Sudan’s security agents reportedly seize copies of controversial paper
June 4, 2012 (KHARTOUM) – Sudanese security authorities confiscated on Monday copies of the daily newspaper Al-Intibaha, according to its chairman Al-Tayyib Mustafa who said it was because of a column he wrote on plans by the government to lift fuel subsidies.
Last week the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) approved plans to suspend fuel subsidies as part of attempts to confront the country’s economic crisis despite objections raised by some party members who warned that the move could spark popular protests.
Mustafa, who happens to be the maternal uncle of President Omer Al-Bashir, wrote under his daily column on Sunday that the government was “playing with fire” by assuming that the public will not react to the ending of fuel subsidies.
He also warned that the patience of the people was already wearing thin as they continue to watch their government “squandering” resources on “bloated” state bodies while allowing corruption to run rampant.
“They banned the (Monday) edition because of my column,” Mustafa told Reuters. He added that security agents arrived at the printing press on Sunday and confiscated copies of Monday’s edition.
Al-Intibaha is one of the most widely read yet highly controversial newspaper in the country. It serves as the mouthpiece of the far-right Just Peace Forum (JPF) led by Mustafa.
The paper is infamously known for its anti-South Sudan sentiments as well as its jingoistic writers such as Mustafa who has recently been campaigning against Khartoum’s return to negotiations with Juba.
Al-Intibaha was previously suspended between July and October 2010 for encouraging separatist agendas ahead of South Sudan’s vote on independence, which resulted in the region’s secession last year.
Sudanese newspapers are often subjected to arbitrary confiscation of their editions at the hands of the country’s National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS).
The measure is intended to inflict financial damage on the papers as a form of punishment if they published contents critical of the government or senior officials.
(ST)