Sudanese Women Held Without Trial

UA 46/13        19 February 2013        URGENT ACTION                AFR 54/005/2013

SUDANESE WOMEN HELD WITHOUT TRIAL

SUDAN

32 Sudanese women detained in Al-Obeid prison (f)

More than 30 Sudanese women have been detained arbitrarily without access to a lawyer since 12 November 2012. They are being held in Al-Obeid prison in central Sudan following their transfer from Kadugli, Southern Kordofan. Their access to medical care is inadequate and the lives of several of the women may be at risk.

On 5 November 2012 the National Security Services (NSS) in Kadugli began summoning women from the Nuba community who were residing in town. They women were accused of spying on behalf of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement – North (SPLM–N), a banned opposition party whose armed wing is fighting government forces in the state.

On 12 November, 32 women were detained incommunicado in Kadugli prison. They were transferred to Al-Obeid prison on 27 December 2012. While they have since been allowed to receive family visits, they have not been charged and the authorities continue to deny them access to a lawyer.

In addition, the women are reportedly not receiving adequate medical care. One woman suffers from seizures and sustained loss of consciousness, but has been denied treatment in Al-Obeid. Another woman suffered a spinal injury in detention. She was transferred to a hospital in Khartoum on 6 February, but is yet to receive medical treatment. Two other women also reportedly suffer from seizures and another one from diabetes.

Please write immediately in Arabic, English or your own language:

* Calling on the Sudanese government to immediately charge the women detained in Al-Obeid with recognizable criminal offenses or release them without delay;

* Asking that the authorities grant the women access to a lawyer;

* Calling on the Sudanese government to grant immediate medical care to the women who require it.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 2 APRIL 2013 TO:  (Time difference = GMT + 2 hrs / BST + 1 hrs)

President
HE Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir
Office of the President
People’s Palace
PO Box 281
Khartoum, Sudan
Email: info@sudan.gov.sd 
Salutation: Your Excellency

Minister of Justice
Mohamed Bushara Dousa
Ministry of Justice,         
PO Box 302
Al Nil Avenue
Khartoum, Sudan
Salutation: Your Excellency

And copies to:
Minister of Interior
Ibrahim Mohamed Ahmed
Ministry of Interior
PO Box 873
Khartoum, Sudan

PLEASE SEND COPIES OF YOUR APPEAL TO

His Excellency Mr Abdullahi Hamad Ali Alazreg

Embassy of the Republic of Sudan
3 Cleveland Row
St James's
London SW1A 1DD.

Fax: 020 7839 7560   Email: www.sudan-embassy.co.uk (Contact form on website)

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

In June 2011, a conflict broke out in the state of Southern Kordofan between government forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army – North, the military wing of the SPLM–N. Fighting expanded to the state of Blue Nile in September 2011. Indiscriminate aerial bombardments by the Sudanese Armed Forces on SPLM-N controlled areas, coupled with the blocking of humanitarian assistance to the conflict-affected areas since the conflict began, has led to deaths and injuries of civilians, looting, and the destruction of property. Tens of thousands of people are being driven from their homes, with over 200,000 refugees currently based in Ethiopia and South Sudan.

The Sudanese authorities have arrested numerous real or perceived SPLM–N activists across the country since the conflict began in Southern Kordofan and the Blue Nile. Many have been detained on the basis of their ethnicity, often without charge, and without access to lawyers or their families.

The 2010 National Security Act provides the NSS powers to search and seize assets and to arrest and detain people for up to four-and-a-half months without judicial oversight. Under the same act, NSS agents are provided with immunity from prosecution for any act committed in the course of their work. The provisions in the Act do not ensure that detainees held by the NSS have access to judicial review and other human rights. The Act does not comply with international norms of fair trial and other human rights standards.

PLEASE CHECK WITH THE INDIVIDUALS AT RISK PROGRAMME AT AIUK BEFORE SENDING APPEALS AFTER 2 APRIL 2013

Individuals at Risk Programme, Amnesty International UK, 17-25 New Inn Yard, London EC2A 3EA,             0207 033 1572      , iar@amnesty.org.uk.

Individuals At Risk Programme

Tel:             020 7033 1572      
Fax: 020 7033 1503
Email: iar@amnesty.org.uk
Website: www.amnesty.org.uk/cases

Amnesty International UK
Human Rights Action Centre
17-25 New Inn Yard
London
EC2A 3EA