SUDAN HUMAN RIGHTS MONITOR APRIL - MAY 2011

Contents
Abyei and South Kordofan: Massive Displacement as North Asserts Military Might ............................ 1 Political Developments ........................................................................................................................... 5 Monitoring Report .................................................................................................................................. 6 Freedom of Expression and Access to Information............................................................................ 6 Arbitrary Arrest and Incommunicado Detention ............................................................................. 10 Public Order Harassment and Threats toward Southerners ............................................................ 12 Attacks in Darfur ............................................................................................................................... 12

Abyei and South Kordofan: Massive Displacement as North Asserts Military Might
Despite the CPA agreement on a referendum for Abyei to be held simultaneously to the Southern vote on 9 January to determine its administrative status as part of the North or South, the vote never took place due to disputes over voter eligibility. Several clashes took place in the transitional period. Despite international pressure on the National Congress Party (NCP) and Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) to resolve the situation, little progress was made. Successive security arrangements were broken almost as soon as they were signed, and both sides grew more obstinate as talks became more and more complex, leading to tremendous anxieties and existential fears1 for the Northern aligned Misseriya and Southern Dinka, respectively. The Kadugli Agreements2 brokered in South Kordofan in January and March which agreed to the withdrawal of all security forces and members of the Southern Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) and the Northern Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) eventually became the catalyst behind the SAFs 21 May seizure of Abyei and dissolution of the Abyei administration; a 19 May attack by alleged members of the SPLA on an UNMIS convoy transporting members of the SAF outside of Abyei as part of the Kadugli Agreement provoked the North, who in turn reacted with a disproportionate display of force when they deployed to Abyei.

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Zach Vertin, Abyei is Burning: Immediate SAF Withdrawal Critical, International Crisis Group, 15 June 2011 The Kadugli Agreements obliged the CPA partners to jointly administer Abyei and ensure law and order through the JIUs. Under the Kadugli Agreement signed on 13 and 17 January 2011, both sides committed to withdraw their respective forces from Abyei. The agreements were shortlived, and on 6 March the parties signed an agreement reiterating their commitment to security measures of the Kadugli Agreement.

The two CPA partners signed an agreement in Addis Ababa on 20 June agreeing to install a joint administration and security and police, also comprised of Ethiopian peacekeepers under UN auspices, until the administrative status of Abyei can be resolved. At present, it appears essentially impossible that anything but a politically negotiated solution can resolve the status of Abyei before the end of the interim period and even that prospect is dwindling. On 5 June, attacks began in Kadugli, South Kordofan, and quickly spread throughout the region. Intensive campaigns of artillery shelling and destruction of property have resulted in widespread civilian deaths and massive displacement.3 Government soldiers and militias have engaged in abuses such as extrajudicial killings, arrests, and looting and destruction of property. A number of credible reports indicate that the SAF and members of the Popular Defence Forces (PDF) targeted suspected SPLM members and carried out house to house searches and established checkpoints. Some of these individuals were subjected to extrajudicial killing; Jumus Tema, an alleged SPLM member (who also used a wheelchair), was arrested by members of the SAF in the vicinity of the UNMIS compound and his body dumped outside. The killing has taken on profound ethnic and political dimensions, and the situation is dire. Although there had been insecurity in the region, the SAF takeover of Abyei on 21 May far eclipsed previous insecurity. As a provision of the Kadugli Agreement, the NCP and SPLM agreed to withdraw their forces and allow only Joint Integrated Units (JIUs), forces comprised of members of the SAF and SPLA, to be present in the town.4 Members of the SPLA allegedly attacked an UNMIS convoy escorting members of the SAF outside of Abyei on 19 May. Up to 22 members of the SAF were killed. Though both sides initially downplayed the incident, the SAF gained leverage to attack the South from the events of 19 May. They bombed four villages near Abyei the following day. On 21 May, they entered Abyei militarily through ground and aerial assaults. President Bashir dissolved the Abyei administration by unilateral action, as well as firing its chair, a Southerner, the vice president, and five heads of departments.5 A military administration was put in place. Though the Abyei administration is under the control of the presidency, Bashir took action without consulting Government of South Sudan president Salva Kiir, who is also part of the Presidency through his position as Northern vice president. For their part, the SPLM refused to counterattack, instead stating that they intended to focus on post-referendum negotiations. They also have other internal challenges to deal with, including armed rebel groups, some of which are allegedly supported by the NCP. The North refused to withdraw their forces on 24 May, stating that they would remain deployed until a settlement was reached, and that while the SAF does not seek to impose a new reality, it intends to clean the area from outlawed forces.6 The same day, Parliament unanimously approved the SAF entrance to Abyei and called for the removal of UNMIS peacekeepers. Negotiations on Abyei continued as the mass of Abyeis population was displaced further South, and a third of Abyei was burnt to the

