Save the Sudanese in Egypt from gangs’ brutality

By Roba Gibia

July 19, 2008 (CAIRO) — A close observer to the situation of the Sudanese in Cairo will shed tears and feel sad for the agony and the awful scale of the Sudanese communities’ suffering on the daily basis at the hands of the so-called Sudanese gangs in Cairo.

The activities of these Sudanese gangs have intensified at the recent couple of months from a brief halt after the deportation of about over fifty suspected gangs to southern Sudan on April 19, 2008. At that time the UNHCR condemned the move because at least 11 of the deportees had been recognized as refugees or asylum seekers who were innocent and the real gangs were left untouched.

The activities and atrocities of both lost and out-laws boys are being felt by every if not all Southern Sudanese families in great Cairo because of the imposed monthly royalty by the gangs on the poor Sudanese mothers.

These gangs also are organised in two hostile groups and have got their own governing structure and rules to safeguard their organization and its wellbeing. Each group is being guided by its own evil law within the territories that they control.

The gangs and their leadership are known to the most of Sudanese communities in Egypt. But strangely enough some of the Sudanese community elders are acting as guardians for the gangs, and at same time as beneficiaries, which are the very people distributing and selling the robbed items on behalf of gangs such as mobiles and jewelleries.

During a meeting with one of the community elders, he mentioned the most notorious three leaders of the lost boys. He further said if these three leaders are arrested and deported, Sudanese communities in Egypt and especially in EL-Maadi will breathe a fresh air, because these three leaders have got criminal records and number of cases has been filed against them at the Egyptian police stations in El-Maadi which will convict and facilitate their deportation.

These Sudanese gangs have resorted to variety of criminal acts against poor Sudanese communities, such as gang raping under-aged Sudanese girls.

As whenever they found a girl on the street, the girl will be threatened by sharp knife and taken to their apartment, and gang rapped and the girl will never file a case against them, despite the fact that they were known to the victim, because if the victim files a case against them, she will loose her life.

There were several crimes committed by these groups, like the case of a pregnant Sudanese woman who was about to deliver her baby at Nasr City while her husband was at work, she was rapped with her daughter and was left between life and death.

When she was taken to the hospital, doctors found that the baby was already dead at her womb because of the barbaric sexual cruelty, and the demised baby was removed to save the mother’s life. These are the daily hardships of Southern or Sudanese women and girls in Cairo, but who will save and deliver them from the hands of these atrocious gangs!

The queer issue here is the submission of the Sudanese community to the gangs which have become the victims and the main source of supply to these evil gangs.

Each group is trying to recruit great number of youth (male or female) to its side at any age, and if the parents refuse to capitulate their sons or daughters to the gangs, the parents, that are normally mothers because their spouses are not here, have to pay monthly subscription as an exemption fee to protect their children.

The amount is being increased monthly till it reaches hundred Egyptian pounds (USD 18.90) as pressurizing option to the mothers to let their children join the group.

Beside that if the child has already joined these gangs just for protection purposes, but could not participate in the groups’ operations, the mother has to pay exclusion fee of twenty Egyptian pounds (USD 3.80) per every operation.

Thus, most of the parents whom are paying monthly royalty or exclusion fees to protect their children, have no choice but to send their children to Sudan in safe heaven.

Affected mothers desperately air a humanitarian call for all the concerned authorities in both countries to save the Sudanese communities in Egypt from the daily gangs’ brutality, and not to turn a blind eye or deaf ear to the calamity of these gangs.

“I do believe that national unity and southern Sudan governments in collaboration with the Egyptian authorities can put an end to this catastrophe within forty-eight hours if there is determination to resolve this issue;” said a tormented mother. “But it seems there are some fishy matters going around which we couldn’t figure it out.” She concluded with some resignation.

The majority of these Sudanese gangs are familiar to the Egyptian security, and sometimes they are moving in great numbers and some have got criminal records at police stations, but no one dares to curtail their activities despite the fact that their locations and areas of operation are known to the Egyptian security.

Last month a young Wahabi Ali Kony, from the Nuba Mountains, was attacked by these gangs and chopped badly in head, because he refused to join the lost boys and after ignoring several warnings of the group.

The victims of the Sudanese gangs are not only Sudanese, but it includes all black Africans. As for the past couple of months a number of African victimes who were attacked, injured and robbed by Sudanese gangs had been received by Southern Sudan government bureau of liaison here in Cairo.

