Sudan
05.09.02
Urgent Interventions
Sudan: arbitrary arrest and incommunicado detention of Ms. Rehab Abdel Bagi Mohamed Ali and Mr. Farid Abbas
Case SDN 050902
Arbitrary arrests / Incommunicado detention / Risk of torture
The International Secretariat of OMCT has received new information concerning the following situation in Sudan.
New information
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Sudan Organisation Against Torture (SOAT), a member of the OMCT network, that 30-year old Ms. Rehab Abdel Bagi Mohamed Ali and 29-year old Mr. Farid Abbas were arrested on September 1st 2002.
According to the information received, Ms Rehab, an x-ray technician at Omdurman Hospital, left for Asmara on August 2nd 2002 for a one-month holiday. On September 1st 2002, Ms Rehab returned to Kahrtoum, upon disembarking from her flight at Khartoum airport, Ms Rehab’s name was requested to report to the airport security offices by the airport announcement system and upon her arrival there, she was arrested.
Ms Rehab’s relative, Mr. Abbas, was waiting for Ms Rehab at Khartoum Airport and he was also reportedly arrested in the afternoon of September 1st 2002. No reasons were given for either of the arrests.
According to the information received, the Sudanese Security Forces have refused to disclose the whereabouts of Ms Rehab to her family. One individual reportedly saw Ms Rehab in the political section of the security forces’ offices near Farouk cemetery in Khartoum, however this remains to be confirmed. The whereabouts of Mr. Abbas still remain unknown.
The International Secretariat of OMCT, is gravely concerned about the physical and psychological integrity of the afore-mentioned detainees, given that they are being detained incommunicado and therefore run a risk of being subjected to ill-treatment or even torture, particularly when being detained in security service detention facilities. OMCT has recently reported on the worsening human rights situation in Sudan, in which numerous persons have been subjected to torture, adding weight to concerns that these persons may also suffer a similar fate. OMCT is also gravely concerned by the authorities use of arbitrary arrests and incommunicado detentions and calls upon them to release the persons in question, in the absence of valid legal charges.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Sudan urging them to:
i. Immediately locate the whereabouts of Ms. Rehab Abdel Bagi Mohamed Ali and Mr. Farid Abbas;
ii. take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of the afore-mentioned detainees;
iii. order that these persons 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;
iv. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events, and guarantee that those responsible are brought to trial and that the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions are applied as provided by law;
v. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms, including economic, social and cultural rights, throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights laws and standards.
Addresses
· His Excellency Lieutenant Omar Hassan al-Bashir, President of the Republic of Sudan, People's Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 24911 787676 / 783223.
· His Excellency Mr Mustafa Osman Ismail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, PO Box 873, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 24911 779383.
· 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: mission.sudan@ties.itu.int.
Please also write to the diplomatic representatives of Sudan in your country.
Geneva, September 5th, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
Arbitrary arrests / Incommunicado detention / Risk of torture
The International Secretariat of OMCT has received new information concerning the following situation in Sudan.
New information
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Sudan Organisation Against Torture (SOAT), a member of the OMCT network, that 30-year old Ms. Rehab Abdel Bagi Mohamed Ali and 29-year old Mr. Farid Abbas were arrested on September 1st 2002.
According to the information received, Ms Rehab, an x-ray technician at Omdurman Hospital, left for Asmara on August 2nd 2002 for a one-month holiday. On September 1st 2002, Ms Rehab returned to Kahrtoum, upon disembarking from her flight at Khartoum airport, Ms Rehab’s name was requested to report to the airport security offices by the airport announcement system and upon her arrival there, she was arrested.
Ms Rehab’s relative, Mr. Abbas, was waiting for Ms Rehab at Khartoum Airport and he was also reportedly arrested in the afternoon of September 1st 2002. No reasons were given for either of the arrests.
According to the information received, the Sudanese Security Forces have refused to disclose the whereabouts of Ms Rehab to her family. One individual reportedly saw Ms Rehab in the political section of the security forces’ offices near Farouk cemetery in Khartoum, however this remains to be confirmed. The whereabouts of Mr. Abbas still remain unknown.
The International Secretariat of OMCT, is gravely concerned about the physical and psychological integrity of the afore-mentioned detainees, given that they are being detained incommunicado and therefore run a risk of being subjected to ill-treatment or even torture, particularly when being detained in security service detention facilities. OMCT has recently reported on the worsening human rights situation in Sudan, in which numerous persons have been subjected to torture, adding weight to concerns that these persons may also suffer a similar fate. OMCT is also gravely concerned by the authorities use of arbitrary arrests and incommunicado detentions and calls upon them to release the persons in question, in the absence of valid legal charges.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Sudan urging them to:
i. Immediately locate the whereabouts of Ms. Rehab Abdel Bagi Mohamed Ali and Mr. Farid Abbas;
ii. take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of the afore-mentioned detainees;
iii. order that these persons 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;
iv. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events, and guarantee that those responsible are brought to trial and that the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions are applied as provided by law;
v. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms, including economic, social and cultural rights, throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights laws and standards.
Addresses
· His Excellency Lieutenant Omar Hassan al-Bashir, President of the Republic of Sudan, People's Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 24911 787676 / 783223.
· His Excellency Mr Mustafa Osman Ismail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, PO Box 873, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 24911 779383.
· 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: mission.sudan@ties.itu.int.
Please also write to the diplomatic representatives of Sudan in your country.
Geneva, September 5th, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.