For a comprehensive overview of the crisis, see Sudan Democracy First Group, Southern Kordofan/Nuba Mountains: Ethnic Cleansing Once Again, 14 June 2011 4 This provision itself was controversial, as 2008 fighting in Abyei was sparked by confrontations between the two JIU contingencies. 5 The SPLM also asserted control over Abyei by controversially including it in the draft constitution for South Sudan. 6 Xinhua, 22 May 2011

ground. There are reports that Abyei has been largely repopulated by members of the Misseriya tribe, altering the ethnic composition of the region. The Abyei Occupation and the Humanitarian Toll I heard a plane way up high and then doom!, the sound of a bomb hitting the groundMy neighbor called out the Arabs are coming. They first came on motorbikes and then land cruisers with guns mounted on them (some were wearing uniforms, but others were in civilian clothes). They started firing towards us, and bullets were landing by us. We saw people being killed.7 In the following days, militias allegedly affiliated with the Misseriya invaded Abyei, looting and burning portions of the city. One such group fired at an UNMIS helicopter as it was lifting off.8 Tens of thousands fled Abyei, though it has been difficult to garner an accurate figure of how many due to restrictions on access for humanitarian agencies and journalists. On 30 May, the UNs Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that roughly 60,000 had been displaced.9 The following day, UNHCR reported that over 1/3 of the city had been burnt to the ground and warned of further displacement.10 31,256 displaced people were registered in Warrap state and 27,961 in Agok.11 Some were newly displaced when rumours began that Agok would also soon be attacked. Humanitarian assessment teams were unable to reach many areas due to insecurity and heavy rains, and many of the displaced have been reliant on host communities for food and shelter. The SAF has disputed support to any militias pillaging Abyei, alleging that they are affiliated with the Misseriya. As the force exercising effective control over the area, the SAF has obligations to protect civilians and maintain law and order. Rumours quickly spread that the SAF and Misseriya were cooperating to repopulate Abyei town. The Crucible of Abyei in Post-Referendum Negotiations Straddling both sides of Sudans 1956 border, Abyei is geographically, ethnically, and politically caught between the North and South.12 Its oil production may not be as important as it once was, as many of Abyeis most productive oil fields were determined by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) to be outside the borders of Abyei in Heglig. Despite this, both the North and South have huge reasons to not want to let Abyei go. The North fears alienating the Northern nomadic Misseriya, who also live in
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Mary Ajiang Kur, one of the first testimonies published by Rebecca Hamilton and the Pulitzer Center, grabbed her children and hid in the bushes before fleeing Abyei. Pulitzer Center, Terror in Abyei, 31 May 2011. 8 On 29 May, a confidential UN memo that equated the situation in Abyei to ethnic cleansing was leaked. The language was later toned down. 9 OCHA, Sudan: Abyei Crisis, Situation Report #8, 30 May 2011. 10 UNCHR, Sudans Abyei Region Could See Further Displacement, warns UNHCR, 31 May 2011 11 Ibid 12 Abyei has a long history of contestation between the North and South. The referendum on Abyeis administrative status remains the main stumbling block in reaching a final agreement between the NCP and SPLM. In 1905, Abyei was transferred from Northern Bahr el Ghazal, a Southern territory, into Kordofan. The 1972 Addis Ababa Agreement defined the Southern province as including other areas (in addition to Bahr el Ghazal, Equatoria, and Upper Nile), that were culturally and geographically a part of the Southern complex as may be decided by a referendum. The referendum never took place as the country was plunged back into civil war and attacks on the Dinka Ngok increased in the late 1970s.

