Natinga is a refugee camp and a school that was established in 1993 in

South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...

for boys forced from their homes by the

Second Sudanese Civil War The Second Sudanese Civil War was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originate ...

. It is the center of a ''payam'' in

Kapoeta East County Kapoeta East County is an administrative region of Eastern Equatoria state in South Sudan, bordered by Kenya to the south, Ethiopia to the east and Jonglei state to the west. It is part of the Greater Kapoeta region of the state. The largest ethni ...

Eastern Equatoria Eastern Equatoria is a state in South Sudan. It has an area of 73,472 km². The capital is Torit. On October 1, 1972, the state was divided into Imatong and Namorunyang states and was re-established by a peace agreement signed on 22 Febru ...

Location

Natinga is in a small village at the base of the foothills of the Losolia Mountains. It is just north of the

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

n border. These are the mountains where

John Garang de Mabior John Garang de Mabior (June 23, 1945 – July 30, 2005) was a Sudanese politician and revolutionary leader. From 1983 to 2005, he led the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) after the Second Sudanese Civil War, the comprehensive peace agreeme ...

, founder and wartime leader of

Sudan People's Liberation Army The South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF), formerly the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), is the army of the South Sudan, Republic of South Sudan. The SPLA was founded as a guerrilla movement against the government of Sudan in 198 ...

(SPLA) died in a helicopter accident in 2005. The village is near the scene of the crash. Natinga is inhabited by the

Didinga people The Didinga (diDinga) are a Surmic ethnic group that occupy the Didinga Mountains region in Budi County, Eastern Equatoria State in South Sudan. They live in the valleys, on the plateaus and slopes, and on the adjacent plains of the region. Their ...

Arrivals and departures

In March 1993 Moli Tokoro and Borongoli camps were evacuated for Natinga after the National Islamic Front had made advances in the south. The route led through Palotaka, where about 800 of the unaccompanied minors decided to settle. In some cases the SPLA appears to have recruited boys as fighters. There were 2,800 unaccompanied boys at the school in Natinga in August 1994. By March 1995 only 600 boys were left. By June the number of unaccompanied boys had risen again to 1,700. In 2000 the Sudanese NGO JARRAD was given help by

USAID The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...

in an effort to airlift an estimated 4,000

Internally Displaced People An internally displaced person (IDP) is someone who is forced to leave their home but who remains within their country's borders. They are often referred to as refugees, although they do not fall within the legal definitions of a refugee. A ...

(IDPs) from the camps of Natinga, Narus and

New Cush New Cush, historically known as Himan, is a community that lies between Lotukei and Natinga in Eastern Equatoria state of South Sudan. It was the headquarters of the Sudan People's Liberation Army The South Sudan People's Defence Forces (S ...

, returning them to their home areas in Bor County. There were delays getting started, and many of the IDPs moved to

Kakuma Kakuma is a town in northwestern Turkana County, Kenya. It is the site of a UNHCR refugee camp, established in 1992. The population of Kakuma town was 60,000 in 2014, having grown from around 8,000 in 1990. In 1991, the camp was established to hos ...

camp in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

instead. However, a long airstrip was built to the east of Natinga, and eventually 2,086 IDPs were airlifted.

Location

Arrivals and departures

References

Further reading