Sudan
16.11.04
Urgent Interventions
Sudan : Abduction of 13 Internally Displaced women and girls (IDPs) from Kalma IDP camp.
Case SDN 161104.CC.VAW
Child concern / Violence against women
Abductions/ Risk to personal integrity
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 (SOAT), a member of the OMCT network, of the abduction of 13 Internally Displaced women and girls (IDPs) from Kalma IDP camp, 17 kilometres east of Nyala, southern Darfur.
According to the information received, on 2 November 2004, the following women and girls were abducted whilst fetching fire wood outside the camp. The details of the girls and women are as follows:
1. Aisha Ismael Adam, 14 yrs
2. Fatima Yousif Musa, 16 yrs
3. Merriam Idris Abdel Azizi, 17 yrs
4. Zarga Salih Abdel rahman, 15 yrs
5. Amna Mohamed Ishag
6. Aisha Shareef Aldeain
7. Fatima Yahya Nour, 60 yrs
8. Fatima Yagoub Mohamed, 25 yrs
9. Fatima Abdel rahman, 50 yrs
10. Hawa Abdella Adam, 35 yrs
11. Soumaya Hassan, 18 yrs
12. Hehla Abu Jabe, 25 yrs
13. Halima Arbab Abd al-Rahman,
According to the information provided, the abductors are unknown, however, people at the camp alleged that the abductors were the Janjaweed militias.
OMCT is gravely concerned for the psychological and physical integrity of the above mentioned person as according to information, abuses comitted against women and girls continues to be widespread in the context of the conflict, especially women and girls being subjected to sexual violence and abduction. Therefore, OMCT calls upon the government of Sudan to immediately locate the whereabouts of these 13 women and girls and to order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of the abduction in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law. OMCT recalls that these events are in clear infringement of article 9 (1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Sudan is a state party, which state that “everyone has the right to liberty and security of person”.
OMCT also recalls to the Sudanese government that the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women, in article 4(c), provides that States should “exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate and, in accordance with national legislation, punish acts of violence against women, whether those acts are perpetrated by the State or by private persons.”
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Sudan urging them to:
i. immediately locate the whereabouts of the above mentioned persons;
ii. take all necessary measures to guarantee their physical and psychological integrity;
iii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of their abduction in order to identify all those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
Please also write to the embassies of Sudan in your respective country.
Geneva, 16 November 2004
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken
Child concern / Violence against women
Abductions/ Risk to personal integrity
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 (SOAT), a member of the OMCT network, of the abduction of 13 Internally Displaced women and girls (IDPs) from Kalma IDP camp, 17 kilometres east of Nyala, southern Darfur.
According to the information received, on 2 November 2004, the following women and girls were abducted whilst fetching fire wood outside the camp. The details of the girls and women are as follows:
1. Aisha Ismael Adam, 14 yrs
2. Fatima Yousif Musa, 16 yrs
3. Merriam Idris Abdel Azizi, 17 yrs
4. Zarga Salih Abdel rahman, 15 yrs
5. Amna Mohamed Ishag
6. Aisha Shareef Aldeain
7. Fatima Yahya Nour, 60 yrs
8. Fatima Yagoub Mohamed, 25 yrs
9. Fatima Abdel rahman, 50 yrs
10. Hawa Abdella Adam, 35 yrs
11. Soumaya Hassan, 18 yrs
12. Hehla Abu Jabe, 25 yrs
13. Halima Arbab Abd al-Rahman,
According to the information provided, the abductors are unknown, however, people at the camp alleged that the abductors were the Janjaweed militias.
OMCT is gravely concerned for the psychological and physical integrity of the above mentioned person as according to information, abuses comitted against women and girls continues to be widespread in the context of the conflict, especially women and girls being subjected to sexual violence and abduction. Therefore, OMCT calls upon the government of Sudan to immediately locate the whereabouts of these 13 women and girls and to order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of the abduction in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law. OMCT recalls that these events are in clear infringement of article 9 (1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Sudan is a state party, which state that “everyone has the right to liberty and security of person”.
OMCT also recalls to the Sudanese government that the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women, in article 4(c), provides that States should “exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate and, in accordance with national legislation, punish acts of violence against women, whether those acts are perpetrated by the State or by private persons.”
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Sudan urging them to:
i. immediately locate the whereabouts of the above mentioned persons;
ii. take all necessary measures to guarantee their physical and psychological integrity;
iii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of their abduction in order to identify all those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iv. 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, President' s Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: + 249 183 783223
- Mr. Ali Mohamed Osman Yassin, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Ministry of Justice, Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: + 249 183 788941
- Mr. Mustafa Osman Ismail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affair, PO Box 873, Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: + 249 183 779383
- Dr. Abdelmuneim Osman Mohamed Taha, Advisory Council for Human Rights, PO Box 302, Khartoum, Sudan. Fax: + 249 183 770883
- His Excellency Ambassador Mr. Mohamed Al- Hassan Ahmed Al-Haj, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Sudan to the United Nations in Geneva, PO Box 335, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: +4122 731 26 56, E-mail: mission.sudan@ties.itu.int.
Please also write to the embassies of Sudan in your respective country.
Geneva, 16 November 2004
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken