Gender activist and social worker, Amer Ruben Nhial and Stephen Niychar, a lawyer and Secretary General of the South Sudan Bar Association|By Awan Moses

Human rights advocates are calling for gender-based violence (GBV) cases to be handled exclusively by statutory courts, rather than customary courts.

Campaigners said that legal practitioners and traditional leaders frequently ignore the Penal Code and instead rely on customary practices, which vary significantly between communities and are often rooted in patriarchal traditions.

They argued that suspects of gender-based violence should face prosecution in statutory courts that are mandated by law to provide justice, rather than in customary courts, which lack codified procedures.

South Sudan operates under a mixed legal system, recognizing both statutory and customary law, as enshrined in the Transitional Constitution. More than 50 customary legal systems are being practiced among the country’s diverse ethnic communities.

Gender activist and social worker, Amer Ruben Nhial, stressed the need for greater public awareness about the rights of women and girls.

“These laws are there, they are in writing, but I don’t think they are followed. I’ve worked as a social worker for long in South Sudan and when these cases, exploitation, rape are not followed like what the law said,” she lamented.

Nhial, who spoke on Eye Radio’s Dawn show, said: “You know there is a customary court that ignore the national laws that support women, they come in and make it hard for survivors to get justice, and when one survivor does not get justice, it hinders the other one to report. So, people keep quiet, the stigma continues, and this affects the women and girls in the community.”

“We need to raise awareness on our rights; there are people outside there who don’t know that being beaten by your partner is an abuse,” she added.

A recent study by World Vision International revealed that customary law remains the primary justice mechanism in many parts of the country.

The report found that most day-to-day criminal and civil cases are resolved under customary law frameworks.

Despite its widespread use, critics say customary law is predominantly based on oral tradition passed down through generations, and that it lacks the legal safeguards necessary to protect survivors of gender-based violence.

The outspoken activist also urged young girls to report cases of exploitation and abuse, and to understand the difference between consensual relationships and harmful behavior.

“We need to accept that we have a problem, and we need to report this problem, we need to talk about it, we need to raise awareness about it,” she said.

“To young girls outside there, you need to differentiate between exploitation and relationship, and between love, not everything is glitters is gold.”

Stephen Niychar, a lawyer and Secretary General of the South Sudan Bar Association, attributed the low reporting of GBV cases to a lack of legal awareness, particularly among women and girls.

He emphasized the importance of reporting such cases to the proper authorities and highlighted the existence of a special court in Juba dedicated to handling GBV matters.

“The law is not followed because some people don’t know their rights, like if there is a rape case it has to be reported to the authorities.

“When it is reported to the authorities, a case should be opened and the victim should get treatment, and the criminal should be taken to court.

Niychar advised the public to report any gender-based violence cases to the authorities instead of addressing them at home.

“In South Sudan, here the good thing is that we have the gender-based violence court in Juba, this special court was created to protect the women and girls and to bring the perpetrators to justice,” he said.

“So, let our people be aware that if there is any case of gender-based violence, women and girls exploitation, or rape, let it be reported to the authorities and the investigation should take place, after that the perpetrators should get their conviction in the court,” she added.

The High Court Judge announced that the Juvenile and Gender-Based Violence Court in Juba has recorded 291 cases over the past nine months.

Judge Francis Amum says the Juvenile Court received 77 cases during the same period.

Of these, a staggering 99% involved boys in conflict with the law, underscoring the need for targeted interventions for young boys facing legal issues.

Meanwhile, the GBV Court has recorded 96 civil cases during the same period, with 99% of these cases reported by women and girls who were survivors of gender-based violence.

The criminal division of the GBV Court has reported an impressive 99% conviction rate.

This figure includes both civil and criminal cases across the two divisions, an indication of the persistent prevalence of gender-based violence and juvenile conflict.

These statistics emphasize the urgent need for continued legal support and community programs to prevent gender-based violence and youth delinquency.