Radio Bakhita 91 FM, which brands itself “a voice that speaks peace,” celebrated ten years on-air at an event in Juba yesterday afternoon.

Supporters of the Catholic radio station marked the occasion with refreshments, singing and speeches by various invited guests and dignitaries.

Speakers included Dr. Lam Akol, representative of the opposition National Alliance Parties, CEPO director Edmund Yakani, and Bishop Santo Loku Pio, chairman of the board of governors of the radio. Also in attendance was Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Bashir Gbandi.

Bakhita FM is the second most popular radio station in the South Sudanese capital, according to data published in 2013. It is named after a woman who escaped from slavery and later was honored by the Catholic Church as a saint.

The radio station was shut down by the government in 2014 but reopened about three months later. It broadcasts studio talk shows, Christian teaching, music and other types of programming. The station scaled back its news coverage after the 2014 shutdown.