Forceful military recruitment ongoing in Twic state – residents

January 27th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – Several youths in South Sudan’s Twic state have been arrested in a wider-scale forceful recruitment carried out by the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF), several residents and people familiar with the campaign said.

Although the army spokesman was unreachable by the time, several sources told the Nyamilepedia that there in a general recruitment process ongoing in Twic state by the South Sudan army.

“Currently, the army is carrying arrests against youth to recruit them into the army. People are being arrested forcefully and the government is not telling what the recruitment is all about,” one source told the Nyamilepedia on the condition of anonymity.

Another source said she cannot confirm whether the campaign is to recruit youth into the military but said her own brother has been arrested along other friends without charges.

“I cannot understand whether it is a military recruitment but my brother has been arrested together with his friends since two days ago. They are not charged with any crime but they are still in the military custody and even not police,” the  source told the Nyamilepedia.

“If this is a real recruitment into the military, it is unacceptable, the youth must resist it. It is time for peace and there is no need for the government to recruit more youth into the army,” she added.