Growing concern over detention of prominent activist

The US ambassador to South Sudan has called on the government to release a prominent activist and economist who has been held without charge over the past week. A report on the News24 site notes that Peter Biar Ajak, who has covered the ongoing peace talks in Khartoum, was arrested late last month at Juba International Airport. ‘We are asking for his release and for more information about really what the case has been about,’ US Ambassador Thomas Hushek told journalists shortly after meeting Justice Minister Paulino Wanawilla to discuss the situation. Philip Sanyang Ngong, a rights activist who works with Advocates Without Borders, has confirmed that Biar is being held at the notorious National Security Service compound known as ‘Blue House’. Biar's arrest has provoked condemnation from rights groups, including the South Sudan Young Leaders Forum, which he founded.