South Sudan

From Compensation to Protection: How One Woman Witnessed a Community Choose Its Children's Future

For many years, children in some communities in South Sudan bore the burden of conflicts they neither caused nor understood. When violence resulted in the loss of life, compensation was sometimes sought through children, forcing innocent boys and girls to pay for the actions of adults.

Text and photo: Doru Peninnah Dudu

Published 20. Aug 2026 Updated 24. Aug 2026

For many communities like Ofong, the practice was accepted as part of tradition, despite its far-reaching consequences on children's lives and well-being.

Today, however, a quiet transformation is taking place in Ofong Centre of Himodonge Payam, Torit County.

For Diana Margret, a resident of the area, one particular change stands out above all others brought about through Community Conversations facilitated by ITWAK Women Empowerment Organization with support from Norwegian Church Aid (NCA).

"I am very grateful to ITWAK and NCA. Among all the positive changes that have been achieved in our community, there is one that has touched me most deeply: the issue of death compensation," Margaret says.

Community Conversations are a GBV prevention approach that provides safe spaces for women, men, youth, elders, and local leaders to discuss harmful social norms, gender inequality, child protection concerns, and community challenges. Through open dialogue, participants reflect on practices that cause harm and identify solutions that promote dignity, protection, and peaceful coexistence.

For Margreat, these discussions sparked an important realization.

“In the past, when someone killed another person, the compensation would often be paid through a child. We were putting our children at risk by making them bear the consequences of crimes they had no part in.”

The practice left emotional, social, and economic scars on children and families. Yet many community members had grown up seeing it as a normal response to conflict.

Through months of dialogue and reflection, participants began questioning the impact of the practice on children's rights and future opportunities.

According to Margreat, attitudes are changing.

"Since ITWAK came and began engaging us through community conversations, we have learned that this practice is not right. Today, this harmful cultural practice is gradually fading away."

Community members now increasingly recognize that those responsible for crimes should be held accountable through formal justice mechanisms rather than shifting the burden to innocent children.

"We now understand that cases involving the killing of a person should be handled through the justice system, where the perpetrator is held accountable according to the law, rather than forcing an innocent child to serve as compensation."

Margaret believes the shift represents more than abandoning a harmful practice. It signifies a community choosing to protect its children and safeguard their future.

Across Ofong Centre, residents say Community Conversations have contributed to broader positive changes, including improved family relationships, reduced conflicts, stronger respect for human dignity, and increased commitment to protecting vulnerable members of society.

As communities continue to examine long-held beliefs and customs through dialogue, stories like Margrate's highlight the power of community-led change.

For Margrate, the message is simple yet profound: children should never be punished for crimes they did not commit.

And in Ofong Centre, more people are embracing that belief every day.