neighbouring South Kordofan and were used as proxy militias against the South during the civil war, and in turn, were promised all of Abyei. The Misseriya saw their power base diluted with the annexation of West Kordofan to South Kordofan under the CPA. The Norths refusal to make concessions may also be based on internal power struggles within the NCP, with hardliner and member of Bashirs cabinet Nafie Ali Nafie attempting to assert military and political power as the country prepares to divide and the NCP struggles to consolidate their power as a dominant political force for the future North, as well as to leverage concessions from the SPLM in post-referendum negotiations on power and wealth-sharing and oil. For the SPLM, Abyei is significant as Southern territory as some of the SPLMs high level leadership comes from the region. Its also symbolic: as attacks increased against members of the Dinka Ngok after the 1972 Addis Ababa agreement ending the first civil war in the late 70s, many Dinka were amongst the first to join the SPLA and comprised much of the SPLAs leadership during the Second Sudanese Civil War. Though the South wishes to gain favor among the international community on the eve of independence, they are unlikely to cede much ground on Abyei. Throughout the interim period Abyei has transformed into a symbol of the North/South relationship. At the heart of the debate is voter eligibility as defined by the CPA and PCA decisions.13 Disputes on voter eligibility, which have often been proposed along ethnic lines, also extends to border delimitation disputes and security arrangements. Whereas the nine Ngok Dinka communities are established as permanent residents of the area, other groups, predominantly Northern, nomadic and Arab, have established overlapping land rights in Abyei. The NCP have insisted on the right of the Misseriya, who migrate seasonally from the Muglad-Babanusa, to vote in the referendum. As the area became a flashpoint during the last years of the civil war as oil production in the area increased and later became a crucible during the CPA and interim period, very real fears and uncertainty of the territorys future fanned concerns amongst the Misseriya and Dinka communities as to their futures. Negotiations between the NCP and SPLM on the status of the territory including the 2008 decision of the Permanent Court of Arbitration failed to alleviate these concerns, and high level negotiation failed to assuage existential fears and assumed a character and complexity far removed from the realities of Abyei.14 As Sudanese journalist Mahjoub Mohamed Salih stated, Shall we now sacrifice peace for which we paid so dearly for a limited piece of land in which both sides have undeniable rights?15 The 20 June Addis Ababa Agreement On 20 June, the SPLM and NCP signed an agreement on Abyei in Addis Ababa. The agreement includes the formation of an Abyei Area Administration, Abyei Joint Oversight Committee, and provisions on
13

Under the Abyei Protocol of the CPA, residents of Abeyi were accorded their own referendum. However, the Abyei Protocol left the definition of residents of Abyei to the discretion of the Abyei Referendum Commission. The Protocol also states that the Misseriya and other nomadic groups retain their traditional rights to graze cattle and move across the territory of Abyei. In December 2009, the Abyei Referendum Act was passed by the National Assembly, giving the Abyei Referendum Commission the responsibility to determine who was and wasnt a resident. The SPLM rejected many of the nominees for the Commission put forth by the Presidency, who gave little alternatives. The Commission was never formed, postponing the referendum indefinitely. 14 Ibid 15 BBC News, James Copnall Sudan: Why Abyei is crucial to North and South, 23 May 2011

Finances and Security Arrangements, humanitarian assistance, and pastoralist movements. Most significantly, the agreement establishes an Interim Security Force for Abyei (ISFA) composed of Ethiopian contingents.16 The ISFA is responsible for monitoring and verification, protection and monitoring, security within Abyei, protection of the borders of Abyei from incursions by unauthorised elements, support and capacity building to the Abyei Police Service, facilitation of humanitarian assistance, and protection of civilians under imminent threat.17 The Agreement is binding until a permanent resolution on the status of Abyei is reached. Whereas the NCP and SPLM seem to have based the onus of their calculations before on a return to war being too costly, the situation in Abyei and South Kordofan indicates more and more that the realities of war may not be enough to keep both sides from returning to conflict and dissolving the gains of the interim period. With two of the three areas attacked within the past month, there are disturbing signs that Blue Nile state could be next.18 For the most part, the international community decoupled Abyei from the CPA implementation process and referendum. Though both sides agreed to recognise the findings of the PCA, they were never respected in the long run, and the NCP did little to implement the core stipulations of the Abyei Protocol. As a result, Abyei residents (both Misseriya and Dinka) enjoy little in the way of governance or social services. Southern independence on 9 July will be tarnished by the unresolved status of Abyei, as well as the suffering of the Nuba people and alleged SPLM supporters in South Kordofan.

Political Developments
All Darfur Stakeholder Conference Outcomes An all Darfuri Stakeholders Conference was held in Doha, Qatar on 27 30 May. The talks were aimed at drawing a national and broad consensus at the issues facing Darfur ahead of the Darfur Peace Process (DPP) and to assist political parties and the mediation to diagnose the roots of the crisis. Participation in the process was incredibly contentious, with the Justice and Equality Movement accusing the NCP of restricting the participation of civil society in Doha and only recruiting NCP members and non-independent voices to serve as civil society representatives. On 31 May, the delegates adopted a framework document for peace in Darfur. The framework document identified thematic topics of compensation and the right of return for IDPs and refugees, power sharing and administrative status of Darfur, wealth sharing, human rights and
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The Ethiopians were suggested after the NCP requested a more efficient troops of an African nature. Agreement between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement on Temporary Arrangements for the Administrative and Security of the Abyei Area, Addis Ababa, 20 June 2011 18 Much of the violence in South Kordofan was prompted by a disarmament campaign by the SAF in South Kordofan conducted against alleged members of the SPLM, who are in reality ethnic Southerners but Northern residents who have refused to move South. In Blue Nile, SPLM Governor Malik Agar stated that Northern Forces had moved dangerously close to the bases of Southern allied militias. Mr. Agar stated that Its like putting a cat in a corner. They will fight. If only it were so simple for them to move South. But they are not Southerners. They are from Blue Bile and they dont have any other place to go.

