Sudan: Human rights defenders detained, face
death penalty
Authorities should release all in arbitrary
detention, drop charges
(7 July 2017)
– Sudanese authorities have
been unjustly holding Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim Adam, Hafiz Idris, and Mobarak Adam
Abdalla, three human rights defenders, and have charged them with ‘crimes against the state which carry the death penalty, 26
human rights groups said today. Dr. Mudawi Ibahim Adam and Hafiz Idris have
been held for approximately seven months, and Mobarak Adam Abdalla for over
three months. Authorities should immediately release the men and drop the
bogus charges against them, the groups said.
Authorities are also holding seven other human
rights activists in detention, some apparently solely because they are
alleged to have had contacts with international human rights organizations.
These individuals also face criminal charges in a related case. A trial date
has not yet been set. Sudanese authorities should also immediately drop all
criminal charges related to their legitimate human rights work and release
the group.
Sudanese national security officials arrested
Mudawi and Hafiz on December 7 and November 24, respectively, and held
both men in detention in Khartoum for over five months without charging them
with any offence. Mobarak, a student at El Fashir University who
participated in the 15th Creative Student Festival in Khartoum, was
arrested on 25 March 2017. Credible sources report that Hafiz and Mobarak
were severely beaten, and that Hafiz was given electric shocks and forced to
make a confession. Dr. Mudawi has been denied essential medication. All
three men are currently being held in Kober prison.The next court session for Mudawi, Hafiz and
Mobarak will take place on July 20.
On March 26, the prosecutor called for Mudawi
and Hafiz’s
release on bail, but the National
Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) refused to release them. Instead,
on May 11 the Attorney General charged both men with crimes under the 1991
Criminal Act: article 21 (Joint acts in execution of criminal conspiracy),
article 50 (Undermining the constitutional system), article 51 (Waging war
against the State), article 53 (Espionage against the country), article 64
(Provoking hatred against or amongst sects), article 65 (Criminal and
terrorist organizations), and article 66 (Publication of false news). Two of
the charges carry the death penalty.
Mobarak was
only added to the case at an unknown date in late May. Authorities alleged that Mudawi, Hafiz, and Mobarak
assisted in the production of the Amnesty International report “
Scorched Earth, Poisoned Air: Sudanese Government Forces Ravage Jebel Marra,
Darfur”, which
alleges the Sudanese Government used
chemical weapons in Jebel Marra. This attempt to implicate them in
Amnesty’s work on chemical weapons is
another cynical ploy to punish them for their legitimate work. The charges are baseless, and should be dropped.
Our organizations are concerned that Sudanese
authorities cannot guarantee a fair trial. In a recent example, employees
of TRACKs who faced similar trumped-up charges were sentenced to a year in
prison and a fine after 24 court sessions. They were detained 86 days
without charge. The trial proceedings did not comply with international fair
trial standards including the right to a public hearing. The defendants were
not given a written list of the charges they faced, or copies of the
evidence for the alleged crimes in order to prepare a defence for
court.
We are also concerned about Sudan’s
long
record of abuse of detainees. Our
organisations have reported on patterns and cases of torture and
ill-treatment in state custody, including sexual
violence.
We call on the Government of Sudan to guarantee the
safety and physical and psychological well-bring of all detainees, and to immediately release Mudawi, Hafiz, and Mobarak and all other
human rights defenders detained on trumped up political charges. In the
event that the authorities fail to drop the bogus charges against them, we
also affirm the rights of Mudawi, Hafiz and Mobarak to a fair trial before
an impartial, independent, and competent tribunal.
Background
International organizations have repeatedly called
for release of Mudawi and Hafiz and expressed concern about the conditions
of detention. The European Union and the United Nations
Independent Expert
on the human rights situation in Sudan
, Aristide Nononsi, have both issued statements concerning Hafiz
and Dr. Mudawi’s ongoing detention.
Hafiz Idris, a human rights defender from North
Darfur, was arrested by the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) from Dr. Mudawi’s
home in Khartoum on 24 November 2016.
Dr Mudawi, winner of the 2005 Front Line Defenders Award for Human Rights
Defenders at Risk, was arrested by the NISS from the University of
Khartoum, where he is a professor in Mechanical Engineering, on 7 December
2016 alongside his driver, Adam El-
Sheikh Mukhtar. Both men’s families were not officially alerted to their arrest by the NISS until one week
later.
Mobarak Adam Abdalla was arrested by the NISS in Khartoum on 25 March
2017 after participating in the 15th Creative Student Festival in
Khartoum. He was held incommunicado at Kober prison without access to
his family or lawyers from 25 March
– 20 June 2017, and subjected to
daily interrogations at the NISS offices near Shande bus station. He was added to Mudawi and Hafiz’ case
at an unknown date in late May. Very
little is known about his case, other than that he is alleged to have
provided information to Hafiz.
Adam El Sheikh Mukhtar was released without charge
on 13 March 2017 after being detained for over four months, though his
present legal situation remains unclear, alongside a number of other
individuals detained and subsequently released because of their alleged
links to Dr. Mudawi. Seven others are currently facing criminal charges in a
related case which does not yet have a trial date, including Abu Bakar Omar
Ishag, Abdelhamid Abdelkareem Abdalla, Mukhtar Ishag Abakar, Naser Aldeen
Oshar Adam, Musa Ahmed Siraj, Adam Ahmed Al Bashir Abdel Bari, and Sidig
Ahmed Abdallah. It is believed that Hafiz will also stand trial in this
case.
Both Mudawi and Hafiz were held incommunicado
without charge or access to their lawyers until 15 February, when they were transferred from the NISS wing of Kober prision to the Office of the State Prosecutor. Their transfer came shortly after Dr. Mudawi went on a
hunger strike in late January and February protesting his continued
detention without charge.
Family members who were allowed to see Dr. Mudawi
at the NISS facility on 27 January reported that Dr. Mudawi appeared to
be in poor health with visible weight loss, and that the NISS had
prevented him from receiving essential medication for a pre-existing heart
condition. Between 7 December and 15 February, Dr. Mudawi was allowed three
brief visits from family members, all of which were supervised by the NISS.
Hafiz was not allowed visits by his family until after his transfer to the
Office of the State Prosecutor on 15 February.
Hafiz was also detained at the NISS facility then
transferred to Kober. On 15 February 2017 Hafiz told his lawyer that he had
been severely tortured, including by beatings and electrical shocks, and
forced to make a confession, in which he falsely stated that he and Dr.
Mudawi had received funds from the American embassy in Khartoum. Hafiz also
reported that he was repeatedly kicked in the testicles until he urinated
blood. Hurriyat newspaper also reported that Hafiz was taken to the
hospital in late December for treatment following beatings received in NISS
custody.
A
British journalist held by the NISS for two months, Phil Cox, reported in
April on Channel 4 that he was detained next to Dr. Mudawi, and saw NISS
officials force him to sit in the sun for long periods and stated that Dr.
Mudawi was held in an overcrowded cell.
Since
October 2016, international organisations have documented dozens of arrests
of political opposition members, trade union members,
activists and human rights defenders.
The NISS enjoys broad powers of arrest and
detention under the National Security Act 2010 (NSA), which provides that
suspects can be detained for up to four-and-a-half months without judicial
review. NISS officials often use these powers to arbitrarily arrest and
detain individuals, many of whom have been tortured or subjected to other
forms of ill-treatment. Under the same Act, NISS agents are provided with
protection from prosecution for any act committed in the course of their
work, which has resulted in a pervasive culture of impunity.