Journalists and security officials met yesterday in a day-long workshop to discuss the elections and post-elections process and plan for the the referendum period.
The meeting, the second of its kind to strengthen the dialogue process between media representatives and security officers, was attended by some 20 journalists based in Juba and Yei and three SPLA officials.Col. Malaak Auyen Ajok, acting SPLA spokesman, briefed the participants on current security issues.
He underlined the tension between the armies from the north and the south along the border in the area of Raja, Western Bahr el Ghazal, and the mutiny of some troops in Jonglei state led by a general who lost the race for governor of that state.
Col. Malaak added that it is not clear why the Sudan Armed Forces are building up along the border.
He said that the SPLA is treating both cases seriously and waits for indications from the government how to deal with those security threats.
Col. Malaak qualified the elections coverage by the media as an excellent job.
Participants praised the action of the security forces in Juba as very professional although the picture outside Juba was quite different.
Preparations for the referendum were also discussed with journalists underlining that their role is not to support the Yes or the No vote but provide citizens with the means in order to make an informed choice.
The participants decided to hold a Media Forum in order to discuss a strategy to cover the referendum period.