The Casualty Recorders Network (CRN) was established in 2009. The network currently has over 60 members spread across the globe. CRN members are instrumental in casualty recording in a variety of contexts, to acknowledge the dead and uphold their human dignity by ensuring they are recorded, identified and publicly acknowledged.
The views expressed in this interview are the CRN member’s own and do not necessarily reflect Every Casualty Count’s stance.
CRN Member – Remembering the Ones We Lost (ROWL)
Introduction
Remembering The Ones We Lost is a public memorial initiative established in May 2014 that aims to name the victims of conflict and armed violence in South Sudan. Daud Gideon, Executive Director of ROWL, states that after they witnessed the violence in South Sudan, they asked themselves what difference they could make to encourage the people of South Sudan not to resort to using violence to settle their differences. One way they decided they could do this is through recording casualty data and honouring the lives lost to violence. By honouring and remembering the dead, ROWL aims to bring healing to individuals and families, which will contribute to the reconciliation of our communities and, in turn, help foster peace.
As of the 23rd of June 2025, ROWL has recorded the names of 25,646 people who have been killed or are missing in South Sudan. The project allows individuals and communities to provide the names of people killed or missing because of armed conflict or violence since 1955. This unified and public recognition of individual lives being lost through violence is accomplished through the collective efforts of individuals, communities, and volunteers. The initiative aims to bring attention to the shared suffering, encourage peace, healing and reconciliation, and be a tool for understanding and reconciliation amongst South Sudanese individuals and communities.
The following interview was conducted with Daud Gideon, Executive Director of ROWL.
Data collection categories and methods
There are several categories of data we collect:
- The deaths that occur as a direct result of the violence between the government and the rebels or due to inter communal fights which take place due to the widespread possession of guns
- Conflict-related deaths, such as women who are unable to access healthcare because of the ongoing conflict or the people who drowned trying to escape the fighting
- Missing persons
- Abductions which largely target children, girls, and women
- Enforced disappearances by the government and armed groups
We document the names of casualties and the missing because we cannot have a physical memorial right now, so we have an online memorial of names for the victims. The Standards for Casualty Recording helped us to draft our data collection methodology, and we are currently in the process of finalising it.
To collect this information, we depend entirely on primary data sources such as friends and families of the deceased or missing. We record information such as names, telephone numbers, and the full addresses of the people reporting information to us. We reassure them that the information we make available to the public will be limited and excludes any personal information of the person who provided the data. It gives people the confidence to report information because the violence in South Sudan is still ongoing and there is a lot of fear. Once we’ve verified the information, we publish the names to the online memorial. The media acknowledges the fighting and state 10 people were killed but that is the extent of their reporting. They do not provide details, which means media reporting is of no use to us when we are recording casualties. This is why we rely on primary sources.
When the violence started in 2013/2014, we reached out to community leaders and chiefs to ask their communities for information. In South Sudan, there is a lack of trust; if you do not know someone, it is difficult to cooperate with that person, but if you contact a chief or community leader, it makes the data collection process much easier.
Under British colonial rule, a system was introduced where chiefs were empowered to collect data on deaths, births, and the movement of people. Subsequent governments tried to weaken the power the chiefs held, but some chiefs still record data about their community members. Community members know that if someone has been killed, after the funeral, they report it to the chief, who records who has been killed. ROWL volunteers contact the chiefs in the area to collect information about casualties from them, and their information is always correct.
Difficulties casualty recording within the context of ROWL’s work
One of the biggest challenges we face is accessibility. It is very difficult to visit areas where active fighting is happening to count casualties. There are also other hard-to-reach areas, some you need to fly to, and it becomes difficult in some areas because if you happen to get caught there, you might need to wait months to get out. Many incidents occur, and we are unable to record these casualties. To address this, we are trying to find a focal person in hard-to-reach areas or areas under rebel control and use telephones to share information. We have protocols in place to make sure they are safe.
We also experience secondary trauma. Every day, we are confronted with stories about how people are killed or go missing. This violence is ongoing even though it is not being reported by the media. We try to address this by doing breathing exercises or debriefing with our colleagues in the field to offload and share the burdens we have been carrying.
ROWL hosts a memorial website online, so our work depends on the internet. In general, the internet in South Sudan is not bad but, network coverage is limited to certain areas and the cost of being connected to the internet is very expensive. Most of our volunteers start working at midnight when internet traffic is reduced. In some areas of South Sudan, there is no internet or telephone coverage which makes it very difficult to share information.
Lastly, there is a shrinking space to record casualties due to repressive security laws. Both the government and the non-state actors that are involved in the conflict are not happy with anyone trying to record casualties in the country. We made it clear to them that we are just casualty recording for the purpose of memorialisation but they do not trust us and would prefer that no one collects information that could implicate them when the Hybrid Court of South Sudan is established.
Recommendations for policymakers and government officials about the situation in the South Sudan
When it comes to the violence in South Sudan, we recommend the government should stop the killings by implementing the Revitalized Agreement on Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan in good faith and bring other groups into the negotiations. After this, the government should then establish the mechanisms of transitional justice. This will start the healing and reconciliation process in South Sudan.
The importance of casualty recording
Victims have the right to be honoured and remembered. Casualty recording helps families and societies come to terms with the fate of their loved ones and helps to heal and reconcile communities. Our communities have their own cultural practices of honouring their loved ones and that is how we build on existing culture and traditions.
When we first launched our website in December 2015, it coincided with the commemoration of the start of the violence in our country. We organised events in Juba and Nairobi, and we read the names of thousands of victims in front of an audience. It was a powerful moment when people began to reflect on the names of victims, some of whom they knew personally. At that moment, we knew the work we are doing was important. The encouragement we received from our people provided us with the motivation to continue our work.
For more information on ROWL and the situation in South Sudan, visit:
