Sudanese newspaper to shut down indefinitely over financial troubles

June 22, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The al-Akhbar newspaper management announced that it will cease publication indefinitely effective Sunday due to a financial crisis faced by the media outlet owned by a wealthy businessman known as Sideeg Wad’a.

Al-Akhbar was established by Rahmi Mohammed Suleiman in 1955 before suspending its work for decades. It was re-launched by Mohamed Lateef who sold it later to Wad’a who is affiliated with the ruling party.

The journalists in the newspaper had salary arrears from April and in May prompting them to go on strike.

Sudanese newspapers suffer not only from frequent punitive measures by authorities but from economic difficulties in light of high printing costs and low revenue from advertising and decline in readership.

Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) network said that 22 of the newspaper’s journalists have yet to receive their dues.

The newspaper management had promised them to settle this issue and took them by surprise with the closure decision telling them that their entitlements would be resolved after Eid al-Fitr holiday.

However, the journalists rejected this proposal calling it procrastination and an attempt to blackmail them and pressure them and their families economically.

JHR also accused some newspapers of using contracts renewals to circumvent the financial rights of journalists.

It pointed out that journalists’ cases heard by the Labour Court usually comes in favour of the journalists but they are not implemented promptly because of newspapers dragging their feet and using legal means to slow down the process.

(ST)