During more than 20 years of civil war Mundari Hospital was often caught between the warring parties. Three times it changed hands, each time all but destroyed. Civilians who stayed in the area suffered from fighting, hunger and lack of medical care. Some became victims of brutal revenge by the new authorities who suspected them of having cooperated with the enemy.
In brief periods of relative peace Mundari was a crucial medical facility for the people living in Kajo-Keji County. Since September 2006, it has been operated by International Medical Corps and its local partners. It is a beacon of hope in a place that has just begun to recover from two long decades of civil war.
Medical Care on the Frontline
In 1985 the second civil war between the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) in the South and the Government of Sudan in Khartoum came to Kajo Keji. Government soldiers retreated into their barracks and the population had to make a difficult choice: fleeing across the border to neighboring Uganda, siding with the SPLA or standing by the government. For civilians there were no good choices – only less bad ones. In 1990, the SPLA opened a military training center in Kajo-Keji and began building up a civil administration. “By then the hospital was in ruins, without a roof and windows. Patients had not been treated there for years,” remembers Felix Leju Tito, who came to Kajo-Keji as part of the new authorities. A French NGO renovated the hospital, reopened the wards and began admitting patients.
When northern government troops took Kajo-Keji during a large offensive in 1994 many people fled the area and Mundari Hospital was once again destroyed. In 1997, the SPLA started a counter-attack and has been in control of Kajo-Keji County ever since. The same year a Swiss NGO began rehabilitating Mundari Hospital. Government troops built a defensive line only 40 km away from the hospital and aerial bombings continued. According to humanitarian assistance workers, Mundari Hospital was hit 13 times in 1999 alone. Many believe that the hospital had become a target because the government suspected that SPLA soldiers were treated there.
A Promise of Peace
In 2005, a historic peace and power sharing deal was signed. But the South Sudanese people know that war does not stop when the fighting is over. “The biggest challenge lies still ahead,” says Felix. “We have always been supported by foreign NGOs because we lack economic and human resources. But one day, hopefully soon, we will be able to manage Mundari Hospital by ourselves.”
The road to peace and self-determination in South Sudan was paved with violence, exile and the separation of families and friends. Out of about 182,000 living in Kajo-Keji County today, around 25,000 have come back from exile and, according to the UNHCR, over 30,000 have yet to return. For them Mundari Hospital is an important health institution and International Medical Corps’ commitment a promise of a lasting peace on their way home.