sudan: detainees subjected to torture

Case SDN 100702 / 100702.CC
Torture / Fair trial / Death penalty

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT
intervention in the following situation in Sudan.

Brief description of the situation

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Sudan
Organisation Against Torture (SOAT), a member of the OMCT network,
that 35 detainees from the Rizeigat tribe, including 3 children, were
subjected to torture and are now awaiting their sentences following
an unfair trial in Darfour Province, Sudan.

According to the information received, 136 men were arrested on May
6th 2002, following a conflict between members of the Rizeigat and
Ma'aliya tribes. The conflict reportedly resulted in the death of 10
people. Although both tribes are of Arabic origin, recent information
indicates that members of the Ma'aliya militia have joined with
Sudanese Government Forces during the recent dry season offensive
against the SPLA in Southern Sudan. As a result, the Rizeigat have
accused the government of supporting the Ma'aliya tribe.

According to the information received, between June 21st and 22nd,
2002, 35 of the detainees from the Rizeigat Tribe were subjected to
torture. They were reportedly beaten with sticks, gun butts, and
hoses by the Province Chief of Police, an interrogation officer named
Ahmed, and four assistants named Omer, Nasr el Din, Musa and Abu
Indelang (nickname). The torture allegedly resulted in some of the 35
detainees sustaining broken fingers and forearms.

The following detainees were reportedly tortured in Niyala Police
headquarters: 39 year old farmer from Abu Jabra Abdalla Sagayrun
Madibu; a medical assistant from Um matariq Al Hadi Ahmed Hamad; 40-
year old labourer at a water company from Um matariq Al Sadiq Yusif
Osman; 43-year old teacher Mohamed Sharif; 59-year old mill owner
from Abu Jabra Yusif Jabir; 35-year old tax collector Mohamed Musa
Ibrahim; 33-year old farmer from Al Tabet Al Hadi Adam Ali; 33-year
old farmer from Al Tabet Hamdan Ibrahim Abdalla; 22-year old labourer
on an oilfield Mohamed Ibrahim Yunis; 45-year old medical assistant
Bukhari Zaidan; and caretaker Tahamed Ibrahim Omer.

The following detainees were reportedly tortured in Niyala secondary
school: 60-year old farmer Wanees Abdal Wahab; 24 year old trader
from Al Tabet Yahya Mahmoud; 32-year old clerk at the tax office Fadl
Issa Ibrahim; 27-year old farmer Adam Issa Abdalla; 33-year old gold
jeweller Kabashi Fadl Al Seed; 42-year old clerk Gadim Mohamed Yunis;
32-year old pastoralist Hashim Sedieg; 27-year old pastoralist
Magbool Adam Yunis; 29-year old pastoralist Tarbo Adam Yunis; 32-year
old pastoralist Ibrahim Osman; a soldier Mansour Yusif Ibrahim; 31-
year old oilfield labourer Bukhari Al Bushari Zeidan; 24-year old
Hamad Issa Mohamed Hamdoon; 42-year old farmer Mohamed Toum; 33-year
old medical assistant Abd Al Gafour Osman; Al Sayid Hamdoun; 23-year
old Tahameed Al Rahman; 39-year old farmer Mohamed Ahmed Al Nageeb;
36-year old farmer Ibrahim Yunis Hamed; and 35-year old store-keeper
Abdalla Al Sadiq Yusif. The following three children were also
reported tortured in Niyala secondary school: 14-year old Kabashi
Alyan; 14-year old Mohamed Sedieg; and 14-year old Gadim Hamdoun.

According to the information received, the detainees were tried by
the Special Court in Darfour Province. The Special Court, established
in accordance with the State of Emergency Act 1998 by the Governors
of Southern and Northern Darfour Provinces, deals with crimes of
armed robbery, crimes against the state, as well as crimes relating
to drugs and public nuisance. The Special Court operates with two
military judges and one civil judge. Lawyers are usually forbidden to
stand before the Special Court and plaintiffs are given the right to
appeal only when sentenced to death or amputation. Under such
circumstances, the appeal must be made within seven days of the
sentence to the District Chief of Justice, whose decision is final.
According to the information received, the Sudanese Minister of
Justice has publicly admitted that the Special Courts are not
following correct judicial procedures.

According to the report, on July 2nd 2002, the following 6 lawyers
who represent the detainees - Masaad Mohamed Ali, Muzemil Jama'ah Al
Jack, Mohamed Omer Salah, Mohamed Ali Salah, Ali Adam Ali, Ahmed
Mohamed Abdalla - withdrew from the court in protest concerning the
fact that Special Court No. 1 in Niyala Darfour had refused their
request to question prosecution witnesses. The judge claims that the
court was following its special procedures, which are in violation of
internationally recognised fair trial standards and guarantees, under
which neither lawyers nor defendants have the right to question the
prosecution witnesses. After the lawyers withdrew, the court
reportedly continued its session and charged 96 people under Articles
168, 175, 182 and 183 of the 1991 Penal Code. The detainees were
charged with armed robbery (Harraba), murder and possession of arms.
These crimes can carry penalties of death by hanging, death by
hanging and crucifixion, cross amputation or amputation.

The International Secretariat of OMCT considers that these persons
rights have been violated, due to the alleged use of torture and
breaches of internationally recognised fair trial standards and
guarantees, including: the right to be tried by an impartial
tribunal, the right to appeal before an independent tribunal, the
right to legal representation, alongside the fact that these
civilians were tried by what is effectively a military tribunal. OMCT
is gravely concerned for the physical and psychological integrity of
the 32 men and 3 children that are awaiting their sentences. OMCT
stresses that it is strongly opposed to any kind of amputation and
the death penalty as an extreme form of cruel, inhuman and degrading
treatment and a violation of the right to life, as proclaimed in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human
rights instruments.

Action requested

Please write to the authorities in Sudan urging them to:

i. guarantee the afore-mentioned persons physical and psychological
integrity;
ii. immediately repeal the death sentence;
iii. prohibit the use of Special Courts in Darfour, as they fail to
comply with judicial procedures or internationally recognised fair
trial standards and guarantees;
iv. order that the afore-mentioned persons who are awaiting their
sentence be released immediately in the absence of valid legal
charges or, if such charges exist, bring them before an impartial and
competent tribunal and guarantee their procedural rights at all
times;
v. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the
circumstances of these events, notably the allegations of torture,
and guarantee that those responsible are brought to trial and that
the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions are applied as
provided by law;
vi. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental
freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and
international human rights laws and standards, especially the
Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Addresses

· His Excellency Lieutenant General Omar Hassan al-Bashir, President
of the Republic of Sudan, President' s Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum,
Sudan, Fax: + 24911 783223/787676
· His Excellency Mr Mustafa Osman Ismail, Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, PO Box 873, Khartoum, Sudan,
Fax: + 24911 779383
· Mr Ali Mohamed Osman Yassin, Minister of Justice and Attorney
General, Ministry of Justice, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 24911 788941
· His Excellency Ambassador Mr. Ibrahim Mirghani Ibrahim, Permanent
Mission of the Republic of Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva, PO
Box 335, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: +4122 731 26 56, E-
mail: [email protected].

Please also write to the diplomatic representatives of Sudan in your
country.

Geneva, July 10th, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this
appeal in your reply.
Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT)
8 rue du Vieux-Billard
Case postale 21
CH-1211 Geneve 8
Suisse/Switzerland
Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39
Fax : 0041 22 809 49 29
E-mail : [email protected]
http://www.omct.org