Sudan to set up special body for electronic media monitoring

January12, 2016 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese Ministry of Information has said it is about to launch a centre to monitor news and reports broadcast on the Internet.

Recently, the cyber crime security unit has filed complaints against two journalists because of certain interventions on the WhatsApp groups.

Information Minister Ahmad Balal Osman Monday said that the centre, which will be launched soon, “was dictated by the need to deal seriously with the lies electronic media says”.

Osman didn’t say when the monitoring body will be established.

The Sudanese government security apparatus used to censure the printed newspapers in the country but however failed to control the independent electronic media outlets.

The National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) and the interior ministry have set up special units for combating cyber crime.

Observers described the measure as an attempt by the government to curb the increased use of electronic media in the country.

The government used in the past to block some websites but the measure has failed as there is many applications allowing to bypass Internet censorship and gain access to the censored sites.

(ST)