Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders Annual Report 2006 - Sudan

Obstacles to freedom of association⁸³

The "Organisation of Humanitarian and Voluntary Work Act 2006" was adopted at its second reading by the Sudanese Parliament on February 20, 2006. This text had been rejected at first reading on February 13, 2006 following the approval by the National Council of Ministers of a report presented by its Humanitarian Affairs Committee, stating that some amendments would be necessary to the adoption of the Bill.

Although several restrictive provisions were withdrawn from the initial bill, the amended version still imposes serious restrictions on freedom of association as well as an increased control over NGO activities by Sudanese authorities, affecting both local and foreign humanitarian and human rights organisations.

The Act was signed by the President of the Republic Mr. Omar Hassan Ahmed El Bashir on March 16, 2006.

On May 30, 2006, a group of lawyers representing a panel of over 400 national NGOs petitioned the Constitutional Court challenging the constitutionality of the Act and called for its suspension until the provisions restricting freedom of association were amended

The Court ruled this petition admissible during a preliminary hearing held on June 6, 2006.

As of the end of 2006, however, no further hearing was scheduled.

Modalities for NGO registration, rejection or cancellation of registration

According to the Act, all NGOs have to apply for registration with the General Registrar of Organisations, whereas all voluntary organisations already legally recognised in the country are required to register again under the new provisions within a period of 90 days from the date of the coming into force of the Act. The registration of organisations of less than 30 members may only be approved by the Minister for Humanitarian Affairs or by the Council of Ministers, on the Minister's recommendation.

The organisations applying for registration shall pay the "prescribed registration fees", the amount of which is not set down. The authorities might thus use the vagueness of these provisions to arbitrarily deny registration or to change the fees according to the type of NGO applying, while potential costs may deter many organisations from registering.

The law provides for specific conditions for the registration of foreign organisations that shall "submit a registration certificate authenticated by the Sudanese Embassy or mission covering their respective country" and are compelled "to sign a country agreement to perform its programmes in coordination with or with the participation of one or more national organisations". International organisations are required to comply with "any other conditions to be laid down by the Minister".

It also stipulates that "operating licences shall be renewed annually": thus, all NGOs will be reviewed and scrutinised annually by the authorities, which could refuse to register some organisations on arbitrary criteria such as their criticism of government policies or their denunciations of human rights violations.

The General Registrar may further deny or cancel registration "if the activities [of any national or international organisation] are incompatible" with the provisions of this Act, "if the organisation, without acceptable justifications, failed to carry out its activities for a period of one year", or if it was proven guilty of embezzlement. NGOs may appeal this type of decision with the Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC), then with the Minister, and may resort to a competent court if the authorities reject or fail to respond to an appeal.

Sanctions

The Act provides that any person "carrying out activities within an unregistered voluntary organisation shall be punished upon conviction by a fine". In addition, national courts can expel, upon conviction, any foreign national contravening the provisions of the law" and seize all assets of any organisation operating without a valid registration certificate.

The Registrar is further entitled, with the approval of the Commissioner, to suspend the activities of NGOs that fail to comply with the provisions of this Act, "for the period of time he deems appropriate". NGOs may appeal such a decision to the Minister within two weeks, or refer the case to a competent court if the latter dismisses or fails to respond to the appeal. NGO members convicted under the provisions of this legislation can face a suspension of up to one year of voluntary activities by the Registrar, which also has authority to initiate individual criminal proceedings.

Control over NGOs' activities

The Act entitles the Registrar "to keep all documents, minutes and reports of NGOs", and "to examine their records" to ensure that their activities are carried out in accordance with the law. He shall also "supervise elections of all national organisations", and be assigned to "any other functions" by the Minister.

