Radio Miraya
2724: WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY: Journalists must take the lead in highlighting climate change crisis in South Sudan
the first show. The breakfast show is the best way to start your day in forms educated and entertained. Oh, yes, welcome back from the new summary. There is just 12 minutes plus eight to M. Well, this is where the nation's biggest conversations begin every morning. Welcome to the last hour. Of our show this Friday morning and this Friday's world press freedom day. Well, as we continue with our conversations, I am delighted to have my guests in the studio. Generally since South done are joining the rest of the world in commemorating world press freedom day under the theme of press for the planet and journalism in the face of the environmental crisis. Also talk more about this day and how it will be celebrated at the at the national level. We're happy to be joined in the studio with our guest and he's a member of the organizing committee for this year's world press freedom day national celebrations. And he's also I radius station manager, Kung pal. Well, good morning. And thank you so much for making our time to speak to us this morning on radio. My pleasure. Right. So just tell us a bit. Bring us a bit to speed about how sauce done will be marking this day. Currently the this event that is taking place and this event is taking place as palm Africa hotel and there will be a lot of discussion panel discussion on the issue related to press freedom. Especially protection of journalists freedom of expressions environments protections and also misinformation disinformation so many things. And many people will be involved from all the state. All this. This is community media community. These are journalists and media partners and also governments officials senior government official will be also participating in this discussion officially open by the government, of course. And then the events panel discussion event will kick off. Right. Well, the theme this year, just as I mentioned, a process for the planet journalism in the face of the environmental crisis. How does this theme relate to journalism in South Sudan? I think it's it's long overdue because for the last three four years we've been suffering with with flooding a lot of too much flooding across the country, especially most part of a panel has been so much. Still people are living in a dire situation where the effect of the flood is still there. And this is is the right time and it's come at the right time when we are expecting to experience flooding and heavily. I think it's a wake up call for journalists to plug their socks and do a lot of reporting actually giving information, life saving information to people who are expected to be affected by the flood. Right. So what challenges do journalists in South Sudan face when most especially reporting sensitive topics? I don't know how to describe but generally everything is sensitive and generally the word the name generally itself is that it's very sensitive, especially with our community with our the nature of the government. Journalists mean to them to many people is somebody collecting information to I mean negative information about the country and spoiling the image or painting the bad image of the country. And that is where always journalists face a lot of challenge in that particular aspect. Yes, there are so many challenge and one of it is access to information. And this is what we have been discussing in corridor of media that if our government or our states governments are to be for the people, we would expect them from day one when the flooding started to actually take the journalists, national journalists to those area that has been affected to report to show to other parts, I mean to show the world the climate effect that South Sudan is going through. But if they turn their blind eye and it's upon the journalists themselves to struggle to get the stories and as a media house, if you don't have capacity, you don't have resources to send journalists to those affected community or areas. There's no news and in journalism we say when it is not reported, even if it is a disaster that has killed people, you just turn a blind spot there, there's no news, it's not news, it is news until when it is reported when people get it. So that is a challenge, we have access to those area, South Sudan is in terms of road network is difficult, we all know. Now the government officials could not access their own consequences or their own location because they are no road network, they are using flights. So what about a struggling media house or a journalist who has no, who cannot even be able to pay that plan ticket to go down and report about those things. When you go down also maybe you get access, it makes it hard also, you have to go through a lot of questions, a lot of issues with the local authority on the ground asking you what are you coming to do, what are you reporting, even carrying the camera also, they think you are going to capture those pictures and sell them to a foreign country. I mean, we will talk negative about South Sudan, but they do know the importance of getting that information out so that the government itself can speak to that, because the environment is very tense, most especially when you are a journalist like you said, and the word itself, when they see you with a camera, so how do we then change the narrative that journalists are not here to attack or journalists are not actually the enemy. You know, it's not as bad as also some time explained, we are the son of the land and these colleagues from the government or our brothers who are working in the government institution are also the son of this country, and when you speak the language, you make sense, when you make sense to what you are doing, they will allow you, you don't need to be rigid, you don't need to be also difficult, recognize that they are doing their work also, they are taking the orders, also they are orders as you also been asked by your boss to go and collect information, so it's a matter of understanding that I'm doing this for this country. All right, yes, it's 20 minutes past 8am, good morning, we are speaking up on this world press freedom day, and I'm glad to be joined in by the Radio Community Chief Executive Director Chris Maroll, who is joining us just now. Good morning, Chris, welcome to the program, as you found us, we are in the process of digesting this topic of this important topic, so I would like to understand from you. How would you rank the press freedom in this country? All right, thank you, thank you so much, and it's a pleasure to be on Radio Mariah on this important day. I think it's also done at the moment, so, okay, there has been some improvement in the first, but the environment, not only for the journalists, but for the citizens, so the citizen right to freedom of expression, to freedom of assembly is very limited. So, although maybe the media may say, oh, maybe the environment has improved, but we're seeing that