fundamental freedoms, justice and reconciliation, permanent ceasefire and security arrangements, and a mechanism for internal dialogue and consultation and implementation modalities as key issues for the framework for future bilateral or multilateral agreements between the government and rebel groups.19 Allegedly, the JEM and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) are close to finalising the terms and conditions of a peace agreement with the government. The current proposal calls for the referendum on the administrative status of Darfur to be held one year before the next presidential elections, in 2015. Dissolution of Federal Government Senior NCP member Mustafa Osman Ismail announced that a new broad based government would be formed in July following the dissolution of the current federal government. The new government would include fewer cabinet positions, as well as be based on a threefold strategy of establishment of a new permanent constitution, enhancing dialogue with political opposition (including through their and civil society supports support in drafting a new constitution), and establishment of strong relationships with the South and Sudans neighbours. 20

Monitoring Report Freedom of Expression and Access to Information

On 5 April, officers of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) prevented Ajras Alhurria from being published at the end of its print cycle. In the afternoon, they allowed the newspaper to be distributed, though the delay negatively affected sales. This is the third time this has happened in recent months. On 5 April, students of Shendi University of River Nile State requested a meeting with university faculty to discuss formation of a students association. A previous students organisation was closed in 2007 as the administration believed that the association was opposition-affiliated. When the administration refused to meet with the group, the students called for a strike from their classes. Students affiliated with the NCP announced that they would engage in a counter-strike, and force students to go to class. On 13 April, the university filed a criminal case against the perceived organisers of the strike in the Western Police Station of Shendi. They are: o Hamza Mohamed Al tahir, Democratic Front, Faculty of Economy o Ahmed Mohamed Hussein, Democratic Front, Faculty of Art o Oba Bashir, Umma party, Faculty of Education o Mohamed Abdalla, Umma party, Faculty of Education o Alhadi Hadein, Sudanese Congress o Mohamed Ibrahim, Popular Congress o Samer Mohamed Osman, Umma party o Mawakil Ahmed

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Sudan Tribune, Stakeholders adopt Doha framework for peace in Darfur, 31 May 2011. Al Tayyar, Kassala, 30 May 2011.

The following night, police arrested Hamza Mohamed Tahir while he was on his way to dinner. He was released the next day. On 15 April, police arrested the rest of the group charged by the university and released them on personal guarantee. While students were gathering for a second strike, they were attacked by NCP students, who threw Molotov cocktails and beat students with iron sticks. On 25 April, a third day of strikes was organised. At 10:30 AM, police entered the university and attacked students with sticks, pipes, and tear gas. 36 students were arrested. 25 were sent to the police station, and 11 to NISS offices. Those taken to NISS offices were reportedly subjected to torture. Those taken to police custody were charged with rioting and disturbing the public peace under articles 67, 68, and 96 of the 1991 Sudanese Criminal Code. On 26 April, police entered the university at 6 AM. Clashes began at 10 AM, and ten students were quickly arrested. Four students were sent to the police and six to the NISS. Several of those arrested on both the 25 and 26 April were transferred from police custody to Shendi Prison on charges of rioting and disturbance of public peace. They are: o Ahmed Idris Omar Ahmed o Abdullah Mohamed Abdullah o Mohamed Bashir Ahmed o Abdullah Mohamed Hussein o Alsadiq Mohamed Abdulla o Hassan Yousif Abdelrahman o Mohamed Ibrahim Ahmed o Almahid Hamid Fatir o Mohamed al Nazir o Mohamed Ali Geja o Anguno al Nur o Boutros Badawi o Hussein Ahmed Abdalla o Husam Aldin Ibrahim o Al Amin Abdalla Amin o Mohamed Abdelrahman Ibrahim o Mohamed Abdelaziz Hussein o Kamal Idriss Adam o Mohamed Albel Fatah Mohamed o Ali Abdalla Ali o Al Samal Mohamed Farhid o Alnaeiim Sadig Mohamed o Dia Aldeenal Taj Mohamed o Mohamed Alnout Abdulrahim o Mustafa Mohamed Abdallah Others were released on personal guarantee from police custody. They are: o Abdulrazig Mustafa Suleiman Omar o Ahmed Idriss Omar o Mansour Salih Mohamed Ali

o o o o o o o o

Mohamed Sahir Jalal Alad Hassan Abdul Ibrahim Hassan Salih Abshir Abdelkareem Hasir Al tigani Sadig Mustafa Hamza Mohamed Tahir Bilal Mustafa Omar Mohamed Mohamed Abdulaziz