The General Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid shall further "carry out preliminary investigations to determine whether or not NGOs abide by the law, initiate all necessary legal proceedings with competent judicial bodies if appropriate" and be assigned to "any other function" on the Minister's order. He shall also "organise geograhically and by sector, coordinate NGOs' activities and programmes, assess the impact of voluntary and humanitarian work and settle disputes that may arise among such organisations or with any other bodies". Registered organisations shall submit narrative reports twice a year to the Commissioner, as well as their annual progress report and a certified copy of an annual audit report. Progress reports shall include a budgetary summary and assessment, and note any substantial changes in provisional programmes.

Release of Mr. Mohamed Ahmed Alarbab⁸⁴

On January 6, 2006, Mr. Mohamed Ahmed Alarbab, a lawyer and human rights defender, was released without charge after four months in custody.

Mr. Alarbab was arrested in Khartoum on October 1, 2005, while investigating the arrest of several persons involved in the May 18, 2005 riots in the Soba Aradi area of Khartoum.

While being questioned at the Mayo police station, Mr. Alarbab was denied access to his lawyer and his family, and was reportedly severely beaten and threatened. Two days later, he was transferred to the Kalakla police station.

Mr. Alarbab was initially accused of "participating in the commiting of a criminal act" (Articles 21 and 24 of the 1991 Criminal Code), "murder" (Article 130), "crimes against constitutional order" (Article 50), "crimes against the State" (Article 51), "public nuisance" (Article 77), and "harbouring a criminal" (Article 107).

Obstacles to freedom of assembly

Obstacles to a civil society forum⁸⁵

On January 21 and 22, 2006, the Sudan Organisation Against Torture (SOAT), the International Refugee Rights Initiative and the Khartoum Centre for Human Rights and Environmental Development (KCHRED) organised a consultation with members of civil society in Khartoum as a contribution to the work of the 6th African Union (AU) Assembly of Heads of State and Government, held on January 23 – 24, 2006. The forum, which brought together numerous national and international NGOs, as well as representatives of the United Nations and the European Commission, focused on peace and justice in the region and aimed at promoting closer collaboration between local or regional associations and AU institutions.

On January 22, 2006, security forces in plain clothes entered the building where the closing session of the NGO Forum was being held. Alleging that the event had not been authorised, security officers asked for the names of all participants and detained 35 human rights and pro-democracy activists, some of whom were jostled, threatened, verbally abused or assaulted. In addition, the conference working papers as well as several laptops, files and personal documents were seized.

After three hours of questioning, security forces decided to release international representatives and to hold back Sudanese nationals. All the participants detained were finally released when foreign representatives refused to be separated from their Sudanese colleagues.

On the same day, two members of the forum organising committee were summoned for questioning and freed without charge a few hours later.

Obstacles to a civil society forum on the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women⁸⁶

On February 20, 2006, KCHRED, SOAT and the Amel Centre for Treatment and Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture launched a nationwide campaign to push for the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The final conference of this campaign was scheduled to be held on March 16, 2006 in Port Sudan.

On March 15, 2006, officers from the National Security Bureau (NSB) in Port Sudan summoned Mr. Hassan Altaieb, a lawyer and a SOAT member, to the NSB headquarters in Port Sudan, where he was questioned about the final meeting of the campaign due to be held the next day. Security officers demanded the list of the participants expected to attend the event, including the full names of all the speakers.

Following two hours of questioning, security officers informed Mr. Altaieb that the conference was cancelled. No official reason was given for this decision. The hotel where the event was due to be held was also advised to cancel the room reservation.

Arbitrary arrest and release of Mr. Hussain Osman Mohamed Ismail⁸⁷

On March 10, 2006, Mr. Hussain Osman Mohamed Ismail, alias Hussain Zikir, a student and member of the SOAT network of students, was arrested by members of the military intelligence service in Toker, Eastern Sudan, where he was inquiring, since March 6, 2006, into several cases of human rights violations committed in the village since 1997.

On March 18, 2006, Mr. Hussain Osman Mohamed Ismail was released without charge, after intelligence services confiscated all documents relating to his education and promotion of human rights activities.

