SPLM-N calls on U.S. Congress to support Sudan’s churches
October 29, 2017 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) led by Malik Agar has Sunday called on the U.S. Congress to take action against the violations of religious freedom in Sudan.
In an open letter addressed to four lawmakers leading human rights bodies in the Congress, Yasir Arman, the Secretary General of the SPLM-N Agar, accused the Sudanese authorities of “targeting the Sudanese Christians as it violates basic human rights, damages nation-building of our country and it makes it difficult to have a common agenda into the future”.
Arman was referring to a brief closure of the Sudanese Church of Christ (SCOC), in Al-Thawra 29 neighbourhood in Khartoum state on Sunday 22 October and the detention of some religious leaders who will appear before the judge on 31 October.
“We would like to ask you to take up this case and the campaign against the Sudanese Christians in particular, and moreover, for issues of peacebuilding and democracy to be in the heart of the engagement between the United States Administration and the brutal Sudan government,” he stressed.
On Saturday 28 October, the Sudanese police denied targeting Sudanese Church of Christ adding they only arrested some members of the church after a difference over pastoral care service with another group in the same church.
It further added the arrested group didn’t comply with a decision by the ministry of religious affairs to task the other group with the pastoral service.
Washington earlier this month permanently repealed economic sanctions on Sudan on the basis of a five-track engagement and additional arrangements including religious freedom with the Sudanese government.
In November 2017, the two countries will engage the second phase talks on the normalisation of bilateral relations. Sudan removal from the list of countries sponsor of terrorism tops the agenda of the negotiations. On the other hand, Khartoum has to reach peace agreements with the rebel factions and implement democratic reforms.
In this respect, Arman pointed that “it is important at this juncture for the U.S. Congress and Administration to engage with the Sudanese democratic forces and civil society of the opposition to balance the engagement with the Sudan’s dictatorship”.
The President Donald Trump administration decided to not appoint a special envoy for Sudan. However, his office will be working attached to the Bureau of African affairs at the State Department which is managed by Acting Assistant Secretary Donald Yamamoto.
(ST)