Case SDN 240603
Arbitrary arrest and detention / Torture

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT
intervention in the following situation in Sudan.

Brief description of the situation

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the
Sudanese Organisation against Torture, a member of the OMCT network,
of the arbitrary arrest and torture of Mohamed Sidiq Al-Zaybir,
Shazly 'Abd Alfattah Ibrahim, and Ahmed Mohammedein Waadi In Sudan.
These cases exemplify the systematic use of torture in secret
detention centres in the country, and the increased use of these
methods against certain groups, notably students in two of these
cases - some twelve students have reportedly been tortured by
National Security Agency personnel in the last three weeks.

On June 16th, 2003, Mr. Al-Zaybir, a 23-year-old third year student
in the Art Faculty at Khartoum University, was leaving the student
residence halls at 8:00 am, when he was hit on the head and taken to
a Toyota truck by a group of between nine and eleven people. He was
thrown onto the floor of the truck and tied up. After approximately
twenty minutes Mr. Al-Zaybir was blindfolded and placed in the front
seat of the truck. They stopped at a building that Mr. AL-Zaybir
later discovered houses the offices of the National Security Agency
(NSA), near Al-Farouqh Cemetery. He was led away from the truck and
people began hitting and kicking him. Mr. Al-Zaybir was then
reportedly dragged to a room on the fourth floor containing a chair
and a naked wire that was connected to an electricity supply. Five or
six individuals began to beat him as they questioned him about the
Democratic Front for Sudanese Students (DFSS) and particular
individuals. An officer arrived and stopped the beating. He then
reportedly questioned Mr. AL-Zaybir about the DFSS and certain people
and began to beat Mr. Al-Zaybir with a water hose when he claimed no
knowledge of the group or the people. Mr. AL-Zaybir passed out but
was revived with an electric shock.

The beatings lasted from approximately 8:20 am to 2:00 pm and from
3:00 pm to 6:30 pm. Mr. Al-Zaybir continued to be questioned about
the DFSS and other persons. His interrogators threatened to kill him,
and every time he passed out from the beatings, he was forced awake
by electric shocks and blows to the soles of his feet. At
approximately 7:00 pm, the officer returned, accompanied by five
other people. Mr. Al-Zaybir was put into a car and thirty minutes
later was thrown out onto Al Jamhoria Street. On the day of his
release Mr. Al-Zaybir received a medical report completed after an
examination by Dr. Osman Bashir Mohamed. The report described Mr. Al-
Zaybir's injuries as including the following: severe bruising around
both eyes; bruising and swelling on the right side of the forehead; a
cut on the right ear; major swelling behind the left ear; a deep, 3cm-
long cut on the back; a 4cm-long cut on the left shoulder; 3cm
circular burns on the left hand; 3cm circular burns on the soles of
the right and left feet; bruising on the inside of the elbow and
surface burns on the right forearm.

Here follow another two cases that further exemplify the systematic
use of torture in Sudan. Mr. Ibrahim is a 21-year-old, third-year law
student at Al-Nilein University affiliated with the Democratic Front.
Mr. Ibrahim was arrested at midnight on May 28th, 2003. A police
patrol consisting of six officers stopped and searched Mr. Ibrahim.
Having reportedly found documents belonging to the Democratic Front,
they arrested Mr. Ibrahim and brought him to a house between May and
East Kalakala streets. He was detained and interrogated there until
May 31st, 2003. Mr. Ibrahim was beaten with electric cables and
strangled with a wire during his detention. On My 31st Mr. Ibrahim
was transferred to an NSA building on University Street and then
moved again to the building near Farouqh Cemetery, where he was
tortured by four security officers. The officers beat Mr. Ibrahim
with sticks and hit his head against the wall until he passed out.
Mr. Ibrahim was again moved, this time to a building in the Amaraat
area. He was detained there until June 2nd, the date of his release.
Mr. Ibrahim was told not to visit a doctor or contact any human
rights organisations or he would be arrested again. Mr. Ibrahim did
visit D. Ahmad Hamad, who confirmed Mr. Ibrahim's injuries, reporting
that his: right foot was swollen; nose and left leg injured; back and
forehead and his left ear severely bruised; and left ear was cut and
bruised.

