ACJPS condemns suppression of peaceful demonstrations in Khartoum

(7 December 2009) The African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies condemns the violent crackdown undertaken this morning by Sudanese riot police and the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) against tens of thousands engaged in peaceful protests in Omdurman, Greater Khartoum North, and other cities across Sudan. The demonstrations were coordinated by the Juba Declaration Forces, a coalition of Sudanese political opposition. The day prior, the group had announced their intent to deliver a memorandum to the Sudanese Parliament detailing the following demands:

– Implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) by the Parliament, including measures to reform obstructive legislation such as the National Security Act, the Criminal Code and Criminal Procedures Act, the Trade Union Act, and passage of an acceptable Referendum Act;
– Passage of vital legislation to end atrocities in Darfur and lift impunity from perpetrators and hold them accountable;
– Urgent steps to guarantee a conducive and open environment for elections, including revision of the recent census. Additionally, Parliament must ensure the independence, freedom, and impartiality of the national media, and take action to fight systemic corruption, poverty, and inflation in Sudan’s declining economy.

Despite the announcement that the intent of the demonstrations was peaceful, authorities released a statement shortly after midnight declaring the demonstration illegal. Heavily armed riot police with batons and tear gas lined the streets of Khartoum in the early morning hours, blocking the roads to Parliament and the main headquarters of several political parties, including the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM). Though the government had announced a public holiday for schools and public employees in an effort to deter the public’s participation, thousands had gathered by morning.

Rubber bullets and tear gas were fired into crowds, and security agents confiscated cameras from international media. In Khartoum, over 250 people were arrested, including prominent lawyers, students, journalists, and parliamentarians. Pagan Amum, the SPLM’s Secretary General, Abbas Jumma, the SPLM Minister of the Interior, and Yasir Arman, the SPLM’s Deputy Secretary General and leader of its Parliamentary block, were all arrested. Mr. Arman was seriously injured in police custody, where 13 security agents took him from his cell to a bathroom and beat him. In total, 42 people so far have been taken to the hospital including Samia Rabih, Hussam Mohamed Alamin, and Muna Eltigani, who was seriously injured and taken to a hospital.

Arrests also took place at similar demonstrations held across Sudan. In Wad Medani and El-Obeid, capital of Northern Kordofan State, 42 individuals were arrested, as were 58 in El Hasahisa. Protests also took place in Port Sudan, Gedaref, Kassala, and El Fasher, as well as in every major city in South Sudan and IDP camps in Darfur. A list of the arrested protestors is available upon request.

Of the attacks, South Sudan’s President and leader of the SPLM Salva Kiir stated that these were “not only provocative but unjustified, because the interim national constitution of the Sudan and the CPA allow for peaceful and democratic procession”. He said that the NCP leadership had been “resisting constitutional obligations by using their mechanical majority”…which “implicitly maintains the status quo and old mentality of doing business contrary to the letter and spirit of the CPA”.

The right to the freedom of expression, assembly, and association is guaranteed through Article 39 of the 2005 Interim National Constitution and Bill of Rights, and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The CPA provides for a democratic transformation and elections. The African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies is gravely concerned that today’s events are an initial snapshot in the road to elections, undermining the possibility for open political space and free, fair, and credible elections. The rare public demonstrations shows a first test and response to democratic challenges, and the NCP has shown itself unwilling to even allow dissenting voices to be heard, much less accept democratic accountability.