16 May 2024
Apr 28, 2019 by 500 Words Magazine -

South Sudanese Veteran Journalist Alfred Taban Dies at 62

One of the most well-known South Sudanese journalists, Alfred Taban Logune, died on Saturday, 27 April, 2019 at the age of 62.

The veteran journalist turned politician died in Uganda where he has been hospitalised for months as his health has been deteriorating. The cause of death is unknown. An official medical report has not yet to be released.

Born in 1957 in Kajo Keji, South Sudan, Taban was a broadcast journalist and former BBC correspondent in Khartoum, Sudan. He was the founder and former editor-in-chief of one of the leading independent newspapers in South Sudan, Juba Monitor, and former chairperson for the press lobby group, Association for Media Development in South Sudan (AMDISS). Formerly known as Khartoum Monitor, the Monitor was the first independent English newspaper in Sudan.

Taban received several awards for his work in journalism. In 2005, former Speaker of the British House of Commons, Michael Martin, presented the Speaker Abbot award to Alfred Taban in recognition of his work exposing the Darfur genocide. In 2006, Taban was one of three recipients of the National Endowment for Democracy award by former US President George W Bush.

A critic of South Sudan’s and Sudan’s political climates, Taban joined politics in 2017 after being appointed as a Member of Parliament (MP) in South Sudan’s Translational National Legislative Assembly. He later joined the national dialogue process launched by President Salva Kiir after securing the release of several journalists detained by authorities.

Many including his daughter Nana Alfred took to social media to pay their respects and express their sadness over the news of his death.

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Apr 26, 2019

Apr 29, 2019
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  • Muana
    3 June 2019 at 6:31 pm - Reply

    I had brief but filfilling association with Alfred Taban while I served as Ambassador of my country to the Sudan. He then edited Khartoum Monotor which played cat and mouse game with the authorities constantly.
    I belief Alfred had a rich, productive life, contributing much for humanity. May his noble soul rest in peace.

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