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FACTS OF THE CASE:

On 8 May 2005, members of the Sudanese government's National Security and Intelligence Agency arrested Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim, Chair of the Sudan Social Development Organization (SUDO). Two other SUDO staff, Yasir Salim and Abdallah Tara, were also arrested. All three are being held incommunicado and without charge in Khartoum. Dr. Ibrahim was scheduled to leave on 9 May to Ireland, where he was to receive an award from the Dublin-based human rights organization Front Line.

SUDO is a private non-governmental organization that provides development and humanitarian assistance throughout Sudan. SUDO has also conducted meetings and programs to promote reconciliation between ethnic groups in Sudan. Sudan has experienced a long-running violent conflict between the mostly Arab Muslim North and Southern Sudan, which is mostly made up of Black, African Christians. In January 2005, the government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) signed a Comprehensive Peace Agreement. However, the implementation of the peace agreement has been slow. In the Darfur region, about 1.8 million people have been internally displaced and there are 200,000 refugees in neighboring Chad and are unable to return to their homes because their safety cannot be guaranteed.

SUDO is one of the few national organizations working in Darfur. Dr. Mudawi, who is an engineer and Associate Professor in the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, University of Khartoum, has traveled to the region last year. Shortly after his trip, he was arrested and imprisoned for seven month and eventually released. He was rearrested in January of this year and held without charge and without access to his lawyer, family, or medical care. As a protest, he mounted a hunger strike. The government then charged him with attempting to commit suicide, which a crime under Sudan's Penal Code. After spending some time in the hospital, he was later released at the beginning of March 2005.

Dr. Ibrahim was scheduled to travel to Ireland to be presented with the inaugural award of Front Line. Front Line was founded in Dublin in 2001 with the specific aim of protecting Human Rights Defenders, people who work, non-violently, for any or all of the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The organization provides a wide range of support to defenders, including protection, networking, training and access to the thematic and country mechanisms of the UN and other regional bodies. According to Front Line, Dr. Ibrahim was selected by a distinguished jury to receive this award "because of his courageous and inspiring work for human rights in Sudan, including in Darfur." The award honors the work of a human rights defender who has made a contribution to the protection of human rights in the face of considerable personal risk.

(Sources of information for this case include: Front Line, www.frontlinedefenders.org, Amnesty International, and the BBC.)

RELEVANT HUMAN RIGHTS STANDARDS

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

• Article 10: All persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.
• Article 19(1): Everyone shall have the right to hold opinions without interference.
• Article 13: An alien lawfully in the territory of a State Party to the present Covenant may be expelled therefrom only in pursuance of a decision reached in accordance with law and shall, except where compelling reasons of national security otherwise require, be allowed to submit the reasons against his expulsion and to have his case reviewed by, and be represented for the purpose before, the competent authority or a person or persons especially designated by the competent authority.
• Article 7: No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
• Article 9(2): Anyone who is arrested shall be informed, at the time of arrest, of the reasons for his [or her] arrest and shall be promptly informed of any charges against him [or her].
• Article 9(3): Anyone arrested or detained on a criminal charge shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorized by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release. It shall not be the general rule that persons awaiting trial shall be detained in custody, but release may be subject to guarantees to appear for trial, at any other stage of the judicial proceedings, and, should occasion arise, for execution of the judgement.
• Article 9(4): Anyone who is deprived of his [or her] liberty by arrest or detention shall be entitled to take proceedings before a court, in order that court may decide without delay on the lawfulness of his [or her] detention and order his [or her] release if the detention is not lawful.

The Human Rights Defenders Declaration

• Article 12(2): The State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the [Universal Declaration of Human Rights].
• Article 7: Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to develop and discuss new human rights ideas and principles and to advocate their acceptance.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Please send faxes, letters, or emails:

• Expressing your concern for the safety of Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim, Yasir Salim and Abdallah Tara, who are being held incommunicado since their arrest on 8 May 2005;
• Calling for their immediate release as they appear to be imprisoned in connection with their human rights work; and
• Seeking the government's assurances that the detainees will not be tortured or ill- treated while detained and that they be given full access to their lawyers, family and medical care.

APPEAL AND INQUIRY MESSAGES SHOULD BE SENT TO:

His Excellency Lieutenant General Omar Hassan al-Bashir
President of the Republic of Sudan
People's Palace
PO Box 281
Khartoum
Sudan
Salutation: Your Excellency

Mr Ali Mohamed Osman Yassin
Minister of Justice and Attorney General
Ministry of Justice
Khartoum, Sudan

COPIES SENT TO:

Ambassador Khidir Haroun Ahmed
Ambassador of the Republic of the Sudan to the United States
Embassy of the Republic of the Sudan
2210 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 (202) 667-2406
june@sudanembassyus.org
Salutation: Dear Mr. Ambassador:

Please send copies of your appeals, and any responses you may receive, or direct any questions you may have to Victoria Baxter, AAAS Science and Human Rights Program, 1200 New York Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20005; tel. 202-326-6797; email vbaxter@aaas.org; or fax 202-289-4950.

The keys to effective appeals are to be courteous and respectful, accurate and precise, impartial in approach, and as specific as possible regarding the alleged violation and the international human rights standards and instruments that apply to the situation. Reference to your scientific organization and professional affiliation is always helpful.

To ensure that appeals are current and credible, please do not continue to write appeals on this case after 90 days from the date of the posting unless an update has been issued.

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