Several students taken to the police station and later transferred to NISS custody reported being beaten and subjected to torture. Some of these students are: o Al Nour Mohamed Hussein, Faculty of Arts, Democratic Front: arrested by police and subjected to beating with water pipes and forced inhalation of tear gas. He was beaten outside and inside the police station. o Hanza Mohamed Al Tahir, Faculty of Economy, Democratic Front: arrested and tortured twice after the case was filed by the Dean of Student Affairs. He was verbally abused and the police insulted his family, calling his mother a prostitute. During his second arrest on 25 April, Mr. Al Tahir was beaten with water pipes, subjected to electric shocks, and hung by his feet from the roof of the police station. He was interrogated about his relationship with the Sudan Liberation Movement. o Abdullah Mohamed Abdullah, Umma Party: he was arrested on 25 April by police and sent to Shendi Prison before being released on personal bail. He has been charged under Articles 77 (public nuisance), 68 (rioting), and 69 (disturbance of public peace) of the 1991 Sudanese Criminal Code. Before he was released, he was ordered to sign a paper that he would not protest again. o Mohamed Abulaziz Mohamed, Faculty of Arts: arrested 25 April by the police. o Al Hadi Hamadain: arrested by the NISS in front of Shendi Court after charges were dropped against him and 12 other students. On 5 May, six heavily armed men in plainclothes uniform entered the office of the lawyer and activist Hawad Abdelkarim in Shendi town, and forced him to come to NISS offices. Mr. Abdelkarim and his wife, Amal Zain, are both lawyers and working as defence council for students facing charges pressed by the university. He was interrogated from 4 - 6 PM about his relationship with the student demonstrators. They threatened to transfer him to NISS custody in Khartoum if he didnt disclose his involvement. On 17 April, more than 100 female students at Sudan University in Khartoum protested against University dress code regulations which compel students to wear a uniform based on Islamic law, or else be expelled. On 20 April, police arrested 17 students allegedly affiliated with the United Popular Front (UPF, a political party that supports Darfuri rebel leader Abdul Wahid Al Nour) from Al Nilein University after they held a demonstration calling for regime change in Khartoum. They were taken to court and charged under Article 69 of the 1991 Sudanese Criminal Code (disruption of public peace). The group was all released without charge except for one student, who received a three month jail sentence. On 21 April, 22 students were arrested in Damzein, Blue Nile state, after they demonstrated in front of UNMIS headquarters calling for leaders of the NCP to abdicate power if the outcomes of the popular consultations werent respected.

On 23 - 24 April, UPF-affiliated students demonstrated in Gedarif and Halfa Al Jadida. The demonstrations denounced the loss of the South and war crimes in Darfur, and called for regime change in Khartoum. The demonstrations were dispersed by tear gas, and in Halfa Al Jadida four students were arrested by the NISS. On 30 April, the NISS confiscated Al Tayar newspaper. The reasons for the confiscation were never explained. The editors of the newspaper reported that NISS officers arrived late in the evening and confiscated all of the copies when they were finished printing without giving any reasons. It is believed that the confiscation might be linked to the newspapers coverage of elections in South Kordofan. On 11 May, Mohammed Arkou Adiebou Ali, a Sudan Radio Service journalist, was arrested in Wau, South Sudan for allegedly taking photographs without government permission. He was released in Juba on 2 June and has left the country. Mr. Ali was allegedly subjected to torture. On 16 May, Mr. Al Gasim, an economics journalist with Al Sudani newspaper, was arrested by the Guard of the Ministry of Finance when he went to the Ministry to inquire about documents viewed by the newspaper which alleged that state money was being funnelled into the salary of Osman Hamid, the executive Director of the Khartoum Market Stock Exchange. When Mr. Al Gasim met the Minister in his office and asked him for comment the Minister asked him about his source. When Mr. Al Gasim refused to reveal his source, the Minister ordered the guard to arrest him. He was transferred to NISS custodys constitutional department, where he was released shortly after. On 25 May, clashes started between Red Sea University guards and students following demonstrations at the University in Port Sudan.21 The police interfered and fired live ammunition and teargas into the crowd. Two students were injured and taken to the hospital, one of who was reported to be in critical condition. The NISS arrested 11 students and released four shortly after. Students demonstrated in front of the police station demanding the release of their colleagues, who were later transferred to Port Sudan prison. The authorities have refused to release them on bail. Six of the detainees known are: Salih Ibrahim Hashim Osman Hamda Salih Mohammed Osman Dawad Mohamed Abu Bakr Suleiman Zubaide On 31 May at 1 PM, clashes reignited between students belonging to the Beni Amir ethnic group at Red Sea University and other Universities. Students used racial epithets towards Beni Amir students, and vandalised their property. The students called for the University administration to postpone examinations. Police entered the University and fired tear gas and gunshots into the air to disperse the crowd. Three students were arrested by the NISS. They are: o Al Muria Abdelgadir, Student of Arts Faculty o Yahiya Engina, Abdul Wahid Al Nour supporter o Abdelrahman, Muslim Brotherhood On 29 May, the Khartoum Criminal Court judge Modather al-Rasheed (also the same judge in the Lubna Hussein case and the JEM trials) adjourned the trial of Ajras Alhurria columnist Dr. Omer Al Gerai till 21 June. He also adjourned the trials of Al-Akhbar journalist Faisal Mohamed Salih till 12

