The ambassadors of the United States and United Kingdom have announced that they support “media freedoms” in South Sudan after the closure of The Nation Mirror newspaper. They both visited the newspaper saying they wanted to know more about the case.
National Security Service personnel under the command of General Akol Kur gave verbal orders closing The Nation Mirror after confiscating the last print run on Tuesday.
Security agents told the editor-in-chief Wol Atak the closure was due to the publishing of a story which erroneously reported the withdrawal of army troops from Renk when they had in fact only withdrawn from an outlying area north of Renk, according to the editor.
Wol Atak says the story in question was a misprint which they attempted to clarify.
US Ambassador Charles Twining visited the offices of The Nation Mirror yesterday “to show support for Editor-in-Chief Wol Deng Atak, whose newspaper was ordered closed by the government this week,” reads a statement from the US embassy.
Twining said, “I was very unhappy to learn about the government’s closure of The Nation Mirror. I have been alarmed at recent reports of the intimidation and harassment of journalists in South Sudan by elements within the government… We urge the government of South Sudan to allow The Nation Mirror to reopen immediately.”
UK Ambassador Ian Hughes had visited the newspaper Wednesday “to find out why it was shut down.” His embassy released a statement together with a photograph of the diplomat and editor Wol Atak saying, “Media freedoms are essential for democracy to work in South Sudan.”
All major independent media houses in South Sudan’s capital Juba have been raided by government security forces since December 2013. The government’s spokesperson and information minister has declared the government’s intent to “regulate everything.”
Photo: UK Ambassador Ian Hughes with Editor-in-Chief Wol Atak