Sudanese parliament introduces amendments to press law

May 5, 2009 (KHARTOUM) – A subcommittee of at the Sudanese national assembly introduced amendments to a controversial press law deliberated by legislators, a newspaper reported today.

The Al-Sahafa independent newspaper said that 20 amendments were made to the press law primarily on penalties for violators.

A fine of 50 million Sudanese pounds ($22 million) was dropped and left to the discretion of the court.

The changes to the proposed law will limit dual penalties on violations from the judiciary and the Journalism committee which oversees the press.

The head of the media committee at the Sudanese national assembly Mohamed Al-Balla said that they have received several requests for changes to the law and suggested that they will attempt to reach a national consensus.

However he said that the law in its “general format” adheres to the constitution and the Naivasha peace agreement signed between North and South.

The draft law gives wide powers to the Sudanese president with regard to press including appointment of a third of press council members, approving the council’s budget and setting the state policy on journalism.

Many observers in Sudan say that executive branch control over the press is contradictory to the spirit of free press rule.

Sudanese journalists also demanded that language on imprisonment should be removed from the text as well as provisions relating to closing down newspapers.

The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) insisted that the law in its current language was crafted with the consent of its partner the Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM) before it was sent to the national assembly.

Sudanese authorities have stepped up censorship of the press since the coup attempt against Chadian President Idris Deby backed by Khartoum. The Sudanese spy chief Salah Gosh at the time accused some journalist of receiving money from Western embassies but declined to give names.

Security services are dispatched at night to review newspapers before they are published and have the power to remove any articles and in some cases ban entire edition for days.

The newspapers are particularly screened to censor any articles appearing to be sympathetic with the International Criminal Court (ICC) which last month issued an arrest warrant for president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir.

Last November Sudanese authorities arrested over 70 journalists who demonstrated outside the national assembly to protest against press censorship.

(ST)