South Sudan: Security law 'automatically' in force

South Sudan's controversial security bill allowing people to be arrested without warrants has become law even though the president has not signed it, the parliament's spokesman said Thursday.

Spokesman Oliver Mori told The Associated Press that the bill became law "automatically" under the constitution, after a 30-day delay since it was presented to President Salva Kiir on July 12.

The latter neither signed nor vetoed the law, which drew criticism from human rights activists and some other countries. Nine Western envoys, including representatives from the United States and Britain, said in July that South Sudanese should have the right to freely participate in political and civic expression without fear of arbitrary arrest or intimidation by security personnel.

On December 22, South Sudan is due to hold its first election under the transitional government created after a 2018 peace deal ended a five-year civil war in which nearly 400,000 people died.

The new law has proven to be a sticking point in talks between the government and opposition groups that were not part of the 2018 peace deal.

Yasmin Sooka, chair of the UN Human Rights Commission in South Sudan, said on Thursday that the new law would give security agencies the power to carry out "more arbitrary detentions and enforced disappearances".

"We urge the President and Parliament to urgently review the situation and revise the law in line with democratic processes to strengthen credibility and legitimacy. The adoption of this bill is in direct contradiction to South Sudan's commitments to the international community and the South Sudanese people," she said.

Ter Manyang Gatwech, executive director of a local rights group, the Center for Peace and Advocacy, vowed to challenge the law in court. “This bill poses a direct threat to the nation, and therefore no one is safe in this country because of its nature,” he told AP.

Last month, US State Department spokesman Mathew Miller said South Sudan's transitional government must act urgently to create an environment in which people can express their views openly and without fear.