South Sudan has expelled another senior aid worker for Norwegian Refugee Council just four days after the expulsion of the organization’s country director.
NRC’s Area Manager in Alek, Warrap State, was told to leave South Sudan on Tuesday and has now arrived safely in Nairobi. NRC announced yesterday that they did not not receive any formal explanation of the charges against the two managers.
Jan Egeland, NRC’s Secretary General, said that the order for the aid worker to leave the country is “unacceptable.”
He added, “Aid organizations bringing relief to millions in South Sudan must be permitted to operate without interference, intimidation or fear of expulsion. Humanitarian principles must be respected. Ordering aid workers to leave the country without due process restricts the ability of relief organizations to save lives and reduce human suffering.”
“Aid organizations cannot operate under these conditions. Without assurances from the authorities that we will be able to operate without interference, NRC may have to reassess our ability to deliver assistance at scale in South Sudan,” continued Egeland.