it's drinking, so it's not that so, I would rank it in, maybe take it from 5 to 10, maybe I would put it at 5. Okay, 5 is fair, so we are making strides, aren't we? Yeah, it's kind of, okay, the reason why I put 5 is an average of 10, so like it's 50/50, so maybe we are making a great progress, which would be at least at around 7 to 8 or 9, I think that's when, but 5 is probability that maybe things are not going that way, but in an average capacity, that's what I can say, thank you. I know, I agree with him, we've been up, down, up, down, so we are just there in the middle, sometime we improve, sometime we come down, we go down, so I think the average is 5 years, 50/50. Okay, not bad at all, so what role do independent media outlets play in promoting, let's say, transparency and accountability in South Sudan? Ercom? Our role is to make sure that we play our role as independent media in a sense that we deliver information, accurate information that the public needs. When we say it independent, no one is calling the shot on behalf of, I mean, we don't work for any master, no independent media work for anyone, you work for the citizen. Your purpose is to deliver that information, accurate information, that are fair, and without taking side of being biased. So I think that's the role, and the role is, at the stage we are in, we are on transitions, where we expect to go for election any time, whether this year or another time, but whether we like it or not, we are set. We are in a pre-election period, and our role is to make sure that we give the information that are required by the citizen on elections. What do they need to do as a citizen? What do they need to know about election? Because many, many never voted in their life, maybe during referendum we voted during election, Sudan election, when we were once Sudan, some of us voted, but currently there are those who were born immediately after CPA, now they are grown up, and they would like to choose their leader if they are given opportunity. And there is no democratic country without a vibrant media, and that's why people need us, the government need us, they need the media to make sure that they give the information to the public, so public take a right decision for their life, what they want in their life. Thank you. Chris, you rank the press freedom at 50%, so how can the international organization and the global community support press freedom in South Sudan? All right, thank you so much. I think at the moment currently, South Sudan is at critical junctions, as people are preparing for election or thinking about how the election is going to look like. So the media has a role to play, and the role that you need to play as I rank South Sudan at 5%, and that also includes 5 out of 10, so when you look at the community level, at the local level, so there is a very limited civic space. So for people to dialogue, to discuss ideologies, so it's very limited, and that's one of the things that you find. So media has a role to play to make sure that it has the resources that it needs, so that it can be able to provide the information that people need, and that information will be able to help people to make informed decisions. So when that election happens, at least they should be able to know how they can be able to ask the vote and what role they need to play. The only way they can be able to get that is when there is a vibrant, independent media that is able to bring information that is unfiltered in the information that is not sent yet. And that's one of the things that we see that the media, the independent media in South Sudan is playing that role. And because we are running out of time, Chris, do you think social media is a level ground right now? How has it impacted journalism and press freedom in South Sudan? Yeah, okay, thank you so much. I think social media is a very interesting element, and I see it's one of the things. Okay, there are two, the positive and negative part of it. One, the positive part of it is complementing the news and information. So whereby that the role that journalists need to do is basically when you see a post on social media, it's responsibility to check it out, this information is true or not. But sometimes you may find that, oh, maybe when something is popping up on social media, you run that immediately and make it as a news. At the end of the day, so it sometimes might not be true, or maybe the fact they are not the way they have been presented. So that's one of the things that you may find. The social media has an impact that it is playing, but it also needs to be magic. We really need, as journalists, we need to have a role to play to make sure that we have to factor. Right. And that's where the misinformation is also being spread, and also the hate to speech. Right. So those are some other things that I see how we can be able to operate that. Thank you. Yeah, and gentlemen, as we conclude, what are some of the ways that journalists in South Sudan cannot advocate for greater press freedom and also protection of media rights? I think it's not to stop doing our job. One is use media organizations, professional media organizations to advocate for press freedoms and safety of journalists. We have so many institutions that are responsible for security of any citizen, and that is the Minister of Interior, the police. These are responsible institutions, so if we engage them, I think that environment will be there. Because as long as we are practicing responsible journalism, we will be recognized. Our work will be respected. But if we end up practicing unprofessional journalism, then nobody will trust you. Right. And that's where, when you talk about social media, social media is about unverified information, and the mainstream media is about verified information. So it's for us as media institutions, media organizations is to advocate for freedom of expression, discuss it, talk to relevant authorities so they understand. Thank you, Mr. Kong. And yes, Chris, finally, in just a minute, because we'll be having the news headlines at exactly 8.30. Would you like to jump in? I think at the moment in South Sudan, the social media may be in the urban centers, maybe in the town, where there is a bit level of internet connectivity. So people are able at least to be able to be online, but the media need to make sure that any information that is plotting on social media need to be verified. And we really need to have a fact check. So I know some institutions that are doing that, but we really need also, as with election coming, there is a big role that we need to do, and we need to make sure that we set up the facts. Thank you. Chris Maron and Kong Pal, thank you so much for your time. Thank you. Yes, Kong Pal is the member of the organizing committee for this year's world press freedom. Then he's also the radio station manager of iRadio, and Chris Maron is the chief executive director. Thank you so much. It's just seconds to the time when we'll be listening to the news headlines. Let's have the news headlines, shall we?