By Peter Gai Manyuon
July 31, 2013 (SSNA) — People might be wondering why am asking such a question like this to my fellow Countrymen and ladies in the Republic of South Sudan but for those who have known most of the things in the Republic of South Sudan they will automatically realized the concreteness and how vital is this to the people of this great nation contextually, logically and even practically.
Logically and realistically people of South Sudan fought against the Khartoum government for the last decades due to the humiliations, intimidations, oppressions and lack of respect for Human rights, dignity and rule of law that was not practice by the most known dictator in the all world by the name of Bashier and who is still leading the North South Country.
Reflecting back at the originality of the people of South Sudan in general, you fine that most of the citizens of this great nation in one way or other contributed massively in liberation struggle that have granted us our freedom at last in the year 2011 on the 9th of July. Looking at their contributing from the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that was signed on the 9th of January 2005 between the Late Hero Dr John Garang and the Government of National Unity by then, the South Sudan referendum that was conducted on the 9th of January 2011 under the leadership of General Salva Kiir Mayardit and subsequently the Independence of the Republic of South Sudan was granted to us on the 9th of July 2011, that can justify that each and every one of south Sudanese contributed in the betterment of this country.
Why do I make these reflections to my countrymen and ladies? Some people within South Sudan are trying to oppress other by intimidating professionals Journalists from their duties like if they did not participate fully in the liberation struggle. For your information comrades you and I have fought for the liberation of this great nation therefore, it is the must that we should speaks and tell the realities on the ground for the betterment of this great country. Without you and I, we cannot reached up to this far my dear comrades. South Sudan should have been guided and rule by the good laws that reflects citizens’ interests not just a group of five or six people that are just building their stomach and trying to manipulate the interest of the citizens. I don’t know whether the God of Isaac, Abraham and Jacob is really observing the wrong direction of our beloved Country South Sudan where it is leading to in the world context?
People are just deceiving themselves that we have a constitution in place, what kind of the constitution do people of South Sudan have when citizens and parliamentarians are not having a word of say in it?
Our constitution mentioned clearly about the freedom of expression and association to the South Sudanese Journalists across the globe but to my own understanding as an independent Journalist in this Country, I have seen that most of the journalists have been harassed badly, and intimidated seriously by the Government of the Republic of South Sudan, last week two journalists were detained in Unity state due to unknown reason. And people of the state were asking whether the Caretaker Governor of Unity state is becoming another Taban Deang Gai who was arresting journalists when he was a Governor of the unique state in the Republic of South Sudan for the last nine years.
To me things cannot go that way; there are a lot of these that need our government of South Sudan to know if they are not aware of. South Sudan government is supposed to be a civilian’s government that can address issues of democracy, observance for the good laws, respect for human rights and dignity not a military government that is trying to do away with the Journalists. If I may ask Can South Sudan operated without Journalists? I think no one will agree with that, even those who are claiming to be the government officials, they cannot justify that up to the expectation. Who is to broadcast news on the electronic Media like the Radio, Television especially, south Sudan Television (SSTV) like wise to the Citizen Television? And if we are talking to the print Media like the Newspapers Journalists, Magazines and websites Journalists, who can inform the world through writing?, I think if we don’t have all those people in place nothing can progress in South Sudan as the new Nation, therefore South Sudan as the country need people with different Educational backgrounds so that we transform this great Nation to a better level together.
History of South Sudan
This nation have been liberated by many people, and most of the liberators lost their lives and the lucky one survive in the civil war and some remained disable and vulnerable that don’t have hands, legs and many more, and I hope most people can testified during the martyrs day that was celebrated on Tuesday 30th of July 2013 at Dr John Garang Ground.
Conclusively: if you are really a person with integrity and persuasion with his/her citizen, you cannot do wrong things to the people , I think God of heaven is looking at you that very person who is humiliating the Media Practitioners in this country critically, intellectually and seriously with more than a thousand eye, don’t blame God afterward.
The author is the Independent Journalist who writes for Juba Monitor Newspaper as the Columnist title “Educating Nation”. You can email me using [email protected]