JUBA, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- The South Sudanesegovernment on Wednesday expressed concern over the arrest of its nationals in Kenya following the ongoing crackdown on illegal migrants in the East African country.
Michael Changjiek, South Sudanese minister of interior, said they regretted the clamp down in which minors, expectant mothers and the sickly were arrested alongside other foreigners following the lapse of 60 days issued by Nairobi for undocumented foreigners to register and work in the country.
"We as members of the East African Community, we don't expect that treatment from our brothers in Kenya because if they wanted to do inspections it should be conformative with international law and norms," he told journalists in Juba.
The minister disclosed that over 100 South Sudanese were arrested and some have been released amid reports of extortion and bribes by the Kenyan police which he urged their Kenyan counterparts to review.
"We urge also our Kenyan brothers to at least review the behavior of the police and let everything be done according to the law," he said, adding that Kenya is a sovereign state mandated to act within its laws.
Changjiek said the South Sudan embassy in Nairobi is engaging the Kenyan authorities to secure the release of other South Sudanese arrested.
He said most of the South Sudanese affected by the clamp down by the Kenyan authorities live in Nakuru, Nyeri, Bungoma and Nairobi.
According to UN refugee agency (UNHCR), 2.5 million out of the 4 million displaced South Sudanese have become refugees in neighboring countries, including Uganda, Kenya, Sudan and Ethiopia.
South Sudan joined the regional trade bloc (EAC) in April 2016 that includes neighboring countries like Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.
The EAC among its priorities seeks to waive visa fees to allow free movement of people across borders and achieving a unified common tariff on external goods and maintaining lower trade tariffs within the region to spur internal trade.
