The Jonglei state government has dropped its case against at least twenty women arrested earlier this year for protesting against state Caretaker Governor John Kong Nyuon.
The women spent seven days in jail in January and were released over two weeks ago on bail, according to reports. In their January protest, the women made racial remarks against Kong and accused him of having links with rebels.
State information minister Jody Jonglei said: “They were not taken to the court… because the government [decided] those women are innocent,” disclosing that last Monday the governor decided to drop the case because they are “very innocent women.”
According to the minister, the ringleaders of the women’s protest group have left to Juba or other places, but he says they will come back.
One of the women, Mary Dookdit Chuor, who is also head of the Jonglei Women’s Union, said they were never charged and have yet to be told the reason for their prolonged detention.
“Now we are released and we were not briefed why they arrested us,” Mary told Radio Tamazuj. “We asked who arrested us and the authorities said he has not come and we asked them, ‘then why are we here if there was no person who arrested us?’ “
South Sudan’s transitional constitution stipulates that police must charge detainees or bring them before a judge within 24 hours of arrest.
Mary added that arresting peaceful protesters exercising their rights is unprecedented in Jonglei state, and also questioned why more women were not arrested as their were other protesters besides the ones taken to jail.
Related:
Women arrested after making racial accusations against Jonglei governor (26 Jan.)