Detention of foreigner journalists will not mask the ugly reality
Editorial
August 27, 2006 — The Sudanese government detains two foreigner journalists for entering the country illegally: the Slovene, Tomo Kriznar and the American Paul Salopek. Both are charged of spying.
They entered the country through Chad to cover the crisis of Darfur and the suffering of Darfur people.
So, their detention reflects that there is still a problem in that part of Sudan in spite of the signing of the Darfur Peace Agreement. Their detention also, is a consequence of the systematic refusal to deliver visa to foreigner journalists.
These detentions reflect two problems, the first linked to the question of freedom of the press and the second is the tragic situation in Darfur. Sudanese government must admit these facts. Denying these facts and, to bury its head in the sand is not a solution.
Sudanese al-Bashir can continue to launch bellicose statements but it will not put an end to the problem. In accordance with the peace agreement signed with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, freedom of press must be assured in the country. But this is not the case. Sudanese journalists are still subjected to human rights violations. Last week, Al-Ayam newspaper journalist Nasreldin Ahmad al-Tayeb, was beaten and arrested by the police while he was covering forced relocation of the Dar Assalam displaced camp around the capital.
The Sudanese government organized last week a conference of Sudanese journalists in Diaspora to incite them to ameliorate the” bad image” of the regime in the international media coverage as they claim. Instead of such useless gathering Khartoum should honor its pledge of democratic transformations and full implementation of the signed political deals. It is also urgent to put an end to the irresponsible position on Darfur plight.
It is also important to say that these detentions are a signal to the international community and to the US Administration particularly that all what they said about the Sudanese government as a peace lover is not true. Too, it is not true that Washington did the right effort to bring peace in Darfur.
Sudanese officials could not continue to claim they resolved Darfur crisis and Darfurians are still in the displaced camps and in refugee camps in the neighbouring countries.
Foreigner journalists will continue to pour in to Darfur region as long as there is a humanitarian tragedy there.