Feature: South Sudan's major highway still a death trap for travelers

South Sudan's only tarmacked major highway, the 123-mile Juba-Nimule road, remains a death trap in the eyes of many who endure hours of travel along the potholed road linking the war-torn country to the Ugandan border.

According to Isaac Mashete, a driver for Eco-Bus one of the few bus companies plying along the Juba-Kampala highway, he is always wary of a bullet striking him at his seat along with others on board by armed groups operating in the shadow on the road.

"The first thing you fear is a bullet, other accidents are common and whenever they occur the wreckage on the scene is not carted away and so further accidents reoccur," Mashete told Xinhua on Sunday after he negotiated the tortuous journey to arrive in Juba.

Since the renewed July clash in Juba last year the highway has claimed more than 100 lives, including shooting at the Ugandan army convoy evacuating people fleeing fighting and the February shooting to death of a top ranking South Sudan army (SPLA) Brigadier has reinforced public fear and anxiety.

Those who always risk the journey have told Xinhua that the persistent robberies, killings along the key transport corridor of South Sudan is driven by the fact thousands of illegal weapons being in hands of civilians who impersonate security agencies.

Mashete, added that on several occasions some ill disciplined security people and criminals not particularly rebel outfit have resorted to carrying out robberies, which he attributes to the prevailing economic hardship in the country that has led to delayed salaries for the SPLA and police officers.

"Another thing there are several people with guns and uniforms. And it is difficult to distinguish who is a government soldier or impersonator. So the government should disarm the population," he revealed.

He also disclosed that ever since last year, when of one of their Eco-bus was attacked by gunmen who later set the ill-fated bus ablaze; he is relieved this year they haven't yet been attacked.

But, adds that with the coming of the rainy season starting February, the tall grass and trees along the road will grow and will affect visibility which gun men will take advantage of to stage deadly attacks on travelers.

Mashete urged the authorities to help cut down the tall trees and grass along the road to give visibility to drivers, thus avoiding road ambushes that have been a permanent occurrence before subsiding in January, this year.

SPLA spokesman Brigadier Lul Ruai Koang revealed to Xinhua that the gun men behind attacks of vehicles use hit-and-run tactics where they exploit the distance between the over stretched soldiers deployed to patrol the road.

"The only problem you cannot have soldiers stretched along the 90 km road because the attackers use hit-and-run tactics and this is a problem," Koang revealed.

He added the army continues to patrol the main transport road, which net importer South Sudan relies on entirely for most goods and services from the East African region.

Another bus driver Musisi Godfrey told Xinhua that besides negotiating the pot holes on the road, the various illegal checkpoints mounted by security agencies were frustrating as one has to keep paying loose change at these posts which further delays a journey that would take three hours to negotiate.

"I have a person I brought and he had been cleared with the immigration office, but when he returned shortly from Juba while heading to Kampala, they (officers) requested again for the very requirements and yet they were not expired," he disclosed, adding that some officers were harassing and extorting money from travelers illegally. Endit