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A youtube video of the demonstrators shouting freedom! is available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ2tcFLjo7Y&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1

June, Amal Habbani of Al Jareeda till 9 June, and of Nahid Mohamed Al Hassan till 28 June. The four journalists have been charged by the NISS with defamation and publishing false information following their coverage of Safiya Ishags case. Ms. Ishag is a female activist affiliated with the youth opposition group Girifna who reported being raped and beaten in NISS custody on 13 February 2011. On 29 May, the NISS arrested journalist Abdel Aziz Al Nagar after he held a copy of the article written by Dr. el Gerai up inside of court. His whereabouts are unknown. The Radio Dabanga six have had their trial postponed pending a review of their case. The review comes after an appeal was submitted by their lawyers to the attorney general in Khartoum. The first session, scheduled for 21 June, was postponed until 12 July due to the Chief Investigator being ill. On 29 May, proceedings brought by the prosecutor of the Press and Publications Court against Professor Omar el Gerai, a journalist and activist, and Abdallah Sheikh, the editor of Ajras Alhurria, began in Al Shemali Court in Khartoum North. The two journalists are being tried for an article published 6 March by Professor el Gerai in Ajras Alhurria entitled Rapeunder Sharia law, (available here in Arabic). The article detailed the brutal treatment of the youth activist and Girifna member Safiya Ishag, who was raped multiple times and subjected to torture in NISS custody following her participation in the 30 January demonstrations in Khartoum. In his piece, Mr. el Gerai called for a formal investigation. Prior to the initial hearing, the lawyers of Professor el Gerai and Mr. Sheikh had only been told informally of the charges leveled against their clients under the 1991 Sudanese Criminal Code, and were told by the prosecutor that they would have to wait and see. They have since been charged with defamation, and their trials postponed to 21 June. Mr. Sheikh is facing seven separate complaints: four filed by the NISS, one by the military, and one by the ministers council. Judge Modather ab Rasheed, who will hear the case, has stated that he will first hear the evidence introduced by the relevant authorities. Professor el Gerai and Mr. Sheikhs case is not an isolated incident. Several other journalists are facing criminal charges brought by the NISS for reporting on Ms. Ishags case, including: Faisal Mohamed Saleh, a human rights journalist and columnist for Al Akhbar. His case was also presented to Al Shemali Court and its proceedings have been delayed till 28 June. Amal Habbani, a prominent journalist and womens rights activists. She is expected to appear before the Court on 12 June. Faiz al Silaik, former deputy editor in chief of Ajras Alhurria. Mr. al Silaik is facing seven cases filed by the NISS, police, military, and Ministers Council. Some of these cases have come before the Court, and some are still pending within the prosecutors office. Ahmed Osman, editor in chief of The Citizen, an English language newspaper, Dr. Nahid Mohamed Al Sassan, writer with Ajras Alhurria, and Al Ayaam have all been announced by the Clerk of the court, but have not been contacted or formally informed of charges by the Court or their potential trial dates. All have been filed by the NISS. Newspapers contacted by ACJPS appeared unaware of proceedings against their staff. Activists intend to monitor the trials and appear in court in solidarity with the journalists. A campaign to support them by providing technical and financial support for their legal fees and draft editorials has been established, called the Sudanese Campaign for Freedom of Opinion and Conscience.

