the looting and destruction of civilian RIGHT TO EDUCATION property, according to the UN. The right to education for children remained Attacks by armed youths on clearly marked severely restricted. According to UNICEF, humanitarian vehicles persisted. The UN more than 2 million children, most of them reported that at least five humanitarian girls, were out of school due to Covid-19 and workers were killed and two were arbitrarily other challenges which hindered their access detained. to education, including financial barriers and DENIAL OF HUMANITARIAN ACCESS flooding. In November, only eight of 53 schools in According to the UN, an estimated 8.3 Tambura county were open, severely million people needed humanitarian restricting the right to education for months. assistance. Despite the dire need for such SSPDF-affiliated fighters used a primary assistance, the denial of, and restrictions to, school in Tambura town as their barracks for humanitarian access continued. According to several weeks during the fighting until late UN OCHA, humanitarian actors reported 542 October when government officials finally impediments to access and government coaxed them into leaving. Such use of authorities continued to impose bureaucratic schools by armed actors runs contrary to the obstacles. global Safe Schools Declaration, which the EXTRAJUDICIAL EXECUTIONS government endorsed in 2015, and undermines international human rights and The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) humanitarian law. reported that between March and November GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE at least 52 people, including children, were extrajudicially executed in the Warrap and High levels of conflict-related sexual violence Lakes states. According to the UN and gender-based violence remained a Commission on Human Rights in South concern. According to the UN, state security Sudan, state security forces either carried out forces and non-state armed actors committed or were “present within the vicinity of the at least 63 incidents of sexual violence in executions” in almost all cases. Individuals, conflict, affecting 89 women, girls and men, including children, were lined up and aged between two and 50, including rape, publicly executed by firing squad in a gang rape and forced nudity. marketplace. According to UNMISS, some IMPUNITY individuals were tied to trees before being executed; and government officials defended Impunity for crimes under international law the executions as a necessary deterrence and other gross human rights violations and mechanism in the absence of rule of law abuses persisted. In January, the Council of institutions. Ministers approved a Ministry of Justice plan to establish the HCSS, the Commission for CHILDREN’S RIGHTS Truth, Reconciliation and Healing (CTRH), According to the UN, the SPLA-IO, armed the Compensation and Reparation Authority groups and government security forces and other justice-related provisions in the committed grave violations and abuses peace agreement. At the end of the year, against 124 children – 28 girls and 96 boys. however, the government had only These included killing, maiming, abduction, reconstituted the technical committee for the sexual violence, forced recruitment and use establishment of the CTRH, and a UN of children in combat and supportive roles agency had begun training committee like porters, cooks and spies. The actual members. The government seemingly numbers are likely to be higher. prioritized truth over trials, continuing to delay and block the establishment of the HCSS which, if operational, would be Amnesty International Report 2021/22 339