Nine heads of diplomatic mission in South Sudan have issued a joint statement calling for the immediate release of the detained political activist Peter Biar Ajak.

Ajak, a political commentator and activist, was arrested by South Sudan's National Security Service (NSS) in Juba on 28 July while boarding a plane to the town of Aweil.

In the statement extended to Radio Tamazuj on Monday, the Heads of Mission of Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America said they are deeply troubled by the arrest and ongoing detention by the South Sudanese National Security Service (NSS) of youth activist Peter Biar Ajak.

“We are deeply concerned by the harassment and intimidation of civic actors; restrictions on freedom of expression and association; and arbitrary detention in South Sudan, as documented in the UNMISS and Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights report on the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression in South Sudan and in the Report of the Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan,” party reads the joint statement.

“This is of great concern in the context of the ongoing peace process, as building trust and maintaining a vibrant civic space is an essential prerequisite of sustainable peace. In this regard, the 2017 Cessation of Hostilities Agreement obliges the parties to at all times protect the human rights of civilians and ensure protection of media and Civil Society,” adds the statement.

The Constitution of South Sudan guarantees all South Sudanese people liberty and security of person, due process, and freedom of expression and association.

The foreign diplomatic missions in Juba  call on the government to either release Peter Biar Ajak, or to bring charges against him in a timely manner in accordance with the rule of law and to grant him access to a lawyer.

They also called on the government and all parties to the conflict to encourage, support and safeguard the right of any individual to freedom of opinion and expression.