Arbitrary Arrest and Incommunicado Detention

On 1 April, the NISS arrested Anes Abdalla, a footballer with the Al Shabaab football team in Doka, Gedarif state, for wearing a t-shirt inscribed down with Ingaz after he scored a goal against a team

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called Ingaz. The NISS accused him of insinuating the downfall of the Ingaz regime. He was later released but asked to report to NISS offices. On 4 April, anti-smuggling police in Port Sudan arrested Omar Saeed Ahmed Hani, a graduate of the School of Engineering at Sudan University. He was subjected to torture by the police after being accused of smuggling drugs. He was subjected to electric shocks, kicked, and denied food. He was also subjected to verbal abuse and threatened with rape if he mentioned their names in any formal complaint. He was not allowed to see a doctor to document his injuries, which were for the most part internal. His interrogators were: o Muzamil Abjedna o Mohamed Tahir Osman Nour o Huzaifa The police attempted to bribe his brother to pay 4,000 Sudanese pounds to see him in custody. Upon his release, Mr. Hanis lawyer complained to the NISS, who promised to investigate the police. On 6 April, the NISS in Khartoum a group preparing for a public forum announced by the Communist Party in Khartoum Bahri were arrested. They are: o Bashir Musa Fahdol, Sudan University o Mohamed Adam, Khartoum University o Mohamed Yousif, Sudan University o Mohamed Kamal, Juba University o Tariq al Azrahim o Mohamed Al Hassan, Sudan University o Iman Mohamed Osman, Sudan University o Hassan Ishag, journalist tranee with El Gerida newspaper o Mastour Ahmed Mastour, secretary general of the Sudan Congress Party On 17 April, the NISS arrested Deeba Babington, a journalist with Reuters, in Al Gezira state after she interviewed farmers in the Shrara project. Ms. Babington had arrived in Sudan only five weeks prior. On 17 April, the human rights activist Najlaa Al Mahi was arrested from Jebel Awlia IDP camp by the NISS alongside three other people while distributing food items to Southern IDPs without permission from authorities. She was detained and interrogated at three NISS stations. Her phone and camera were confiscated. Ms. Al Mahi is co-founded the Dignified Return Initiative started in January 2011. She was released later in the day after being warned that she must inform local authorities before distributing food in the camp. On 1 May, Adam Ali Abdul Mageed Ahmed, 35 and a member of the Fur tribe, was arrested by the NISS in Khartoum, Mayo area, at 11:00 AM. Mr. Ahmed currently is employed as a trader in the Mayo market and previously worked with the NISS from 2001 to 2008. He resigned in protest from the NISS in 2008 after his brother, Abdul Mageed Ali was accused of the murder of journalist Mohamed Taha Mohamed Ahmed alongside nine others in 2006. They were executed on 13 April 2009 in Kober prison. Following Mr. Ahmeds arrest, his older brother, Habib Ali Abdul Mageed went to NISS offices in Khartoum and inquired as to his whereabouts. The NISS denied any knowledge of him, despite many eyewitnesses to his arrest, who described the NISS agents as heavily armed and driving a pickup truck. Mr. Ahmed allegedly has no political affiliation and is also caring for his elderly mother. Since the execution of his brother in 2009, Mr. Ahmed had distanced himself from political activities. On 5 May, the NISS in Shendi arrested Awad Abdel Bien. He was detained for two hours and interrogated about his relationship with the student demonstrators at Shendi University. He was

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accused of funding and supporting the demonstrators, and threatened that he would be transferred to NISS custody in Khartoum. Mr. Bien has defended the student activists in court following their arrests by the NISS and police in April. In late May, the NISS arrested 17 students in Khartoum from Darfur, all members of the UPF, a political party that supports Darfuri rebel leader Abdul Wahid Al Nour. Their whereabouts remain unknown. Amongst the group are: o Mohaldien Jamiel, Omdurman Islamic University o Abu Al Gasim Jaksa, Al Azahri University On 24 May, five Sharara activists (Youth for Change) were arrested by the NISS and subjected to torture following a public talk by the group inside Khartoum University. Pro-government students attacked and dispersed the students.

Public Order Harassment and Threats toward Southerners

In early May, in Thoura Bel Wadi in Omdurman, a group of Southerners attempting to return stuck in the area expressed concerns for their wellbeing after receiving threats from some members of the surrounding community that they would not be safe in the area following Southern secession. The group includes several vulnerable persons, including those who are elderly, blind, seriously ill, and a pregnant woman. On 4 May, Public Order Police invaded an apartment in Omdurman, Algamair area, at 10:00 PM, arresting a group of friends playing cards. Seven young men and one girl were arrested and taken to Kabajab Police Station custody, where they spent the night before being taken to Omdurman Market Criminal Court the following day. The entire group was charged with prostitution under Article 154 of the 1991 Sudanese Criminal Code. The first two defendants were sentenced to a fee of 2,000 Sudanese pounds and 70 lashes each. The rest of the group was sentenced to 500 Sudanese pounds and 40 lashes each. The group had no access to a lawyer and their families, and had their mobile phones confiscated.

