May 2nd 2018 (Nyamilepedia) – Two human rights organizations have urged the South Sudan government to reveal the whereabouts of prominent human rights lawyer Dong Samuel Luak and prominent opposition member Agrey Idri both of whom disappeared days before they reportedly appeared in South Sudan. The two were reportedly arrested by Kenyan security operatives in a join operation with their South Sudanese counterparts in January 2017. The Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the Amnesty International called on South Sudan government to investigate and reveal their whereabouts to the public.
“South Sudan’s leaders should act immediately to impartially investigate the enforced disappearances of two men, and release or charge everyone in their custody who has been arbitrarily detained,” the two international human rights organizations said in a joint statement.
Jehanne Henry, a team leader in Human Rights Watch’s Africa division said South Sudan should work hard to demonstrate its commitment to human rights and prevent actions that may undermines these rights.
“South Sudanese leaders should demonstrate their commitment to basic human rights and take concrete action on enforced disappearances and unlawful detention,” she said.
For his part, Seif Magango, deputy Regional Director for East Africa accused South Sudan authorities of continuing showing their disregards for human life and human dignity pointing out that the government in South Sudan should take steps in order to reveal the whereabouts of the two men.
“South Sudanese authorities continue to show their total disregard for human life and dignity by appearing to condone or turn a blind eye to unlawful detentions and enforced disappearances. They [authorities in South Sudan] must take concrete steps to promptly, effectively and impartially investigate the disappearances of Dong Luak and Aggrey Idri, and charge, or release all remaining political detainees in line with South Sudan’s domestic and international legal obligations,” he said.
The statement revealed that the two rights organization were informed that the two men appeared in a National Security custody in Juba on January 25 & 26, 2017 before they disappeared again.
“Credible sources told both Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International that they had seen Luak and Idri in National Security Service (NSS) detention in Juba on January 25 and 26. The men were then removed from the facility on January 27 to an unknown location,” the statement revealed.
Dong Luak and Aggrey disappeared in Nairobi Kenya on January 23rd and 24th 2017 respectively two days later, a Kenyan court banned the deportation of the two men after reports that the two might be in a Kenyan police custody, however, days later, the two men appeared in Juba according to National Security Services sources.
In February, the Kenyan court said a former South Sudan embassy official asked for a ransom top free the two detained government dissidents.
