Security services arrest Ronga Tas sheikh

The Sudanese security services arrested the sheikh of the Ronga Tas camp, along with a displaced man, in Azum locality, Central Darfur, on Tuesday, 1 January, a Zalingei camps coordinator told Radio Dabanga. He said Sheikh Adam Hussein, also known as Klebish, is 60 years old and the co-founder of the Ronga Tas camp. The other arrested man, Ali Adam Jundi, works for a Chinese company that builds roads and bridges between Zalingei and El-Geneina, the coordinator explained. According to reports, the security services claim both the sheikh and the displaced belong to a list composed of 27 names of people who must be arrested. The camp’s coordinator told Radio Dabanga that the detainees were transferred to the security service’s office in Zalingei. He demanded that UNAMID visits the men in prison to ensure they are not being tortured or mistreated. At the same time, the population of Ronga Tas is appealing for humanitarian organizations to intervene and stop the harassment displaced are exposed to in the hands of security forces. Mass demonstrations Also on Tuesday, displaced from Ronga Tas carried out mass demonstrations at the camp as a reaction against the arrest of Hussein and Jundi. Camp’s residents were also protesting against abuses they suffer by security services and against the government’s decision to transfer the camp to a model village. Demonstrators are saying their protests will continue until the sheikh and the displaced man are released and the government abolishes the decision to transfer the camp elsewhere. As a result, Central Reserve Forces (known as Abu Tira) and government troops began firing shots in the air and using sticks, whips and tear gas to disperse the demonstrators. Last week, 33.000 residents of Ronga Tas camp demonstrated against the plans of local and state authorities, and of the Darfur Regional Authority to turn the site into a model village according to government projects for voluntary return in Darfur.Radio Dabanga file photoRelated: Ronga Tas camp in Darfur surrounded by military forces and border guards (28 December 2012)