Sudan’s Ba’ath party members lashed, fined

The Public Order Court in Khartoum Bahri imposed lashes and a fine on three arrested Sudanese Ba’ath Party members on Thursday. The party’s spokesman said there were no lawyers present during the minute-long trial. The party members Bashir Yasin, Mohamed Hussein, and Mohamed Rizgallah were punished with 40 lashes and a fine of SDG100 ($17), which was immediately carried out. “The trial took place in a matter of minutes without the presence of lawyers,” spokesman Mohamed Dia Eldin said. The members were arrested following the aftermath of a gathering in Bahri’s central station. “This will not intimidate us,” Dia Eldin stressed while addressing a public gathering at Jackson Square in Khartoum on Thursday. “We will continue our mass speeches, as it is a constitutional right.” Arrests of party members Two members of the Ba’ath Party were arrested in Khartoum on Tuesday. Security forces had also detained four members in Omdurman on 27 April: Salah Mustafa, Abdel Gadir Ahmed, Salah Ahmed Ibrahim, and Ibrahim Ahmed Shibli in Omdurman. Late on Monday night, two Ba’ath Party members were released from the Haj Yousif police station in Khartoum Bahri. The Socialist Ba’ath Party began a public campaign against the armed conflicts in the country on Sunday. The arrests were made despite promises made by President Omar Al Bashir to facilitate a national dialogue to reunite the opposition with the government by allowing freedom of speech and gathering. News photo: The spokesman for the Socialist Ba’ath Party, Mohamed Dia Eldin, addressing a public gathering at Jackson Square in Khartoum, 1 May 2014. Related: More Ba’ath Party members arrested in Sudan capital (30 April 2014) Dozens still detained in Sudan despite promise of amnesty (16 April 2014)