Gauging Fear and Insecurity: Perspectives on Armed Violence in Eastern Equatoria and Turkana North (HSBA Working Paper 14)

10 Small Arms Survey HSBA Working Paper 14Mc Evoy and Murray Gauging Fear and Insecurity11AbstractEastern Equatoria State in South Sudan and Turkana North District in neigh-bouring Kenya lie in one of the most conflict-prone regions in the East and Horn of Africa, where the use of firearms is endemic. The Small Arms Survey conducted a household survey in this region in mid-2007 to gather data on levels  of  firearm-related  victimization,  and  to  explore  actual  and  perceived security threats as well as attitudes towards disarmament. It found that inse-curity, mostly related to cattle rustling, was rife and that dependency on fire-arms was widespread. Significantly, it found that both actual and perceived levels of insecurity were significantly worse on the Kenyan side of the border than they were in South Sudan, which is recovering from a 21-year civil war.

The paper presents the survey findings and provides a broad contextual analysis of  the  local  dynamics  that  give  rise  to  insecurity,  including  competition  for land and natural resources, inter-ethnic rivalry, poor governance, and armed group  activity.  In  addition,  it  discusses  government-led  violence-reduction initiatives in the region, namely the disarmament of pastoralist communities, highlighting the security risks attached to ad hoc, short-term disarmament campaigns.