Sudan’s student activist Boshi released from detention

January 16, 2012 (KHARTOUM) – A high-profile anti-government student detained in Sudan has been released after spending 24 days in the custody of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS).

The student activist, Mohamed Hassan Alim Boshi, rose to prominence following his widely publicised criticism of Nafie Ali Nafie, the presidential assistant and deputy chairman of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP), during a symposium at Khartoum University.

His arrest on Monday 26 December, days after the symposium, sparked concern across a wide spectrum of anti-government and human rights groups.

Boshi was released on Monday and is reported to be in good health.

One day before his release, Nafie issued a statement denying his involvement in Boshi’s detention, saying it was a “cheap propaganda” by the opposition to undermine him. The fearsome government figure called for the student’s release.

The NISS issued a statement published by its mouthpiece, the Sudanese Media Center (SMC), saying that Boshi’s detention had nothing to do with his critical interposition during the symposium at Khartoum University.

Quoting the head of the NISS’s information office, SMC said that Boshi was arrested because he incited students to take to the streets and attack police forces during a protest staged last month at Khartoum University, in solidarity with Al-Manasir, a community displaced by the construction of a government dam on the River Nile, north of Khartoum.

Sudan is known for the use of force and detention to suppress dissent and peaceful protests. Earlier this month, Human Rights Watch issued a statement condemning the use of excessive force by Sudanese police against student protesters.

(ST)