Suspension of AWOON-Red Sea activities⁸⁸

On April 11, 2006, the Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC) sent a formal letter to the Womens' Awareness Raising Group-Red Sea (AWOON-Red Sea), a women activists' organisation that provides legal assistance and advice for women in Port Sudan, ordering that its activities be suspended and its accounts frozen until further notice.

The HAC stated that AWOON-Red Sea had violated the Organisation of Humanitarian and Voluntary Work Act 2006⁸⁹ after the organisation submitted a funding proposal to the European Commission, without first seeking the authorisation of the HAC. This proposal was to enable the implementation of an AWOON programme on women's access to justice, which was launched in March 2006 after the EU granted the funding in early 2006.

However, the proposal was submitted in July 2005, at which time the law governing the activities of NGOs in Sudan (the Humanitarian Aid Commission Act of 1998) did not require organisations to obtain prior authorisation of the HAC before seeking funding from foreign sources. This provision was only introduced with the passing of the Organisation of Humanitarian and Voluntary Work Act, but was clearly retroactively applied by the HAC to disrupt AWOON activities.

AWOON-Red Sea filed an appeal with the HAC shortly after the freezing of its operations. Having received no response, it addressed its case to the Minister for Humanitarian Affairs.

In late April 2006, Port Sudan police denied AWOON-Red Sea members access to a conference convened by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in which over 250 NGOs were due to participate.

AWOON-Red Sea was finally authorised to resume its activities by the regional Minister for Humanitarian Affairs in May 2006.

Ongoing harassment of SUDO and its members

Arbitrary arrest of Messrs. Alrayah Ibrahim Eldaw, Alfaris Ibrahim, Dawalbeit Kabbur, Osman Ali Ismael and Sayed Abu Bakr⁹⁰

On February 13, 2006, Messrs. Alrayah Ibrahim Eldaw, Alfaris Ibrahim, Dawalbeit Kabbur and Osman Ali Ismael, four members of the Sudan Social Development Organisation (SUDO), as well as Mr. Sayed Abu Bakr, a SUDO volunteer, were arrested by a group of armed security officers in the town of Ed Dain. At the time of their arrest, the five men were conducting a training session on the protection and promotion of human rights at the Ed Dain University.

The five SUDO staff members were taken to the Ed Dain National Security Bureau (NSB) where they were held for several hours. No reason was given for their arrest.

They were all released without charge the same day.

Mr. Jaafar Khalifa summoned by National Security⁹¹

On February 20, 2006, Mr. Jaafar Khalifa, director of the SUDO branch in El Geneina (West Darfur), was summoned for questioning by National Security.

Mr. Khalifa was questioned about the alleged political activities of SUDO and its sources of funding.

He was released without charge a few hours later.

Suspension of SUDO activities in West Darfur⁹²

On March 11, 2006, Messrs. Jaafar Khalifa and Adeeb Abdel Rahman Yousif, director of the SUDO Zalingei section, received a formal notice of the HAC dated March 9, 2006, ordering the suspension of all SUDO activities in the West Darfur State, as well as the closing of all of their offices, health and feeding centres operating in the region.

In a separate letter, also dated March 9, 2006, the HAC, referring to the newly adopted Organisation of Humanitarian and Voluntary Work Act, gave additional instructions regarding the seizure of all assets belonging to these SUDO offices and ordered the organisation to provide a full report on its incomes and expenditures.

On March 11, 2006, the HAC also addressed a letter to the Agricultural Bank ordering it to close the account of the SUDO Zaleingei office and to suspend all transactions as of March 13, 2006.

In spite of SUDO's repeated requests for clarification, the HAC has never specified what provisions of the Law it had allegedly violated.

On March 28, 2006, the SUDO branch in El Geneina received a letter from the State Ministry for Social Affairs authorising the office to resume its activities in West Darfur on the condition that it would reapply for registration under the new NGO Law within 90 days. The El Geneina office was able to resume its operations on April 4, 2006.

