Map of Pibor Administrative Area - Credit: Eye Radio

The Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA) has inaugurated a new court building constructed by the Quick Impact Project of the UN Mission in South Sudan.

GPAA Information Minister Oleyo Akuer said it is the first court building established in the area since it was made an administrative area in 2014.

He reveals that local communities there have been relying on mobile courts which adjudicates issues only twice or three times a year to access justice.

Akuer says the mobile court is being staffed with prosecutors and judges from Juba as the area lacks legal practitioners.

According to him, the new court building which was built by Humanitarian and Development Consortium organization, will enable timely hearing of criminal cases in the Greater Pibor.

“This program was supported by the UNMISS and the building has been constructed by HDC organization, which is the Humanitarian Development Consortium organization,” he said in an interview.

“We have been always waiting for the judges from Juba Mobile Court who come two or three times every year in order to separate and judge some cases which is accumulated here. This is UNMISS support to the area because there was no court building here since.”

Akuer said the court building was officially handed over to the Greater Pibor Chief Administrator together on Thursday.

The South Sudan government has struggled to provide effective legal services for the most vulnerable populations due to conflicts, according to Search for Common Ground.

It adds that the absence of a well-established justice system, coupled with the limited ability of civil society to address critical gaps in current justice practices, has limited citizens’ capacity to demand effective legal remedies.

The legal system in South Sudan is built on the combination of statutory and customary laws, and while the country has enacted dozens of laws since 2005, their use in legal disputes and courts is limited, says an overview by legal experts, published in New York University’s School of Law.

It is further stated that poor dissemination of laws, little experience with the new statutory provisions, the difficulty of many legal staff in understanding English, and lack of access to statutory courts limit the relevance of the new laws.