25 November 2014 - As part of efforts to build trust in South Sudanese police and encourage displaced people to return to their homes in Juba, UNMISS today handed over a police post to Central Equatoria State.

The Khor William locality police post was built to ensure protection of lives and property, UNMISS Acting State Coordinator Anthony Nwapa said during the handover ceremony.

“As a result of the crisis that (started) in December last year, it became imperative for UNMISS, as part of its protection mandate, to ensure that there is peaceful co-existence between various communities in the Khor William area,” he said.

Before the crisis, an estimated 50,000 people from different ethnic backgrounds were living in the Khor William area. However, there was no South Sudan National Police Service (SSNPS) presence and many residents left the area following massive destruction during the conflict.

The UNMISS Nepalese Battalion built the new police post with funding from the mission’s Quick Impact Projects, beginning construction on in 15 August and completing it this month.

Police services delivery, responsiveness, visibility and accessibility were vital in enhancing confidence and trust of the community, Acting UN Police Commissioner Nair Itendra said.

“This is one of the three police posts financed by UNMISS in the areas most affected by the crisis with the aim of encouraging residents who fled to return to their houses,” he said.

Mr. Nwapa called on the Khor William community to cooperate with the police in providing information so that it can carry out its responsibility to protect civilians and their property.

He added that other police posts under construction in Hia Tarawa and Mia Saba localities would be completed in January next year.

Juba County Police Commissioner Henry Daniema said the basic role of police was to protect lives and property.

“Our assessment is that the very people whose lives we are supposed to protect (and) whose property we are supposed to protect have lost confidence in the police because of our incapacity to protect them,” he said.

John Loki, a local leader in Khor William, said the presence of police would help reduce crime rates in the area.

Juba Deputy Mayor Festo Abdul-Aziz said that by providing safety, the police would help increase the community’s trust among themselves as well as in the SSNPS, the government and partner organizations.