The SUDO branch in Zalingei was finally permitted to reopen on an unspecified date.

SUDO offices in El Fashir closed down⁹³

In December 2006, the North Darfur State authorities ordered the closing down of the SUDO office in El Fashir, noting that this decision was to be effective as of December 18, 2006. Since then, Mr. Khalil M. Bakhiet Tukras, director of the SUDO branch in El Fashir, as well as two other SUDO members, Messrs. Gaffar El Khalifa and Mohamed Abaker, have been summoned for questioning by security forces on a daily basis.

Harassment against members of the Amel Centre for Treatment and Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture

Judicial harassment against Messrs. Mossaad Mohamed Ali and Adam Mohammed Sharief⁹⁴

On May 15, 2006, NSB officers in Nyala summoned Mr. Mossaad Mohamed Ali, a lawyer and coordinator of the Amel Centre for Treatment and Rehabilitation of Victims of Torture in Nyala, and Mr. Adam Mohammed Sharief, a member of the Amel Network of Lawyers in Nyala.

Messrs. Ali and Sharief were then held for thirteen hours in the NSB headquarters in Nyala. They were subsequently released without being questioned or charged.

On May 16, 2006, Mr. Ali was again summoned to the security offices and placed in incommunicado detention without charge until May 20, 2006. He was denied access to a lawyer and his family, and security officers also denied representatives of the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) authorisation to see him. No reason was given for his detention.

Upon his release, Mr. Ali was ordered to report to the NSB on May 21, 2006 and was detained there for four hours. Security officers told him to come back the next day.

On May 23, 2006, the NSB ultimately informed him that his daily reporting was no longer necessary and that they would proceed by way of summons if they needed further information.

Mr. Sharief was again called in for questioning and detained for several hours by the NSB on June 6, 2006 before being released without charge.

Harassment of Mr. Mohamed Ahmed Abdullah⁹⁵

On June 30, 2006, the NSB called Mr. Mohamed Ahmed Abdullah, a physician working for the Amel Centre in Nyala, on his mobile phone and ordered him to report immediately to their office. Mr. Mohamed Ahmed Abdullah, who was due to attend a meeting on the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) convened by Mr. Omar Fur, Minister of Agriculture of the South Darfur State, replied that he was unable to do so but that he would report to the NSB office right after the meeting.

Later that afternoon, about 150 heavily armed officers surrounded the compound where the meeting was being held, while 50 of them interrupted the event to announce that they had come to arrest Mr. Mohammed Ahmed Abdullah for attending an illegal gathering under the state of emergency law.

Upon the intervention of Mr. Omar Fur, security officers eventually left the building without arresting him.

Judicial harassment of Mr. Nagib Ngam Eldine⁹⁶

On July 9, 2006, three NSB officers arrested Mr. Nagib Ngam Eldine, director of the Amel Centre, in Khartoum and took him to the office of the Prosecutor on suspicion of "crimes against the State".

Mr. Nagib was then questioned about several reports issued by SOAT on the summary trials of hundreds of persons arrested during the riots which took place throughout the country following the death of the Sudan First Vice-President Mr. John Garang, in a helicopter crash on August 1, 2005. In particular, Mr. Nagib was accused by the security officers of having provided this information to SOAT.

Dr. Nagib was released on bail nine hours later and was notified that an investigation had been initiated against him for "publication of false news" (Article 66 of the 1991 Criminal Code), "public nuisance" (Article 77), "failure to produce documents or deliver statements" (Article 99), and "libel" (Article 159), as well as under the provisions of the 1999 Press and Printed Materials Act as amended in 2002 and 2004.

As of the end of 2006, these charges remained pending.

