South Sudanese lawmakers Wednesday debated a National Security Service bill that would give agents broad powers to arrest and detain citizens without warrant or charge.

During the debate, chief whip in the national legislative assembly Tulio Odongi Ayaho proposed there must be oversight of the NSS to ensure agents do not commit rights violations.

“I would prefer to add the establishment of internal attorneys, which is an ombudsman or a judge, to observe and follow the issue of human rights and freedom of citizens,” Tulio said, reported Radio Miraya.

“If this can be accommodated, it will allay fears on that line," the whip continued. "He will check excess of powers; receive public complaints and protection of members in the service itself. It should be installed and imbedded in the bill.”

Tulio said the ombudsman should be answerable only to the minister of national security.

South Sudanese civil rights activist Elizabeth Deng, a researcher with Amnesty International, criticized the bill.

“The bill grants the National Security Service virtually unrestricted powers of arrest, search, and seizure and is at odds with South Sudan’s Transitional Constitution and with regional and international human rights law and standards," said Deng in a press statement. "It should not be passed in its current form."

“While the National Security Service urgently needs a legal mandate, any law passed must ensure appropriate limits on its powers and provide individuals adequate opportunity for redress," she continued. "It grants officers immunity from criminal proceedings, opening the door to impunity."

Article 50 of the bill reads, “An officer or member authorized by the Minister or Director General concerned may, without warrant, arrest any person if such officer or member reasonably suspects that the person to be arrested has committed or is about to commit an offense punishable by law.”

Related:

Document: South Sudan's National Security Bill

File photo: The National Security Service headquarters in Juba, South Sudan

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