Post Civil War Returnee Resettlement and Reintegration in South Sudan 2005-2012

Abstract

The resettlement and successful reintegration of returnees marks the end of conflicts in post conflict societies. It also marks the final stage of the refugee cycle where the returnee settles in a place he can finally call home. However, the process of reintegration and resettlement is not an easy one since a multiplicity of activities are necessary to ensure the outcome is successful. In this paper, I argue that peace agreements do not automatically guarantee post conflict cohesion unless the players purpose to ensure a favorable environment for stability and reintegration. Taking South Sudan as a case study, this paper examines the post Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) return home initiative by the refugees with encouragement from the UNHCR, Southern Sudan and the host countries. In the paper, I critically assess the importance of disarmament as a precondition for effective resettlement and reintegration of returnees in a post conflict environment. I also examined the role of the South Sudan Government and that of the international community as the peace guarantors in ensuring a successful reintegration and resettlement of the returnees in their home country. The concept of home and the high optimism held by the refugees about their return from the countries of refuge are put into perspective. I also examined the life of the south Sudan refugees in exile vis a vis their life after return. Most of them finally preferred to return to exile as secondary refugees owing to insecure environment and failed reintegration and resettlement in places of their ancestral home.