Since the beginning of the month, Sudanese journalists and editors have amplified efforts to protest against censorship and arrests. On 4 November, between 150 and 300 journalists waged a hunger strike and demanded that free press legislation is implemented. However, on 17 November police reactions also intensified to unprecedented levels. Sixty-three journalists were arrested, held for three hours and ordered to go to court at a later time for protesting against censorship in front of parliament.

Since the beginning of 2008, the private press in Sudan has been battling state censorship, which undermines protections putatively provided by the Interim Constitution. Parley between the North and South regions following the end of the civil war, is also being sacrificed as a result, and especially after this week’s arrests.

“The protest should be good for the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, known as the CPA, signed in Kenya in January 2005. The protesters are really calling for repeal of the restrictive media and human rights laws, brought about by the ruling party of President Mohammed Omar Bashir in April 2004,” said Jacob Akol, Chairman of the Association for Media Development in South Sudan and editor of Gurtong website (www.gurtong.com) to RAP 21.

“The protesters are calling for the implementation of the Interim Constitution, which enshrined these rights. Their voice is an addition to so many calls from Sudanese, the regional and international community for Presaident Bashir to implement the CPA faithfully,” said Akol.

Akol also said to RAP 21 that if the protests persist and the international press covers the events they could influence the government to finally cease the pre-print censorship.

“I think this government has long impoverished Sudanese journalism and has brought up a generation, which has yet to learn how good and patriotic one feels when one does not have to worry about informers when criticising those in authority,” said Akol.

The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), a Southern group that shares the government with the Arab-led North, has consequently threatened to not approve the 2009 budget unless parliament passes outstanding legislation on press freedom.

Following the arrests, 150 journalists, representing 12 newspapers, declared that they would not publish their paper’s editions until Tuesday in protest of the arrests.

“The war in Darfur and connection with terrorism remain very dark spots in President Bashir’s character. He cannot afford to continue oppressing concerted protests from within, neither can he afford to fight a new war in the south as well as the war in Darfur, let alone other areas like Eastern Sudan and Southern Blue Nile,” said Akol.