South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"

By Jenifer James
The high court in Juba adjourned the hearing of the UAP-terminated staff to Friday.
This comes after the court listened to the representative of the terminated staff on the case file against the UAP insurance company.
Speaking to the media after the hearing on Tuesday, the advocate representing the terminated staff, Marko Reech Chan, said the court listened to the complaint and submitted the contract document.
“The session was scheduled for today (Tuesday), and we proceeded with presenting our case. We reached the point where we were ready to submit the contract related to the seventh stop. However, due to weather conditions, we decided to pause at that stage,” said Reech while briefing journalists outside court in Juba.
Reech further clarified that the court has requested to continue the hearing on Friday, January 24th.
“The court has asked us to reconvene on Friday, and that’s when we’ll proceed,” he said.
Addressing some of the challenges that courts sometimes encounter, Reech remarked, “These are just standard procedures of the court. As you can see, courts often face various obstacles, such as power outages or administrative issues. At times, the parties themselves may not be fully prepared when they come to court.”
Reech noted that they are nearing the end of their submission to give opportunity to defence lawyers of UAP to respond.
“From there, they can dismiss the allegations, accept them in full, or accept part of them,” he said.
This legal battle arises from a strike that took place in September 2023, involving 57 national staff members of UAP Insurance. The employees went on strike, protesting what they called an unfair working environment. In retaliation, UAP management terminated the leaders of the National Staff Association, which led to the current court case.
The Ministry of Labour stepped in, issuing directives for UAP to reinstate the dismissed employees and implement salary increases. However, UAP management has yet to comply with these directives, prompting the former staff to seek legal action.