 met on Tuesday with the Specialized Committee for information at the National Transitional Legislative Assembly.){kind=link}
By Taban Gabriel
Members from the Association for Media Development in South Sudan (AMDISS) met on Tuesday with the Specialized Committee for information at the National Transitional Legislative Assembly.
They discuss a range of issues pertaining to the safety of journalists and their welfare as the country is gearing toward election in December calling for robust relationships with other arms of the government.
Media stakeholders enlightened concerns facing journalists, which include safety, capacity building, and training to equip media practitioners with knowledge to cover the election fairly.
The AMDISS Secretary General, Josephine Achiro, urged government institutions to engage the media in the upcoming elections activities.
Achiro said the media plays a very vital role in the expected election to ensure there is responsible reporting on election processes until the result is announced.
“We‘re preparing our ground for the upcoming election so that the journalists report accurately because if we mess up with reporting it may destroy the image of this country,” Achiro said.
Meanwhile, the National Transitional Legislative Assembly Chairperson for Information Specialized Committee, John Agany said development can’t be realized without the media.
He says members of parliament should be exemplary in respecting media rights such that other institutions can emulate them.
“Development can’t go without the journalist, in fact even when you want to build your house, you want the all world to know through media,” he said
According to the reporter’s San Frontier, freedom of the press is extremely precarious in South Sudan, where journalists work under constant threat and intimidation, and where censorship is ever-present.