
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