The lawyer representing an activist and government critic, Morris Mabior Awikjok Bak, on Thursday decried the continued detention of his client, despite the Justice Minister quashing the case.
Earlier this week, the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs quashed the charges against Bak, who has been in detention at the National Security facility for nearly one year and four months.
On April 24, the National Security Service’s (NSS) Internal Security Bureau (ISB) brought Bak before a court in Juba to face charges for criminal defamation against the ISB Director General, Gen Akol Koor, but the hearing was deferred.
Bak, a former refugee in Kenya, was abducted on February 4, 2023 in Nairobi and returned to South Sudan where he has since been detained by the NSS, which refused to acknowledge that they were holding him until he was suddenly produced in court.
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj, Kiir Chol Deng, the Counsel representing the activist, accused the National Security of continued detention of his client despite the order of the minister.
“Based on the order of the minister, written to the Head of Legal Administration within the National Security to implement the minister’s order to release the accused, we are still following up and we are expecting the National Security to implement that order. If not, we will take the matter to the constitutional court and in addition will consider it as an abuse of power and we may bring legal actions,” Deng said.
“Yesterday (Wednesday) we served them with a letter from the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) based on the directive of the DPP to the National Security and the head of Legal Administration within the National Security to release the accused. We are waiting to see whether the National Security will release the accused or not,” he said.
Deng accused the National Security of denying his client food and water while in detention for three days.
“Yesterday (Wednesday), the accused complained to the judge that he had been denied food and water for almost three days. Right now, am going to see the head of legal administration within the National Security to find out how far they have gone with that release,” Deng said.