South Sudan MPs pass security bill, despite opposition protests
July 4, 2024 (JUBA) – South Sudan national assembly on Wednesday passed a bill which gives security agents powers to arrest a person without a warrant.
The contentious issue divided the house, with the opposition walking out in protest.
The National Security Act 2014 (Amendment) Bill 2024, enacted during the war which erupted in 2013 gives the operatives sweeping powers to arrest without a warrant.
The sitting on Wednesday was attended by 391 members, 274 of whom voted in favor, 144 against, and three members abstained. The passage took in the presence of the director general of the Internal Bureau of National Security, General Akol Koor Kuc, and the minister of interior, Angelina Teny.
The bill was envisaged to assist the government in collecting intelligence, conducting analysis, and passing the information to relevant institutions and authorities to help in the decision-making process. However, politicians and military leaders have over the years used it to persecute their competitors, members of civil society, journalists, advocacy groups, and opinion leaders, causing widespread concerns and rejection. With the passage of the bill, many fear it would strengthen the agency to stifle and restrict press freedom, freedom of speech, association, and assemble
The agency has been using the bill as the basis for restricting freedom of association and assembly. People wanting to meet must seek permission in writing and give an explanation with the details of the venue, number of participants, and hours during which the meeting would convene and end. The agency would review before deciding. In most cases, meetings are denied by security forces, and break-ups occur when unwanted personalities are involved.
Resistances have always seen the use of sections 54 and 55 of the Bill, which give the agency broad and unqualified powers to arrest without warrant and detain for more than 24 hours. This section of the bill has been the cause of the advocacy pushing a repeal. President and his first deputy Riek Machar in the lead-up to implementation of the revitalized peace agreement agreed to repeal the bill as part of the security sector reform.
Oliver Mori Benjamin who speaks for the Assembly as the chairperson of the Information Committee told reporters on Wednesday the house could not reach a consensus and so resorted to voting. The house is composed of the appointed members of the parliament by the political parties’ signatory to the 2018 revitalized peace agreement, with the majority of members coming from the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement under President Salva Kiir and others from the opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) under the leadership of the first vice president Riek Machar. South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) and Other Political parties (OPP) are also represented in the house.
SSOA and SPLM-IO members walked in protest and OPP sided with SPLM and some abstained, allowing government members of parliament mechanical majority to pass the bill. Benjamin explained that the members had exercised their democratic rights, and the Bill had been passed by a majority vote that was in line with the parliamentary regulations. The passing of the Bill, which many consider a threat to the citizens, comes after the two principals, President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek had agreed to delete the two sections, which grant the National Security Service powers to arrest and detain people without an arrest warrant. It remains unclear whether it would be returned to the house in compliance with the agreement of the two principals or would be assented into law by the president in contravention of the provisions of the revitalized peace agreement. Benjamin said the August House did not receive any official communication from the leadership of the parties.
“There was no document to show that the two had agreed to delete or to remove the two sections, 54 and 55. It was debated in the House. So, there it is, said Benjamin when asked to comment on why the house decided to pass the bill despite the agreement that the two principals had struck.
Oyet Nathaniel, the First Deputy Speaker, also the deputy chairperson of the opposition SPLM-IO, protested the passing of the Bill. He demanded the deletion of the two sections.
Peter Lomude, a member of parliament representing SSOA, and the current acting chief whip, also called for the removal of the two sections, saying they go against provisions of the Constitution and the peace agreement.
The lawmaker explained that the Constitution granted the National Security Service the powers to gather and verify information and help police do the arrest.
According to opposition MP, the mandate of security is to collect and verify information, analyze and forward it to relevant authorities and institutions to help in the decision-making process.
“I think it is very clear, Madam Speaker, based on your statement from the beginning of this session. It is important that what we pass here conforms with the Constitution because it is the supreme law of the land”, explained Lomude.
Several opposition figures and members of civil society organizations and faith-based groups also protested the passage of the bill without removing articles 54, 55, and 57, saying it does not comply with international best practices and principles of the Bill of Rights and international treaties of the United Nations that South Sudan ratified.
(ST)