Hundreds of community members of Iloli and Loguruny gathered under a tree in Ileu to witness a symbolic act of reconciliation between the landlords of their communities. The landlords of Iloli, Loguruny, and Ileu sat in the middle of the communities, on the plain earth, joining hands to mark the conclusion of a peace dialogue that restored trust and confidence among the communities.

“We want to be free,” said Arkangelo Orisia, Sub-Chief of Iloli, making an earnest appeal. “We don’t want conflict. Guns are for killing wild animals not human beings.  We don’t want people to die again.”

It was a message echoed by his counterpart Chief Oteda Risio of Loguruny.

“We don’t want revenge killing again,” he said tersely.

The Iloli and Loguruny of Torit East County are agro-pastoralist communities with a long history of violence between them, frequently clashing over grazing lands and water points. They also raid each other’s cattle and carry out revenge attacks.  

The cycle of revenge killings and cattle raiding is creating insecurity in the area. Two women from Iloli and a medical officer from Loguruny were killed in revenge attacks late last year, straining an already tense relationship. The conflict has particularly affected women, as they are especially vulnerable to being caught in the middle of conflict when doing their daily farming activities.

The peace dialogue held recently aimed to bring the communities together to resolve their differences and encourage peaceful coexistence. Organized by the Torit area Peace Commission, the Inter-Religious Council, the Union of Monyomiji, with support from the UNMISS Civil Affairs Division, the dialogue took place on neutral ground in the community of Ileu that offered a safe space for the communities of Iloli and Loguruny to come together. Community members of nearby Omaha were also brought into the dialogue, as the cycle of revenge attacks between Iloli and Loguruny claimed the life of one of their community members.

UNMISS Civil Affairs Associate Officer, Hercules Ayahu, encouraged the communities to strive for peace and said the UN Mission stands ready to support any peace efforts.

 “We are here today because of the reconciliation that went successfully. Peace is not something easy to achieve. If you achieve it today and you own it, you will be living in security and harmony. We will keep supporting these efforts and the communities will see security along the roads improve,” he stated.

Both communities agreed that the reconciliation was just the first step towards achieving a durable peace. The community leaders recognized the importance of building upon the dialogue and encouraging the communities to embrace one another.

Sub-Chief Arkangelo Orisia hoped that the communities would bring about peace by joining together to share common traditions.  

“Our youth and the people of Loguruny will look for two cows. We will join and slaughter them together so that we will have peace.” he said. 

This was well reciprocated by Chief Oteda Risio of Loguruny, who explained that a final emblematic ritual would help cement positive relationships with their neighbors in Iloli.

“We are going to bring our communities together and tell them not to engage in revenge attacks any more. We are going to look for cows and call our neighbors and the Commissioner to witness the final ritual so that nothing will happen again,” he concluded.  

While the communities did not gather to sacrifice a cow that particular day, the peace dialogue concluded with ceremonial singing and dancing that rang with hope for the future of their peaceful coexistence. Indeed, it was clear that when it comes to building peace, it is as much about dialogue as it is about engaging in shared rituals that can weave together the social fabric of communities.