Hundreds of detainees still not released in Sudan

The Committee of Solidarity with the Victims of the September Demonstrations has confirmed the presence of a large number of political detainees still in the detention of Sudan’s security apparatus despite the presidential decree issued this month to release all political detainees.

Chairman of the committee Siddig Yousef told Radio Dabanga that most of the detainees are from conflict zones such as Darfur, South Kordofan, Blue Nile, or students from various parts of the country.

"They have been arrested on the pretext of association with the armed movements and called for their immediate release as political detainees or bringing them to fair trials," he said.

"Those who participated in the recent anti-austerity demonstrations, including opposition leaders and political activists have all been released."

Yousef said that those accused of illegally dealing with foreign currency must be brought to fair trial.

He added they had filed many complaints against security officers, in particular Abdelghaffar El Sharif, for torturing detainees, especially the students among them.

Arbitrary detention

The African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS) has expressed its deep concern concerning 248 people who are still in detention for a long time without charge or access to justice.

The centre also denounced Sudan's legal framework which allows for arbitrary detention for an indefinite period of time without the necessary guarantees.

It documented the continued detention of 10 students from Darfur, 60 members of the Maaliya tribe from East Darfur in Kober Prison in Khartoum and the Port Sudan prison, and the detention of 155 prisoners of war in El Hoda Prison in Omdurman.

The African Centre called on the UN Independent Expert on the Situation of Human Rights in Sudan, Aristide Nononsi, who is currently visiting the country, to demand the Sudanese authorities to either charge or release the 248 detainees and ensure their access to their families and legal representatives.

The ACJPS also called for an immediate and independent investigation into all the charges of excessive use of force against peaceful demonstrators during the January 2018 anti-austerity protests by policemen and security officers, the killing of protesters and ill-treatment and torture of detainees.