Judicial proceedings against Mr. Mossaad Mohamed Ali and Ms. Rasha Souraj, Ms. Ebtisam Alsemani and Ms. Najat DafaAlla⁹⁷

On July 27, 2006, Mr. Mossaad Mohamed Ali⁹⁸, Ms. Rasha Souraj and Ms. Ebtisam Alsemani, two lawyers volunteering for the Amel Centre in Nyala, received a letter from the NSB accusing them of disseminating erroneous reports and disclosing confidential military information. This letter further stated that the Nyala Public Prosecutor had initiated proceedings against them for "offences against the State" and that their case had been referred to the police for an investigation, which was likely to lead to their arrest upon completion.

On July 29, 2006, Mr. Ali, Ms. Souraj, Ms. Alsemani and Ms. Najat DafaAlla, another voluntary lawyer with the Amel Centre, were formally ordered to report to the Public Prosecutor's office the next day to answer charges of "offences against the State" and "undermining the constitutional order", under Part 5 of the Criminal Code. The questioning was postponed at their request until July 31, 2006 in order to properly prepare their defence.

On that date, the defendants appeared before the Prosecutor and were asked to come back the next day.

On August 1, 2006, Mr. Ali and Ms. DafaAlla reported to the police station where they were separated and questioned about a demonstration that was held in the Otash refugee camp on May 29, 2006 to protest against the DPA, and which had been violently dispersed by security and police forces who fired live ammunition at the protestors. Mr. Ali and Ms. DafaAlla, who had defended five of the arrested demonstrators and had submitted a public request for information about their situation and their whereabouts to the "Security Committee", were then accused of spreading false information and of being a threat to public security.

Upon their release, Mr. Ali and Ms. DafaAlla were further informed that the police would re-evaluate the facts and refer the case to the Prosecutor in order to bring it before a court.

Ms. Alsemani and Ms. Souraj, who were in Khartoum at the time, were interrogated upon their return to Nyala on August 12, 2006.

As of the end of 2006, proceedings remained pending.

Arbitrary arrest and harassment of Mr. Mohamed Badawi⁹⁹

Mr. Mohamed Badawi, a prominent human rights lawyer in El Fashir, North Darfur, and coordinator of the Amel Centre, was summoned by the NSB in El Fashir on September 9, 2006. He immediately reported to the security services, where he was held for over three hours without being questioned or informed of any possible charges against him. He was then released without charge but ordered to come back on the following day.

On September 10, 2006, Mr. Badawi duly reported to the NSB headquarters, where he was detained for six hours and questioned about the Amel Centre's activities, as well as his contacts with international organisations and the Communist Party, before being released without charge.

Arbitrary arrest and judicial harassment of Ms. Saffaa Abdel Rahim Saror, Ms. Nafisa Mohamed Adam and Ms. Awatif Mohamed Adam¹⁰⁰

On September 16, 2006, security forces arrested Ms. Saffaa Abdel Rahim Saror, Ms. Nafisa Mohamed Adam and Ms. Awatif Mohamed Adam, three social workers of the Amel Centre office in El Fashir.

They were held at the NSB hedquarters in El Fashir for six hours during which they were questioned about the Centre's operations and several reports on the human rights situation in Darfur that the association had transmitted to international organisations.

On October 2, 2006, Ms. Saffaa Abdel Rahim Saror received an official letter from the NSB summoning her to appear on the next day.

After duly reporting to the NSB office on October 3, 2006 she was placed in custody but was released without charge several hours later.

Arbitrary detention and release of Mr. Charles Locker¹⁰¹

On July 4, 2006, Mr. Charles Locker, executive director of Manna Sudan, an NGO promoting peace building, human rights awareness, education, and dialogue between southern Sudan local communities, was arrested at his home by the police. No reason was given for his arrest.

A few hours earlier, police officers had come to the Manna Sudan offices in Ikotos, Eastern Equatoria, looking for Mr. Locker. In his absence, the officers held several staff members for several hours and seized most of the organisation's assets, including a vehicle.

