Darfur Bar Association joins Wajdi Saleh defence committee

The Darfur Bar Association (DBA) has announced it is joining the defence committee for Wajdi Saleh. Saleh is the former head of the now-dissolved Empowerment Removal Committee* (ERC), a leading member of the Forces for Freedom and Change-Central Council (FFC-CC), and the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party.

The activist and outspoken opponent of the ousted Al Bashir regime, has been detention incommunicado since he handed himself over to authorities in Khartoum on October 11, following orders from Sudan’s Public Prosecution Office.

In a statement yesterday, the DBA says that “the malicious measures that violate the law against Saleh indicate the extent of the l deterioration in the Public Prosecution Office.”

The DBA laments that “the prosecution has lost its professionalism and independence,” and pointed to “misuse of the law and the application of its provisions to justice in the country”.

Sources within Saleh’s family indicated in a statement that he was targeted at 03:00 on Sunday morning, when the Khartoum State Police Director barged into the police station where he is being held, and confiscated of all Saleh’s personal belongings, including a sleeping pillow and a blanket.

‘The malicious measures, that violate the law, against Wajdi Saleh indicate the extent of the deterioration in the Public Prosecution Office’ – Darfur Bar Association

The sources stated that the director of the police ordered that Saleh may not receive visits or food from his family, and replaced the existing guards with another force.

The FFC-CC has held junta leader Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan and the security services responsible for his safety. The FFC-CC indicated in a statement that Saleh is being subjected to a violation of his legal, constitutional, and human rights.

Saleh, handed himself over to authorities in Khartoum on October 11, following orders from Sudan’s Public Prosecution Office. The former head of the now-dissolved Empowerment Removal Committee* (ERC) and leading member of the Forces for Freedom and Change-Central Council (FFC-CC) and the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party, explained that his being publicly announced as a fugitive, was “a clear attempt of character assassination”.

* The full name of the committee is the Committee for Dismantling the June 30 1989 Regime, Removal of Empowerment and Corruption, and Recovering Public Funds. It was established by the government of Abdallah Hamdok at the end of 2019 with the aim to purge Sudan of the remnants of the Al Bashir regime. Empowerment (tamkin) is the term with which the ousted government of Omar Al Bashir supported its affiliates by granting them far-going privileges, including government functions, the setting-up of various companies, and tax exemptions.