22 December 2014 - Displaced persons in Wau, Western Bahr El-Ghazal State, asked UNMISS today to move them to camps where they felt secure moving outside the Protection of Civilians (POC) site.

Speaking after a presentation of the UNMISS mandate at the Wau POC site, participants said they had no idea when peace would come and would like to move closer to their homes, where they would feel more secure.

“I have been in this camp for almost a year and couldn’t go out of the PoC due to the imminent security threat against people like me,” said a woman internally displaced person (IDP) representative.

Another participant said some IDPs were traumatized due to lack of entertainment and being locked up in the camp without any movement. “We didn’t come to the PoC to eat food and sleep. It’s because we had a serious threat outside.”

All participants requested UNMISS to move them to PoC sites where they could move outside the camp with confidence.

The IDPs expressed disappointment on current peace talks led by the Inter-governmental Authority on Development, stating they were taking too long. “We call on the international community to support IGAD in bringing peace in this country.” they said.

The mandate presentation by UNMISS Communications and Public Information Office drew 22 IDP representatives, including youth, women and community chiefs.