Now, a nation that countless people died to free has been fled by many of its citizens, who have ended up in refugee camps.

A vision and mission must have been killed with Dr John Garang. Otherwise, our dear liberators perished in vain, or else the country is ruled by foreign governors as asserted by Eng Chol Tong Mayai.

I am frustrated, bothered, and irritated by the nude pictures of Abraham swimming circulating social media. I cannot understand people who stay to suffer at the hands of the government. Why was Abraham stripped naked? And what does the Act say about privacy and the distribution of nude pictures without consent? On 23 March, Sudan’s chief of justice denied health officials the right to screen his sons for coronavirus at Juba airport, and no action was taken, nor summons from the court in response to this. This demonstrates the unfairness of what was done to Abraham.

According to the picture taken during the first hearing, the room was full of people, which was a breach of social distancing measures, though some people in South Sudan are above the law. Abraham Chol Maketh was not alone, nor did he breach social distancing procedures. Cruel prejudice has proved the country to be lawless. Abraham was locked in the church on Friday by the police under the pretext of COVID-19 breaches. But churches continue to operate, and the court does not observe social distancing rules. I condemn the South Sudan law enforcement sector and law enforcers to summon those involved. In African traditions, this situation creates a taboo that could result in a curse upon those involved. I encourage those who have shared the images of Abraham to take the pictures down from social media. Leaders must repent and offer apologies to all South Sudanese and religious groups, locally and abroad. Declining to do so will bring about another crisis. No human deserves injustice or to be treated as a second citizen in his/her motherland. South Sudan is going down the wrong path, and those who laughed at Chol Maketh will regret it someday.

I implore the law enforcing body to free Abraham promptly, take him for medical evaluation, and compensate him for defamation and the distribution of his naked photos on social media without his permission. By Acting Chief of Twi East Peter Lual Reech Deng

References Why has South Sudan become A Failed Country by Prof Martin Takpiny Lives at Stake South-Sudan during the Liberation Struggle by Halle Jorn Hanssen