February 8th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – South Sudan People’s Defense Force (SSPDF) denied on Friday that it is caring out a forceful conscription in Tonj state.
This come after weeks of reports that South Sudan’s military has been forcefully recruiting youths in Tonj state into its ranks raising question about the government commitment to peace agreement.
A peace agreement signed in September last year prohibits continuation of military conscription by all parties to the ongoing conflict.
Speaking to the Nyamilepedia on Friday, the army spokesman Maj. Gen. Lul Ruai Koang said he is not aware of any military recruitment in Tonj state saying it is likely a propaganda by people he did not mention.
“I am not sure of any forced conscription in Tonj state or elsewhere in the country. This is most likely an unhealthy propaganda,” he said.
Last week, social media users including some who claimed that their relatives where arrested in the process complained and urged the government to provide an explanation as to why the government should carry on recruitment into the army when it signed a peace deal to end the war with the opposition.