Beside that last month one of the GoSS Liaison Office in Cairo staff, an Egyptian journalist was attacked near the office and all her jewellery rings and necklace were robbed. This was the first time for one of the gangs to attack and rob an Egyptian, knowing that she is working with GoSS Liaison Office, which I believe was a direct message to GoSS Liaison Office staff in Cairo.

But it seems that the gang activities has started to engulf the Egyptians, as about two weeks ago, one of the Egyptians was attacked at Abbasia neighbourhood, robbed and survived with some injuries.

There were lots of atrocities happening to Sudanese communities on daily basis in Cairo from these criminal bands, and there are dozens of people who have been robbed, chopped and disabled for life.

But the most inhumane incident was what happened to Rimond Justin on July 5, 2008 in which he was attacked after descending from microbus while returning from work, he was absolutely butchered and chopped like a butcher chopping meat for sale, both kneecap and elbow or radius bones were almost cut off including a severe cut at head.

When he was taken by ambulance to hospital, the charges requested for operation was thirty thousand Egyptian pounds (USD 5,660.38) and most of the hospitals refused to accept Rimond.

Instead they told his brother and friends to take him to the graveyard.

I was much moved when Rimond’s brother who was attacked early this year by same group at his flat and was cut at his right elbow, walked to GOSS office with his friend completely broken and couldn’t even speak a word, but rather showed the cut off right thumb of his brother which he was carrying in his bag.

Rimond’s condition is still grave and will require several operations, and even if he survived, will not be able to walk or feed himself, most of his closed friends, wished if he were to be dead instead of undergoing all this pain and anguish.

“This is a challenging message to all of us that if we don’t act today to put an end to this calamity, tomorrow it will be my and your turn;” said an affected friend.

The issue of the so-called Sudanese gangs in Cairo shouldn’t be taken on loose or even on discreet level as it is being handled now, but has to be taken seriously because it is tarnishing the icon of the Southern or Sudanese people.

A members of the Sudanese community angrily said “that was exactly what we reiterated to H.E. Salva Kiir, First Vice President and President of GoSS” in a meeting on February 12, 2008 with the Southern Sudanese Community Leaders in Cairo.

At that meeting the situation prompted Salva Kiir to term these gangs group as another “TRIBE”.

“I don’t know and there might be specific meaning in Kiir’s mind in terming these gangs group as tribe, but I couldn’t concur with Salva Kiir that these group are actually a tribe, because there is no tribe or nation in this world that advocates and embodies Satanic and barbaric doctrine.” He said.

During the meeting Salva Kiir told the Southern Sudanese Community Leaders in Cairo that “I had learned with dismay that some of our youth have become gangs and created havoc and insecurity among you. These acts are tarnishing our images and dignity.”

“I came with GoSS Minister of Internal Affairs to explore with Egyptian Government the possibility of encouraging our youth who are creating havoc in Egypt to be returned home;” he reassured.

On the issue of voluntary repatriation, Salva Kiir said that “We will discuss with UNHCR and the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt to explore a possibility of assisting those of you who are interested to return”.

The statement of the first vice-president and head of southern Sudan governmet sounds pretty nice, encouraging and offers promising hope to his folk. But since his visit to Egypt in last February 2008, so far nothing has been done in regard to the voluntary repatriation and the youth gangs in Cairo.

Today, there is already a young generation of gangs less than ten years or above has been formed and its going to be one of the most dangerous gangs than the current groups of wrongdoers after couple of years to come. Their deeds are the obvious evidence as how vicious they are going to be.

Also the gangs have already started recruiting number of students whom are accepted to Egyptian scholarship, and especially those students who applied and accepted from Cairo. There are already handful number of students on scholarship have joined the lost boys group as result of pressure and threat mounted on them by their own gangs’ tribal group, and as an option to save their lives.

Most of the cases happening between the two hostile criminal bands were not reported to the police, because most of the cases were happening within relatives or tribes which the tribes’ elders prefer to resolve it within the tribe’s circle.

The vivid and rich Sudanese market of Sakakini at street 72 Ahmed Said in Abasia has become less vibrant and sometimes just like a ghost market because of the Sudanese gangs’ activities.

As these gangs have got their own system of surveillance on those who have got money, and deploy unknown people to rob them, even women are being robbed daily on their way to market.

Sudanese community in Cairo is at the verge of collapse and needs security restoration and help to deliver them to the save shore. Otherwise the South Sudan enemies are vigilant and applying all the possible means as how to opt obliterate and ruin Southern Sudanese community.

(ST