Mr. Locker was reportedly transferred to the central detention centre in Torit, in Eastern Equatoria.

His arrest was most likely linked to the online publication of several of his articles suggesting the involvement of the Eastern Equatoria Governor, Mr. Aloisio Ojetuk, and other regional authorities in tribal clashes.

Mr. Locker was released without charge on September 4, 2006.

Suspension of activities and expulsion of the NRC¹⁰²

In January 2006, the HAC suspended all activities of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) in the Kalma camp of internally displaced persons (IDPs)¹⁰³, coordinated by the NRC since 2004, despite the fact that the organisation's licence to operate had been renewed in November 2005. A few weeks later, the NRC managed to negotiate a one-year cooperation agreement with the HAC and resumed its activities.

On April 4, 2006 however, the HAC office in Nyala revoked this agreement and informed the agency that it must withdraw all international staff from the South Darfur State. No reason was given for this decision.

Following the visit to Darfur and Eastern Chad of Mr. Jan Egeland, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, from May 6 to 11, 2006, the Governor of South Darfur agreed to renew the cooperation agreement of the NRC, which was permitted to resume its activities in South Darfur on June 1, 2006.

On September 3, 2006, the NRC was again denied access to the Kalma camp, for the fifth time since 2004. It was informed by the HAC and the National Security Agency (NSA) that it was under investigation for "falsely reporting" the increasing number of rapes in the camp to the United Nations and the African Union.

Indeed, according to its mandate, the NRC reported its concerns about the increase in attack and rape cases to the Sudanese authorities, the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) and the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS), in July and August 2006. This information was subsequently broadly disseminated by several other international organisations.

On November 6, 2006, two months after the suspension and despite intense negotiations with the Sudanese government, the NRC informed the HAC of its decision to close its relief operations in South Darfur.

In an official notice received by the NRC on November 16, 2006, which referred to a decision adopted on October 10, 2006, the HAC informed the organisation of its expulsion from the South Darfur State and ordered it to hand over all its assets to the Commission within 72 hours.

Following the announcement of the NRC's expulsion, Mr. Farah Mustafa, the Minister for Social Affairs and Information, acting governor of the South Darfur State and spokesman of the government, stated that the organisation's allegations about rapes in the Kalma IDP camp were "false and unfounded" and were serving a "foreign agenda".

By the end of 2006, the NRC had managed, with the assistance of the Norwegian Embassy, to negotiate the transfer of its assets in the South Darfur State to its programmes and other agencies operating in the rest of the country.

[Refworld note: This report as posted on the FIDH website (www.fidh.org) was in pdf format with country chapters run together by region. Footnote numbers have been retained here, so do not necessarily begin at 1.]

83. See Annual Report 2005, Press Release, February 16, 2006, and Joint Press Release of SOAT and the Observatory, March 7, 2006.

84. See Annual Report 2005.

85. See Press Release, January 27, 2006.

86. See SOAT.

87. See Urgent Appeal SDN 001/0306/OBS 027.

88. See Urgent Appeal SDN 003/0406/OBS 051.

89. See above.

90. See SOAT.

91. See United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) Bulletin, February 23, 2006.

92. See Urgent Appeal SDN 002/0306/OBS 030.

93. See Darfur Relief and Documentation Centre (DRDC) Press Release, January 3, 2007.

94. See Urgent Appeals SDN 004/0506/OBS 062 and 062.1.

95. See Urgent Appeal SDN 005/0906/OBS 109.1.

96. See Open Letter to the Sudanese authorities, July 21, 2006.

97. See Urgent Appeal SDN 044/0506/OBS 062.2.

98. See above.

99. See Urgent Appeal SDN 005/0906/OBS 109.

100. See Urgent Appeal SDN 005/0906/OBS 109.1.

101. See Open Letter to the Sudanese authorities, July 21, 2006.

102. See Annual Report 2005.

103. The Kalma camp shelters about 90,000 IDPs.