Snapshot of Al Watan Daily Newspaper. |Photo Credit RSF|.
Security agencies in South Sudan lifted the suspension of Al Watan Daily Newspaper in the capital, Juba after nearly 8 months of forced blackout, Editor-In-Chief Michael Christopher revealed to the media on Friday.
The National Security Service suspended Al Watan in November 2023 after it published the letter of sympathy extended to it by the former Minister of Youth and Sports Albino Bol Dhieu.
In the letter, South Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation conveyed condolences to the Israeli government in the aftermath of the Hamas attack on innocent Israelis on October 7, exposing South Sudan’s secret relations with the State of Israel.
The government of South Sudan has been trying to balance its diplomatic ties with the Middle East as it previously desired to join the Arab League to necessitate its craving for loans and aid from the wealthy Near East countries.
Israel, being the long-time ally of the Southern Sudanese rebel leaders in the 1960s, is also keen to bolster its ties with the Republic of South Sudan as a strategic partner on the basis of countering Iran’s geopolitical dominance on the Northern African countries, strategically Sudan in relation to its Red Sea course-plotting route.
Falling as a victim of a bigger picture, the government positioned its anger on Al Watan, shut it down indefinitely, and fired Albino Bol Dhieu weeks later for sharing the letter with Al Watan.
Narrating to the media, Michael Christopher said his news outlet incurred a lot of losses and appealed to well-wishers to give a helping hand for the paper to resume its publications.
In 2016, the Media Authority of South Sudan (Media regulatory body) warned Al Watan against reporting about antigovernment protests in neighboring Sudan, setting a solid bed base for media censorship in South Sudan.
The Association for Media Development In South Sudan (AMDISS) and the Union of Journalists of South Sudan issued press statements welcoming the reopening of the Al Watan newspaper.
In a statement forwarded to Golden Times, AMDISS said it has been in touch with concerned authorities and calling for the reopening of the newspaper to continue serving its readers with accurate, reliable, and credible information.
“For eight months now, the readers of Al Watan have been in total darkness due to a lack of information following the shutdown of their favorite newspaper. Today, we are relieved after receiving the good news that Al Watan has been given the green light to resume its publication. The reopening of the newspaper at this critical time is a sign that the government acknowledges the importance of the media in South Sudan,” the statement partly read.
AMDISS also expressed its deep concern about the National Security Act 2014 Amendment Bill 2024 recently passed by the Transitional National Legislative Assembly maintaining Sections 54 and 55 which embolden the security agency to arrest people without warrants of arrest.
The bill if signed into law by President Kiir, will inspire the security to clampdown on journalists and civil rights advocates, politicians, and the general public at large.
It called on President Salva Kiir to return the bill to the parliament for further scrutiny and possible removal of the sections in question to encourage public participation in the democratic process and decision-making.
Edmund Yakani, executive director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organisation, said he received threats from suspected National Security Service agents for speaking out against the National Security Service Act 2024, amendment bill 2024, the security spokesperson doubted the claims.
Reporters Without Borders study indicates that the freedom of the press is extremely precarious in South Sudan, where journalists work under constant threat and intimidation, and where censorship is ever-present.
Golden Times | South Sudan
