Registration of media houses has been misinterpreted says Information minister
*JUBA, 14 December 2013* – The order by the ministry of Information and Broadcasting to register all media houses and freelancer journalists operating in South Sudan has been ‘ultimately misinterpreted’, Hon. Micheal Makuei has said. In a press briefing on Friday, Hon. Makuei, said the objective of the registration exercise is to “organize and regulate the media as opposed to what has been perceived as ‘a crack down on freedom of expression’. Secondly as revenue generating entity, the registration process Hon. Makuei said, ought to ensure that media houses stand up to their obligation of paying taxes as required by law. “There is no where in the World where you get a media house or a journalist operating without being registered. It is only in South Sudan that such a thing is happening”, Hon Makuei who is also the official government Spokesman said. *Members of the press at the Friday ministry of information briefing* [Photo: Francis Oliver] “In order for the ministry to come in and protect ‘journalist X and Y’ against any harassed or arrested, they [journalists] need to first register with the us, There is no way we will just go out there to protect whoever claims to be a journalist,” Hon. Makuei stressed. Since 2006, the media houses in the country have been operating without being organized and regulated, the minister noted. “The fact that a mistake has been committed does not mean that it must not be corrected. The way my directive was understood, the way it was interpreted and passed to the public was distorted”, Hon. Makuei remarked. The minister called for professionalism in what is commonly referred to as the ‘third arm of the government’. “I always insist the media must be responsible, accountable and transparent, Responsible in the sense that you report exactly what happened, don’t deviate and make misleading statements and reports”, Makuei urged. Majority of the media houses, print, broadcasting and online news agencies have already adhered to the exercise. He said. Hon. Makuei however he was quick to say that a good number of media houses exist only by name. They are not operational and are not paying taxes, he said adding that the government will deregistered such companies should they fail operate. He told the media houses that are resisting his directive to choose between waiting for the establishment of the media Authority of register with the ministry which in the absence of the authority is the responsible of regulating the press. The UN Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in South Sudan Toby Lancer on Thursday called on journalists to be fair and professional in their day to day reporting. He said it is important for Journalists to double-check their sources when writing or broadcasting on the radios. “Do not just pick up some rumor on the streets and belief its true. It is important that the media is professional and contributes to the development of the country. Do not write stories or share things that will contribute to or incite violence”, Lancer said while addressing media houses in a ‘meet and greet’ organized by the United Nations Communications Group. He underlined UN’s commitment to upholding freedom of the press in South Sudan. *Reported by Matata Safi * Graduates tipped on getting start-up loans *JUBA, 13 December 2013 *- Graduates of vocational training institutions have been urged to form themselves into groups in order to improve their chances of getting start-up loans from banks and micro-finance institutions. National Labour Undersecretary Madam Hellen Achiro Lotara said by forming groups or cooperative societies the graduates would be pooling their resources and reducing the risks involved in running businesses. “The Cooperative Bank of South Sudan cannot support you as an individual. Rather, they will do so when you are in group or a cooperative,” said Madam Hellen. Madam Hellen said the government would assist vocational training graduates either to get jobs in the formal sector or to set up their own enterprises. A cross section of the graduates [Phtoto: Justin Jada] Madam Hellen said the vocational training curriculum had been harmonised at the national level, adding that even private vocational training institutions had participated in the harmonisation process and formulation of the draft national vocational training policy. “Once the draft national Vocational Training Policy is adopted by the Council of Ministers, it will be disseminated to all vocational training institutions as well as stakeholders in the sector,” she said, adding that the Ministry of Labour, Public Service and Human Resource Development was working closely with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. Madam Hellen further advised vocational training institutions to ensure their graduates are registered with the national Ministry of Labour, Public Service and Human Resource Development saying this would facilitate government assistance in securing employment. The Undersecretary was speaking during the 5th graduation ceremony of the St Vincent de Paul Vocational Training Centre at Luluggu in Juba. Speaking during the occasion, Central Equatoria State Minister for Education Hassan Yokwe said emphasis should be put on scientific subjects at the basic level of education to spur technological innovations which would in turn lead to economic growth. Mr Yokwe said the state government was willing to lease land to any individual or private institution that had the intention of investing in education and vocational training. The Minister said independence for any nation comes with responsibility, adding that the onus was on the government to promote self-reliance through the production of skilled labour in all economic sectors. In his remarks, the centre’s Director, Dr Hakim Kuol, urged the government to speed up the enactment of laws to regulate the labour market stressing that the labour market was highly competitive. Dr Hakim advised the graduates to show commitment and dedication in their work. “Vocational training should be geared towards developing knowledge and skills of our youth so that we can reduce our dependence on imported labour from neighbouring countries,” he added. A total of 334 graduates were awarded certificates in six areas, namely carpentry and joinery; electricity; building construction; automotive mechanics; tailoring, and; computer skills. *Reported by Justin Jada Joseph and Simon Peter Owaka* -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "South Sudan Info - The Kob" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/SouthSudanKob/CAJb14ooBxp7StwWf0LtPDiaCad8OEr_XSgw64MhE7s6mqSjCqw%40mail.gmail.com. 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