Separately, Mr. Waadi is a 35-year-old self-employed owner of a
pharmaceutical store. He was arrested by approximately fourteen
members of the Security Force from his store on May 6th, 2003. Mr.
Waadi was driven to the Security Force offices in Maleet, where he
was questioned about any relationship he had with the Sudanese
Liberation Army (SLA). He was brought to a 3m x 3m room and his hands
were tied behind his back. Mr. Waadi was severely beaten by five
people using whips, electrical wires, and their hands and feet until
he passed out. They continued to beat Mr. Waadi and when he came to,
they threatened to rape his wife and sisters. Mr. Waadi remained in
the Maleet barracks for two days. He was only able to leave the cell
once, to use the bathroom. Mr. Waadi was then moved to Al-Fasher
City's Military Intelligence buildings, where he remained in a 5m x
5m cell for three more days. Mr. Waadi shared his cell with three
other detainees, 'Abdallah 'Ali, Idris Hamed, and Ibrahim Mustafa.
They were randomly beaten, often in response to requests such as
asking to use the toilet or asking for water. Mr. Waadi was
threatened with rape during this period. The detainees were then
transferred to a military prison. Upon arrival, each detainee was
whipped 10 or 15 times, and then placed in a 4m x 4m cell. Mr. Waadi
spent seven days in the
military prison. The light and ventilation in the crowded cell were
poor. The detainees were given water, bread and salt twice a day, and
only allowed to go to the bathroom
once a day. Mr. Waadi was released on May 18th, 2003, and is
currently receiving treatment for the injuries that he sustained
during the beatings to his face and back.

The International Secretariat is gravely concerned by the reports of
arbitrary arrests and the use of torture on Mr. Al-Zaybir, Mr.
Ibrahim, and Mr. Waadi, and the systematic
nature of the use of torture in Sudan that their cases exemplify.
OMCT calls on the Sudanese government to order an immediate inquiry
into the allegations of torture in
order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial, and apply
the penal and administrative sanctions that are provided for by law.
OMCT also calls on the Sudanese
government to guarantee reparation for the afore-mentioned victims of
torture, including appropriate medical assistance.

Action requested

Please write to the authorities in Sudan urging them to:

i. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the
circumstances in order to identify those responsible, bring them to
trial and apply the penal and/or
administrative sanctions as provided by law;
ii. guarantee adequate reparation to all injured persons;
iii. intervene with the proper authorities to ensure that adequate
medical assistance is provided as a matter of urgency to any of the
afore-mentioned victims of torture
that require it;
iv. immediately halt the harassment and repression of students;
v. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms
throughout the country in accordance with national laws and
international human rights
standards.

Addresses

· His Excellency Lieutenant General Omar Hassan al-Bashir, President
of the Republic of Sudan, People's Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum,
Sudan, Fax: + 24911
783223
· Mr Ali Osman Yassin, Minister of Justice and Attorney General,
Ministry of Justice, Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: + 24911 788941
· Mr Mustafa Osman Ismail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, PO Box 873, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: 24911 779383
· Dr Yasir Sid Ahmed, Advisory Council for Human Rights, PO Box 302,
Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 24911 770883
· His Excellency Ambassador Mr Ibrahim Mirghani Ibrahim, Permanent
Mission of Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva, PO Box 335, 1211
Geneva, Switzerland, Fax : +4122 7312656. E-mail:
[email protected]

Please also write to the embassies of Sudan in your respective
country.

Geneva, June 24th, 2003

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this
appeal in your reply.

Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT)
8 rue du Vieux-Billard
Case postale 21
CH-1211 Geneve 8
Suisse/Switzerland
Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39
Fax : 0041 22 809 49 29
E-mail : [email protected]
http://www.omct.org