Operatives of the National Security Service’s (NSS) Internal Security Bureau (ISB) in Wau Town in Western Bahr el Ghazal State on Tuesday morning briefly detained the deputy chairperson of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) Women’s Block in the state.
Aliza Augustino was arrested for chanting “Viva Dr. Riek Machar, Viva Regina Joseph, and Viva Sarah Cleto.”
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Wednesday, the Sectary General of the SPLM-IO in the state, Edmund John Raphael, confirmed the release of their member after the intervention of Governor Sarah Cleto Rial.
He decried the lack of political space and freedom for the SPLM-IO supporters to conduct their activities, saying that they are usually frustrated by security agents when they want to hold events in the state.
“Our member has finally been released after the governor intervened on the same day (Tuesday),” he said. “Political space is not secured for us as an opposition political party because whenever we want to conduct any political activity, we still face pressures from National Security.”
On her part, Aliza Augustino confirmed to this publication on Wednesday that she was arrested for chanting “Viva Dr. Riek Machar, Viva Regina and Viva Sarah Cleto Rial.”
“Yesterday (Tuesday) we were welcoming Governor Sarah Cleto Rial who is also the state chairperson of the SPLM-IO and after she landed, she exchanged greetings with ministers, county commissioners, and other senior government officials and we were chanting our slogan Dr. Machar Viva, Regina Viva and the governor was also singing with us,” she narrated. “After we ended the activity, the governor told us that she was going to escort the SPLM-IO Sectary General at the national level, Regina Joseph, to the airport. We were following her to the VIP terminal when the director of the NSS in the state shouted at me and two of my colleagues, Lidia and Rebecca. He called me so I respectfully went to him and he ordered me to sit down twice. I asked him what a crime I committed and he replied: ‘Were you not the one chanting SPLM-IO Vivia?’ I said yes.”
“He immediately ordered his bodyguards to take me to a Land Cruiser vehicle filled with security personnel and one of them dragged me onto the vehicle,” Augustino added.
Efforts to reach the security agency for comment were futile.