Amnesty International has called for the immediate and unconditional release of the editor in chief of the Juba Monitor newspaper, Alfred Taban.

Mr. Taban was arrested last week for allegedly criticizing the leaders of the Transitional Government of National Unity in an article that was published by the English daily.

According to Amnesty International, Mr Alfred Taban argued, in an article published on the 15th of this month, that both leaders “have completely failed” and should not “remain in their seats”.

Amnesty International says Alfred Taban was arrested at 4pm on the 16th of July by National Security Service agents after responding to summons to report to the headquarters in Jebel neighborhood.

In a statement last evening, the rights body says it believes that the detention of Mr Taban is due to the peaceful exercise of his right to freedom of expression and thus considers him to be a prisoner of conscience.

It called on the authorities to ensure that the journalist is not subjected to torture and other ill-treatment before his release.

It also called on them to allow Mr. Taban unrestricted access to his family, a lawyer of his own choosing and access to adequate medical care.

The Minister of Information, Michael Makuei, said he could not immediately comment on the arrest.

But a security official says Mr Taban is being kept in good condition and his family members are allowed to visit him.