Silencing Dissent – the War on Human Rights in Sudan

[Elisabeth Janaina]

Silencing Dissent – the War on Human Rights in Sudan

Article
Comments (0)

email Email
print Print
pdfSave
separation
increase
decrease
separation
separation

By Andrew Anderson

The recent decision by President Obama to lift sanctions on Sudan
might give cause for hope that the human rights situation in the
country might finally be moving in a positive direction.

Sadly, the reality is that the situation is going in the opposite
direction and the government of Sudan is currently waging a campaign
of violence and intimidation to silence the last voices of dissent.
The ongoing violence by government forces, pro-government militia
groups and anti-government armed groups forms the backdrop to
continued harassment, arbitrary arrests, incommunicado detentions and
torture of human rights defenders (HRDs) by Sudanese military and
security forces.

In November the government arrested 23 opposition activists, 10 of
whom are currently on trial, following a three day stay at home strike
organised to protest at the rising cost of living and the cutting of
government food subsidies. The government’s immediate response was
uncompromising confrontation. Speaking to supporters at an event in
the east of the country, President Bashir said “We want to tell them
that if you want to overthrow the regime, then face us directly on the
streets. I challenge you to come out onto the streets. But we know you
will not come because you know what happened in the past… This regime
will not be overthrown by keyboards and WhatsApp.”. In 2013 more than
200 people were killed when the army and police cracked down on
protests against a previous round of subsidy cuts.

Meanwhile the government has shut down independent media and has
repeatedly seized the print runs of newspapers prior to distribution.
In this way the newspapers have to incur the printing costs while
being unable to sell any of the papers. It is yet another way to
silence independent or critical voices.

One of those voices is that of Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam. Dr. Mudawi
Ibrahim is one of the most distinguished human rights defenders in
Sudan known for his role in exposing human rights violations in
Darfur. He is the founder and former director of the Sudan Social
Development Organization (SUDO), which works on human rights as well
as water, sanitation and health.

Dr Mudawi is a man who has devoted his life to trying to pull Sudan
out of the chaos of war and conflict and to building a peaceful
prosperous Sudan. He wrote “I think we have no choice. If we want to
live a decent life in our own country we have to continue working with
the people, struggling with them. We need the support of the
international community. We need to feel that there are people behind
us. It is a moral support. It is not tangible but it has a deep
meaning in the heart. It has something, even when you close your eyes
you see people who you haven’t seen, you imagine their shapes, but
they are holding your hand continually”.

But now it is Mudawi himself who needs this support.

On 7 December 2016, Mudawi Ibrahim Adam and his long-time driver Mr
Adam El-Sheikh were arrested on the University of Khartoum campus and
forcibly transferred to an unknown location. On 12 December, Ms Nora
Abaid, an accountant from Mudawi Ibrahim Adam’s engineering company,
Lambda Engineering, was arrested by NISS agents who approached her in
an unmarked car. They all continue to be detained incommunicado. Under
the 2010 National Security Act (NSA), detainees can be held in custody
for up to four and a half months without judicial review.

On 22 January 2017, Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam started a hunger strike, in
protest of his arbitrary detention since 7 December by the Sudanese
authorities. Reports received today describe how members of the
Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) badly beat
him and chained him to the wall of his cell. It seems this is an
attempt to force him to end his hunger strike. Mudawi has been
tortured before. He has now been detained on at least five occasions
by the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) since 2003.
He has been threatened and he has been subjected to prosecution on
fabricated charges. And yet he has refused to flee his beloved
country. He has continued to work peacefully for an end to conflict
and respect and rights for all in Sudan.

The government of the United States and other providers of significant
development aid must send a clear message to the government of Sudan
that the lifting of sanctions is not an unconditional act of
benevolence. The government of Sudan must honour its commitments to
improve the human rights situation. A starting point would be the
release of Dr Mudawi and all those jailed for using their right to
peaceful protest.

Andrew Anderson is Executive Director Front Front Line Defenders – the
International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders,
based in Dublin, Ireland


The views expressed in the 'Comment and Analysis' section are solely
the opinions of the writers. The veracity of any claims made are the
responsibility of the author not Sudan Tribune.

If you want to submit an opinion piece or an analysis please email it
to com...@sudantribune.com

Sudan Tribune reserves the right to edit articles before publication.
Please include your full name, relevant personal information and
political affiliations.