Attacks in Darfur
On 18 May, UNAMID confirmed that air strikes had taken place in a village northeast of El Fashir, killing ten. The following day, attacks on an airstrip and third village northeast of El Fashir occurred. Several JEM detainees remain in Kober prison in Khartoum following their arrests in early January from a JEM-controlled area in North Darfur when their convoy was ambushed. Those known are: o Ibrahim Almas Daein, Dinka, an official with the Southern sector of JEM. Arrested on 12 January from Wadi Tamor, West Darfur. He was transferred to Khartoum on 15 January 2011. o Mahmoud Ahmed Mohamed Ali (Ali Jizouli). JEM official of management and administration. Arrested on 12 January 2011. o Alsir Djibril Tibri Abdelgadir. Political Consultant with JEM, arrested 13 January 2011. o Ibrahim Mahjoub Alnasir. Subjected to torture at NISS offices in Khartoum (100 lashes everyday for a month), as well as being forced to stand for hours every day. o Yahiya Albakr Musa al Nour. Arrested 13 January 2011 from Wad Tamor in West Darfur. Transferred to Khartoum on 15 January. o Ibrahim Abdelrahman Safi Nour, Misseriya. Arrested 12 January 2011 from Wad Tamor. o Abdallah Abdallah Hassan Ismail, arrested 13 January. o Mohamed Ismail Tamour, arrested 12 January.

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On 1 June at 8 AM, a militia comprised of roughly 100 people on horses, camels, and in three landcruisers invaded the ethnically Zaghawa villages of Laminah, Terling and Hella Sheikh Khatir, Abu Zeriga area, near Shangil Tobaya in North Darfur. The militia, led by Ibrahim Abu Dur, is allegedly one of many created by the North Darfur government in December 2010 to attack ethnic Zaghawas in Khor Abeche and Shangil Tobaya following the dissolution of the Darfur Peace Agreement. Militia members engaged in widespread looting of property and livestock, including seven Murah, a local term for herds of 100 head of livestock. Twenty one residents managed to trap the militia as they made their way out of Laminah and Terling and recover two of the stolen Murah. Eyewitnesses reported that this group of residents attempting to secure their property and livelihood was apprehended by personnel in Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) uniforms and militia members supported by military aircraft as they returned to Laminah and Terling. Nineteen members of the group were arrested and taken to Um Kaja village in Eastern Shangil Tobaya, roughly two kilometres away. Sixteen members of the group were summarily executed by firing squad, including Omar al Abkar, 42, the Principal of Abzoraga Primary School. Those killed include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Mohamed Wadi Ibrahim Ganee, 42, Zaghawa, farmer Adam Wad Ibrahim Ganee, 38, Zaghawa, farmer Abdelrahman Dosa Sharif Dhani, 22, Zaghawa, farmer Khatal Khater Ghani, 45, Zaghawa AsehifAlshikh Tobaik, 71, Zaghawa, a Community Leader of Al Omana village Omar al Abkar, 24, Zaghawa, the principal of Abzoraga Primary School Guja Ahmed Nour, 42, Zaghawa, farmer Nouredain Seneen Idriss, 36, Zaghawa, farmer Eltayab Hassan Ibrah, 54, Zaghawa, farmer Nouradein Jalab, Zaghawa, farmer Khalid Musa Hamsa, Zaghawa, farmer Ibrahim Sharief Iman, Zaghawa, farmer

Three others, Adam Ahmed Arabi, Jamal, and Mubarak Yousif Idriss, managed to elude execution. They are currently being held at Shangil Tobaya military camp. The bodies of the executed were left exposed in nearby open areas for the communities to see. Witnesses reported that they felt that the display of the bodies was an effort to dissuade the public from protesting or defending themselves against future military incursions. Seven bodies were dumped in a valley west of Um Kaja, about 1.5 kilometres away from Shangil Tobaya. Five were taken to Shartai Adamins farm about two kilometres northeast of Shangil Tobaya, and another three to Salih village. When the families of the deceased demanded that the bodies be returned for proper burial, their bodies were collected by joint forces and buried on 3 June at 11 AM near a well outside of Shangil Tobaya before their families could identify them or pay their respects. On 4 June, the North Darfur government formed a Commission of Inquiry chaired by Tiyen Salih with representation from the governor of North Darfurs office, the attorney general, police, National Intelligence and Security Services, Zaghawa community leaders, and an official of Dar el Salaam area. On 5 June, the Commission of Inquiry travelled to Shangil Tobaya to begin their investigation. Two members

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of the commission, an official of Dar El Salaam area and Zaghawa Community leader Mohamed Salih Haroun, 70, of Abu Zeriga, travelling in the same car, were stopped by militias at a roadblock. A member of the militia entered the car and shot Mr. Haroun dead. The convoy returned to El Fashir immediately thereafter.

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