Students demand prosecution of alleged murderers

Hundreds of Darfuri students rallied in front of the Ministry of Justice on Tuesday, 18 December. The students carried banners demanding punishment of the perpetrators who killed the four Darfuri students. The bodies of the four students were found in a water way in Wad Madani after an ‘anti-tuition fee’ protest took place at Gezira University.Witnesses told Radio Dabanga that security agents surrounded the crowds of students, without intervening. The students reportedly gathered in front of the Ministry of Justice to hand a memorandum to the Minister of Justice about the harassment and violence against Darfuri students at Sudanese universities as well as the burning of the Omdurman Islamic University dormitories.Meanwhile, the Darfur Student Association (DSA) demanded the Minister of Justice, Mohamed Bashara Dousa, to start an investigation into the killing of the four students at Gezira University and to bring the perpetrators of these ‘heinous’ crimes to justice. Also, they demanded the minister to take all necessary measures to stop the moral and physical abuse of Darfuri students. ‘Unlawful detention’The memorandum calls for the release of all detained Darfuri students or to bring them to a fair trial if proven that they have committed a crime. According to the Darfur Student Association more than 100 Darfuri students are still being detained by the security services, while others have been arrested by the Rabata, students supporting the National Congress Party, without any information about their whereabouts.It was added that the exam period is approaching and that the detained students might miss the opportunity to sit for their exams, which requires the minister’s immediate attention. Moreover, the memorandum stated that ‘unlawful’ detention undermines the sovereignty as well as the rule of law.The spokesman of the DSA stressed that the memorandum, which was presented to the Minister of Justice, also demands compensation for the Darfuri students who have lost all their belongings in the fire at the dormitories of the Omdurman Islamic University.The memorandum also demands treatment for the injured students who have lost all their belongings in the fire and are now wandering in the streets of Khartoum in search of shelter and food, while being chased by security services.Radio Dabanga file photoRelated: Darfur Student Association: 140 students arrested after protests (13 December 2012)