{"id":56361,"date":"2024-04-12T11:07:57","date_gmt":"2024-04-12T11:07:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities"},"modified":"2024-04-12T11:30:49","modified_gmt":"2024-04-12T11:30:49","slug":"fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities","title":{"rendered":"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Sudan. <\/strong><\/span>An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authorities, an accusation described by an activist as an attack on civic space.<\/p>\n

The human rights activist, Yoal Gatkuoth raised concerns on Wednesday about the deteriorating civic and political space in Fangak County, Jonglei State, suggesting that it\u2019s under attack.<\/p>\n

He accused the Commissioner of threatening and intimidating NGO staff who have criticised local authorities.<\/p>\n

In a letter dated April 1, 2024, addressed to Norwegian People\u2019s Aid (NPA) and MSF, Wicyeiy Toang Nhial, Acting Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC) County Coordinator, warned six national NGO staff for allegedly inciting violence.<\/p>\n

The staff members mentioned are Joseph Ruot Tot, Mawich Beliew Wang, Kueth Gatjang Thiep, and Jikany Biliew Patai from NPA, as well as Dak Maluit and Mut Tap Nguot from MSF, along with Chan Tut Kuach from Finn Church Aid.<\/p>\n

The human rights activist says the local authorities do not entertain criticism linking local authorities to corruption, weak systems, and policies.<\/p>\n

According to Yoal, the move is a breach of the constitution which provides for freedom of expression.<\/p>\n

He accuses the leadership of Fangak County of serving critics, and those working for the NGOs with warning letters.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe civic and political space there is under attack by the local authority and people are trying to raise concerns on the issue related to corruption related to the local government policies,\u201d Yoal said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople there are not expressing themselves freely because of the threats and intimidation, and even now, the authority is targeting people working with NGOs who are raising such concerns,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe commissioner is giving his critics warning letters to leave their workplaces like certain individuals are working in different organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Biel Boutros Biel, the Commissioner of Fangak County downplayed the accusations.<\/p>\n

According to him, his leadership has been telling those in NGOs not to work under the cover, inciting violence among the communities.<\/p>\n

He says those raising such concerns may be what he describes as political agents under the cover of civil society.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese people may be political agents disguising themselves within civil society. The constitution\u2019s provision for freedom of expression, ensures everyone\u2019s liberty to speak their mind,\u201d said Biel.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been advising NGOs not to incite violence among communities while operating under the guise of an organization. If you wish to engage as a politician, do so transparently, addressing any topic openly and directly,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re an ordinary citizen, constructive criticism of the government is not only allowed but also encouraged. Highlighting shortcomings and failures serves as positive feedback, motivating the government to improve, and this freedom cannot be restricted.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you are encouraging violence or pursuing divisive political agendas that incite conflict among communities cannot be tolerated by any responsible government, as ensuring security remains the paramount concern.\u201d<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Sudan<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Sudan. An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authorities, an accusation described by an activist as an attack on civic space. The human rights activist, Yoal Gatkuoth raised concerns on Wednesday about the deteriorating civic and political space in Fangak County, Jonglei State, suggesting that it\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":56359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[234,265,233],"class_list":["post-56361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-south-sudan","tag-south-sudan"],"yoast_head":"\nFangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities - South Sudan<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authori ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authori ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"South Sudan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-04-12T11:07:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-04-12T11:30:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"545\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-12T11:07:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-04-12T11:30:49+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities\"},\"wordCount\":493,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-South-Sudan\",\"South-Sudan\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities\",\"name\":\"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities - South Sudan\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-12T11:07:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-04-12T11:30:49+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authori ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg\",\"width\":720,\"height\":545,\"caption\":\"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/\",\"name\":\"South Sudan\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities - South Sudan","description":"An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authori ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities","og_description":"An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authori ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities","og_site_name":"South Sudan","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2024-04-12T11:07:57+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-04-12T11:30:49+00:00","og_image":[{"width":720,"height":545,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities","datePublished":"2024-04-12T11:07:57+00:00","dateModified":"2024-04-12T11:30:49+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities"},"wordCount":493,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg","keywords":["Africa Press","Africa Press-South-Sudan","South-Sudan"],"articleSection":["all news","policy"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities","name":"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities - South Sudan","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg","datePublished":"2024-04-12T11:07:57+00:00","dateModified":"2024-04-12T11:30:49+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"An SPLM-IO-appointed Fangak Commissioner has denied allegations of threatening and intimidating critics of local authori ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/sites\/32\/2024\/04\/sm_1712908664.434343.jpg","width":720,"height":545,"caption":"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/all-news\/fangak-denies-allegations-of-intimidating-critics-of-local-authorities#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Fangak denies allegations of intimidating critics of local authorities"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/","name":"South Sudan","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56361","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56361"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56361\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-sudan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}