Arab Coalition head calls on Sudan to repeal security bill

The former Qatari Minister of Justice, Dr Najeeb bin Mohamed Al Nuaimi, has called on the Sudanese government to stop the arbitrary detentions, allow civil freedoms, repeal the National Security Act, and restore the judiciary’s independency.

Al Nuaimi, the focal point of the Arab Coalition for Sudan (ACS) in Qatar, declared his “full support” to ACS’ campaign to pressure the Sudanese authorities for the immediate release of all political detainees in a press release, issued on Sunday morning.

In a recorded video broadcast on the ACS YouTube site, he stressed “the full right” of the “political forces and human rights organisations” in Sudan to practice their activities.

He urged the Sudanese government to halt the targeting of human rights activists, especially those in the war-torn region of Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile. They were detained “as hostages” by the security authorities, “under the pretext” of being affiliated with rebel movements. Al Nuaimi pointed in this context to the disappearances of “many young activists” in the camps for the displaced, “abducted from inside the camps by Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and elements of the security authorities”.

“The detainees have the right to file lawsuits to investigate any violations that affect them physically or morally” he stressed. “They must have freedom of expression and the right to fully defend themselves without any hindrance from the judiciary or security authorities.” The use of “repressive means against detainees’ families, or moral and physical threats” against them has to stop too.

The former justice minister called on the Sudanese authorities to abolish the National Security Act, which grants the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) the power to detain people without charges, and lift the immunity of NISS members.

He furthermore emphasised the importance of an independent judiciary. The functionaries of the judiciary should be able to do their work without “political or partisan influence and any other matters” that may “affect their decisions”. The judiciary is supposed to rule on neutral and fair bases, and can never serve as “a supporter of human rights violations”.