Darfur student convicted of manslaughter

On Sunday, the Criminal Court of Khartoum North sentenced Darfuri student Mohamed Baggari to five years’ imprisonment for the killing of another student earlier this year.

Baggari has also to pay the full amount of 'blood money,' to the relatives of Mohamed Awadelkarim, student member of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) who was found dead at the Sharg El Nil College campus in Khartoum North on 29 April.

About 150 militant NCP students backed by university guards stormed the campus that day, where members of the Darfur Student Association were having a meeting. During the ensuing clashes, Awadelkarim, who was also secretary-general of the National Islamist Students Movement, was killed.

Adam Abakar, spokesman for the defence team, told Radio Dabanga that the judge concluded that Baggari defended himself when five NCP students were beating him “on all parts of his body.

“So premeditated murder was ruled out. The judge however deemed that he had exceeded his right of self-defence, and convicted him of manslaughter”.

The lawyer said that they would appeal the ruling “as Baggari did not exceed the right of self-defence”.

The 'blood money' for premeditated murder is set on SDG35,000 ($5,700) in Sudan, for manslaughter it amounts to SDG20,000 ($3,260).