South Sudan celebrates World Press Freedom amidst widening space for media operation
By Sheila Ponnie
When Kenyan journalist Japheth Ogila got the chance to move from Nairobi to Juba, he saw a golden opportunity to share powerful, meaningful stories—stories about corruption and human rights abuses that resonate deeply with his audience.
Ogila steppedph into the role of founding Editor-in-Chief at The City Review, one of the few independent national newspapers in South Sudan, with high hopes, the kind of excitement for any journalist on the move for greener pastures and a new workstation.
However, once he arrived in South Sudan’s capital, Ogila faced a tough reality: what he calls “systematic censorship” imposed by the South Sudanese authorities.
“There’s a systematic censorship enforced by government agencies,” Ogila explained. “South Sudan still struggles with media freedom, and there’s a lot of work to be done to safeguard press freedom.”
Having been born just four years before the first World Press Freedom Day was celebrated in 1993, Ogila reflects on how, decades later, not much has changed in many places. In South Sudan, he notes, security forces often dictate which stories the public should consume and what not to make it to the printer.
“There’s an environment where the National Security Service (NSS) reviews and approves newspapers before they go to print. While I was with City Review, I was told multiple times to drop stories that were deemed unfavorable to the government. Journalists here can’t tell the whole story, no matter how eager they are,” he shared.
This year’s World Press Freedom Day highlights the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on media freedom, emphasizing the global effort to ensure access to information, protect press independence, and uphold fundamental freedoms.
Ajak Maura is a seasoned South Sudanese journalist who works as a stringer for Al Jazeera. With over a decade of reporting under her belt, Ajak says most journalists in South Sudan still struggle to access information.
Luckily, for her, she uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in gathering information and detecting disinformation, making up for what would otherwise be an almost impossible task.
While working with The City Review, Keji Jenifer was tasked with covering the Transitional National Parliament and political affairs. As a journalist, Jennifer knew right away that this docket came with a lot of expectations from her readers, who were hoping that she would expose stories of accountability and corruption. Unfortunately, that often proved to be a challenge, as many of these stories were routinely censored and never saw the light of day.
“Every time I wrote a story on financial misappropriation, I would be summoned to answer some questions, intimidated with a jail term, even. Journalists in South Sudan often work under threats of arbitrary arrest,” said Keji.
She emphasizes that media freedom in South Sudan is still quite limited and precarious, adding that this is fueled by the ongoing political instability, conflict, and government oversight.
“Even though the constitution guarantees freedom of expression, journalists and media outlets often endure harassment, intimidation, and arbitrary arrests, especially when covering topics like corruption, human rights violations, or political dissent. I’ve faced this myself; some of my articles were pulled from the newspaper. As you might know, all newspaper publications must get the green light from the National Security before they can be printed.”
Japheth Ogila, who was required to send the final copy of the newspaper to a WhatsApp account managed by members of national security, for approval, backs up this account:
“I was ordered to remove stories before publishing whenever they were judged to be criticizing the government. Stories about some opposition parties and some members of civil societies are treated with contempt by the NSS.
Asked if the ongoing conflict in the country impacts press freedom, Ogila responded:
“I think it does. Knowing how insensitive the security agents can be, I do not doubt that they would not allow the media to publish stories airing the voices of some opposition figures currently under scrutiny. It is the nature of South Sudanese politics, though.
“Media censorship instills fear in journalists and affects their career growth. This happens because they cannot experiment with ideas and tell all the stories their hearts desire. It also affects peacebuilding in the sense that some parts of the society would still feel subdued by the system.”
The World Press Freedom Day was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in December 1993.
The World Press Freedom Day, a Windhoek Declaration, has been observed every third day of May.
With support from Journalists for Human Rights and funding from Canada’s Peace and Stabilization Operations Program, this story aims to address the growing threat of misinformation in fragile contexts like South Sudan.
