South Sudan facing new wave of repression, Amnesty warns

President Salva Kiir

South Sudanese President Salva Kiir. MICHAEL TEWELDE | AFP

South Sudan is witnessing a "new wave of repression", global rights group Amnesty International warned Friday, with many activists now in hiding after a string of arrests in the conflict-wracked country.

The world's newest nation has suffered from chronic instability since independence in 2011, with a coalition of civil society groups urging the government to step down, saying they have "had enough".