Documento - SUDÁN. Temor de tortura o malos tratos / detención sin cargos
PUBLIC AI Index: AFR 54/022/2003
15 April 2003
UA 103/03 Fear of torture or ill-treatment/ detention without charge
SUDAN Adam Ahmed Mohammed Guma' (m), aged 51, businessman
Mohammed Ahmed Karama (m), aged 50, businessman
Khalil Mohammed Din (m), aged 45, farmer
Mohammed Tayrab (m), aged 40
Ishag Teimi (m)
Yousif Sam (m)
Adam Harun (m)
Omer Hussein (m)
Boos Al Zaghawy (m)
The nine men named above were detained without charge some time between 1 and 12 April. They are being held incommunicado at Shala prison near El Fasher town, North Darfur province, and may be at risk of torture or other ill-treatment.
The men were initially detained by security personnel in Kabkabia town, North Darfur province, before their transfer to Shala prison. Government security forces have secretly used torture against detainees suspected of supporting opposition political groups while in custody.
It is thought that the men, who come from the Fur and Zaghawa ethnic groups, may have been detained in connection with recent armed clashes between government forces and a new armed group operating in Darfur, calling itself the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA). The SLA claimed it had killed dozens of soldiers and seized their vehicles. The government has neither confirmed nor denied the claim.
Khalil Mohammed Din was previously arrested with other Fur community leaders by the security forces in May 2002, after groups of nomads attacked the village of Shoba and killed 17 people. He and other Fur detainees were released without charge in August 2002. He told Amnesty International delegates in Darfur that the detainees had been detained in poor conditions and had not even been interrogated.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Sudan Liberation Army has been fighting government forces since early February 2003. It accuses the government of keeping Darfur, a remote area that borders Chad in the western part of the country, under-developed and marginalized. Farming communities in the region, comprised of ethnic groups such as the Fur and the Zaghawa, have clashed regularly with cattle and camel herders over scarce water resources and pasture.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in Arabic or English or your own language:
- expressing concern for the safety of Adam Ahmed Mohammed Guma, Mohammed Ahmed Karama, Khalil Mohammed Din, Mohammed Tayrab, Ishag Teimi, Yousif Sam, Adam Harun, Omer Hussein and Boos Al Zaghawy, detained between 1 and 12 April and currently being held without charge at Shala prison;
- seeking assurances that the detainees will not be tortured or ill treated;
- calling on the authorities to abide by its commitments under Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and either charge the detainees with a recognizable criminal offence and give them a prompt and fair trial in accordance with international standards or set them free immediately;
- urging the authorities to allow the detainees immediate and unrestricted access to their relatives, legal counsel and any medical aid they may need.
APPEALS TO:
His Excellency Lieutenant General Omar Hassan al-Bashir
President of the Republic of Sudan
People's Palace
PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan
Telegram: President al-Bashir, Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: + 249 11 771651 / 787676 / 783223 (please keep trying)
Salutation: Your Excellency
Maj-Gen Tayyib Ibrahim Muhammed Khayr
Adviser to the President on Security Affairs
People's Palace
PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan
Telegram: Adviser to the President on Security Affairs, Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: + 249 11 771651 / 787676 / 783223 (please keep trying)
Salutation: Dear Major-General
Mr Ali Mohamed Osman Yassin
Minister of Justice and Attorney General
Ministry of Justice, Khartoum, Sudan
Telegram: Justice Minister, Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: + 249 11 774906 / 771651 / 787676 / 783223 (please keep trying)
Salutation: Dear Minister
Major General Abdul-Rahim Muhammed Hussein
Minister of Internal Affairs
Ministry of Interior
PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan
Telegram: Minister of Internal Affairs, Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: + 249 11 773046 / 770186 / 777900
Salutation: Dear Minister
Mr Mustafa Osman Ismail
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
PO Box 873, Khartoum, Sudan
Telegram: Foreign Minister, Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: + 249 11 779383
Salutation: Dear Minister
General Ibrahim Sulayman
Governor of Northern Darfur
C/o People's Palace
PO Box 281
Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: + 24911 771651/783223
Salutation: Dear Sir
COPIES TO:
Dr Yasir Sid Ahmed
Advisory Council for Human Rights
PO Box 302
Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: + 249 11 779173 / 770883
Salutation: Dear Sir
and to diplomatic representatives of Sudan accredited to your country.
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 27 May 2003.