Hudo: Two traders arrested in Blue Nile

The Sudanese Military Intelligence (MI) in El Tadamon locality in Blue Nile state arrested, separately of eachother, two traders and compounded their trucks because they had not yet paid a bribe; they were released after paying a fine.

The MI, a branch of the Sudan Armed Forces General Staff, arrested Mousa Ahmed at Bout market in El Tadamon locality. They took him too the military garrison where he was beaten and detained in an iron container on September 8. His truck was carrying harvested sorghum, a main seasonal crop in Sudan. On September 17, he was released and his truck was returned to him, after paying a fine.

On September 30 at the Bout entrance checkpoint, MI arrested Ahmed Ishag as he entered the town with a truck loaded with harvested sorghum. The MI sergeant impounded the vehicle and transferred him to the military garrison where he was also beaten and detained in an iron container. He was released and his truck was returned to him on October 3, after paying a fine.

Both Mousa Ahmed and Ahmed Ishag are farmers and traders who had not yet paid a bribe to the MI but had paid the constituted taxes for trading their produce.

In a statement today, Hudo, a Sudanese human rights and cevelopment organisation called for observation of MI agents, an end to arbitrary arrests, ensurance of the rights of free movement of citizens, and an end to the current State of Emergency.

In July, hundreds of eastern Sudanese politicians, journalists, writers, artists, and activists signed a petition demanding the end of the State of Emergency. Khartoum said that this security measure was needed for an extension of the nationwide disarmament campaign which started in August 2017 in Darfur.