Eastern Equatoria traditional leaders call for peace dialogue in Hiyala

TORIT – Traditional leaders in Hiyala Payam, Eastern Equatoria State, are urging for peace talks to reduce tensions between the Haforere and Hiyala communities in Torit County.

Hiyala Payam’s paramount chief, Galdino Ohide, said local youth have refused to attend a proposed peace dialogue with their Haforere neighbors, despite rising hostilities between the groups.

Last week, Haforere youth raided the Hiyala center, leaving one person dead and sparking anger among Hiyala residents, who are now considering retaliation.

Chief Galdino emphasized that the state’s Ad Hoc Committee for Peace and county intellectuals need to step in to mediate talks between Hiyala Central Boma and Haforere Boma, addressing the underlying causes of the conflict.

The committee suggested holding the talks in a neutral location at New Kenya, between the two communities. However, Hiyala residents rejected the location, according to Galdino.

“I asked them, and they expressed that they do not want the venue for the peace dialogue because it is not close to their neighbors. They pointed out that the only nearby communities are Tirangole and Himodonge, while Chalamin, Iloli, Ongurun, Olianga, and Ofi are far away. They insisted that all nearby bomas should gather to witness the peace dialogue in Hiyala Center, which is the payam headquarters,” Galdino said.

He added that the youth urged the state government to provide transportation for Haforere elders and representatives, assuring that no harm would come to them.

“There was a previous incident when I was in Juba, where both communities held a peace meeting at the New Kenya venue. The Haforere youth attacked Hiyala Center, raiding cattle and killing one person. When we tried to resolve the issue and held talks again at the same New Kenya location, they repeated the attack. Due to these past experiences, the people of Hiyala Center completely refuse the proposed venue,” he said.

Hiyala Payam administrator, Omoli John Solomon, reiterated that revenge killings and cattle raiding between neighboring villages are the primary causes of conflict in the area.

Omoli appealed to both Hiyala Center and Haforere Boma to cease hostilities, stressing that peace fosters development.

He also pointed out that the venue proposed by the Ad Hoc Committee was not agreed upon democratically by all factions involved in the conflict.

“It is essential to choose a neutral location for discussions, with representatives from all 14 villages in Hiyala Payam present, to resolve the persistent conflict that has plagued the two communities for the past four years,” Omoli said. “One of the challenges we’ve faced since I was deployed here nearly four years ago is security, including revenge killings and highway robberies. The robberies have stopped, but revenge killings and cattle raiding remain the main problems in my payam.”

He added that although information about the proposed peace dialogue reached the community, the people of Hiyala had not agreed to the location.

“Especially, the chief of Hiyala said the people of Hiyala refuse the place of the venue. According to me, peace is paramount; the community needs peace because the fruits of peace are development,” Omoli said.

Torit County Commissioner Christopher Andrew said they had traveled to Hiyala Payam to calm tensions between Hiyala Central Boma and Haforere Boma, which border each other.

He said the killing of a Hiyala Central Boma resident by Haforere youth during a raid last week had fueled the unrest.

The commissioner said a governor-appointed Ad Hoc Committee was dispatched to mediate and restore peace in the area following the killing.

“We traveled to Hiyala Payam to preach peace and encourage the two warring communities to live together in harmony and love,” Christopher said, calling on the youth of Hiyala to embrace peace and reduce their alcohol consumption, which he said was a contributing factor in the conflicts.

“Actually, we went with the Ad Hoc Committee formed by our Governor HE Louis Lobong Lojore. It’s formed for preaching peace to the whole state, and we divided the state into two areas: Greater Torit and Greater Kapoeta. We went with the team to Hiyala Payam and requested all the villages to come to the New Kenya center so that we could discuss the challenges they face and also address them about peace. The message we delivered to them is about how they can live together in harmony. That was the mission we went for—to preach peace to the payam because it’s the most tense place,” Christopher said.

He noted that the committee started in Hiyala Payam and would move to the remaining eight payams under his jurisdiction, with plans to eventually cover all eight counties in the region.

“Hiyala Payam is the most tense area because there is a lot of communal conflict in that payam. That is why we want to start fixing the peace there. Then from there, we shall reach the rest of the payams,” Christopher added.

Hiyala Payam has been identified by the state government as one of the most troubled areas in Eastern Equatoria, with ongoing killings, cattle raids, and road ambushes in Torit County, particularly along the road leading to Greater Kapoeta.