Sudanese English daily prevented from circulation outside Khartoum for two days
July 9, 2009 (KHARTOUM) — Sudanese authorities have prevented, for two day, the distribution outside Khartoum of a daily newspaper after its refusal to run a story related to the alleged killing of a local official of the SPLM-DC.
Since mid 2008, Security agents review the content of the draft copy of Sudanese newspapers, including ‘The Citizen’ every evening before the printing. They often deduct articles, which they claim threaten national security.
Also they used to submit news articles edited by the Sudanese Media Center (SMC) which is sponsored by the security and intelligence services. Editors who refuse to cooperate with this media face daily obstruction from the security agents.
During two days, Wednesday and Thursday the security agents confiscated the copies of The Citizen at Khartoum airport to prevent its circulation in the rest of the country outside the capital, particularly in southern Sudan.
Nhial Bol Aken, the Editor in Chief of the Independent English language The Citizen said on Thursday “Today, they held the newspapers for two hours, and then released them when it was too late to fly them to the different states.”
On Wednesday the security had confiscated the issue for the first time.
According to Nhial, on July 2, security agents brought a report from the SMC alleging that a member of the SPLM-DC of the former foreign minister Lam Akol had been killed by the SPLM in Upper Nile.
“I told them that we would need to verify the story before we could publish it. They started complaining about our coverage, about SPLM activities. They told one of our officials that if we don’t cooperate with them they would sabotage our work,” he said.
The chief editor said the security official removed a number of news items and opinion articles from The Citizen during the last week.
The daily is circulating in Khartoum where it is printed and six states in southern Sudan. According to National Press Council figures, the newspaper averaged 12,000 copies daily.
“Consequently, our circulation was restricted to Khartoum,” Nhial said. The Sudanese capital accounts for about 30 percent of the newspaper’s sales.
(ST)
Akol Liai Mager
Sudanese English daily prevented from circulation outside Khartoum for two days
Mr. Nhial Bol have right not write NIF’s political lies and propaganda news in his Newspaper.
Nhial comes from a family possessed a history of fighting Arab liar Kingdoms. However, writing lies will distort that history as well as his truthful and peaceful culture. Let NIF bans the papers of truth today, but be patient and hopeful as tomorrow dawn will be different completely.
oshay
Sudanese English daily prevented from circulation outside Khartoum for two days
Then move to the South then??? either you cover this very serious and important story of the cold blooded murder of an SPLM-DC official by the SPLA or move to South and choose not to cover it.
It’s a silly excuse to say that you need to verify the story when it came officially from the Party. Stop complaining about harassment in the North when you cooperate with the SPLM to cover up it’s murders and assassinations.
Kur
Sudanese English daily prevented from circulation outside Khartoum for two days
Will they ever learn to behave like civilized people. The regime of killers and liars never want freedom of speech to reign in Sudan. tupid dogs.
P Thon Aleu
Sudanese English daily prevented from circulation outside Khartoum for two days
This is a bad behavor and Khartoum just need to change or see south Sudan doing the best as a Country in a couple months.