As the world commemorates the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Committed Against Journalists, Reporters Without Borders, a non-profit and non-governmental organization safeguarding the freedom of the press, has ranked South Sudan among the most dangerous countries with a harsh media environment for journalists.
The latest World Press Freedom Index places South Sudan in 138th position in a global ranking of 180 countries. Despite a steady improvement from 2018 and 2019 where it sat on positions 144 and 139 respectively, the status of South Sudan in protecting media practitioners remained wanting.
Earlier this year, the South Sudan Media Authority reported that the media industry was faring better in comparison with the previous years. As of May 2020, no cases of assault or abduction were reported. But that appears to be a momentary cessation of hostility against the press, however.
The second half of 2020 has witnessed the arbitrary arrest and detention of duty-bound journalists with most of them getting released without charges. Tuesday last week, five journalists from six media houses were briefly detained for covering “an illegal press conference” despite invitation by the event organizers.
Prior to the incident, Alexander Bullen Bala, a reporter from Juba Monitor was arrested for covering a demonstration by disgruntled students at the University of Juba dismayed by the deteriorating economic situation of the country. Bullen was released without charges after one day of detention.
As the country joins the world in commemorating the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Committed Against Journalists, promoting a safe and conducive media environment for journalists in South Sudan remained a daunting task.
Christophe Deloire, the Secretary-General of Reporters Without Borders says the suppression of the press and deprivation of journalists of their rights is among a plethora of challenges journalists should brace to battle in the next ten years.
“We are entering a decisive decade for journalism linked to crises that affect its future,” Deloire said. “What will freedom of information, pluralism and reliability look like in 2030? The answer to that question is being determined today.”
The ranking editions of 2018 and 2019, according to Reporters Without Borders, reflected a crisis caused by growing hostility and even hatred towards journalists. This crisis, the index shows, has deepened.
“It has resulted in more serious and frequent acts of physical violence, and therefore an unprecedented level of fear in some countries. Leading politicians and those close to them continue to openly foment hatred of journalists,” the organization says.
Intimidation and hateful rhetoric against journalists, especially by those in the corridor of power has led to the blockage of access to credible information for strides; this phenomenon has created growing mistrust in media outlets suspected of broadcasting or publishing news contaminated by unreliable information.
The media industry is also battling the absence of appropriate regulatory framework in the era of digitalised and globalised communication, which has created information chaos as propaganda, advertising, rumour, and journalism sharply compete.
Economy
As the media industry goes digital, that transformation has brought many outlets to their knees. Falling sales, the collapse in advertising revenue and the increase in production and distribution costs have forced news organizations to restructure and lay off journalists.
At least three in every five journalists in South Sudan are unhappy with their work due to poor pay, a situation which has forced many to desert the profession and venture into more sustainable careers. If such trend continues, the local media industry could be managed by interns from Universities, which is already the case.
These economic challenges have social consequences and an impact on the editorial freedom of the media and newspapers that are in a much weaker economic situation are naturally less able to resist pressure, says the media watchdog.