Christian
Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) is calling for the release of Reverend Hassan Abduraheem,
Reverend Kuwa Shamal, Mr Petr Jašek and Mr Abdumonem Abdumawla, ahead of the first
anniversary of their respective arrests by Sudan’s National Intelligence and
Security Service (NISS).
Reverend
Abduraheem, Mr Jašek and Mr Abdumawla have been in detention since their
arrests in December 2015 while Reverend Shamal was taken into custody in May
2016. The four men are charged jointly with at least seven crimes, which they
deny, including two national security breaches. Their trial has been subject to
several
postponements and delays.
First
to be detained was Mr Jašek, a Czech national, who was arrested at
Khartoum Airport on 10 December 2015 as he attempted to leave the country after
a short visit. Soon after his arrest, Mr Abdumawla was detained and on 19
December 2015, Reverends Abduraheem and Shamal were arrested at their homes by
NISS agents. Reverend Shamal was released but required to report to NISS
periodically until 24 May, when he was arrested and added to the prosecutor’s
investigation. Reverend Shamal appears to have been included in the case due to
his senior position in the Sudan Church of Christ, his relationship with
Reverend Abduraheem and his Nuba ethnicity.
Since
his arrest Mr Jašek has had limited contact with his family and legal
representative, while Reverend Abduraheem and Mr Abdumawla were not permitted
visits until May 2016. After being transferred to the attorney general’s
custody, the men were able to meet with their lawyers and have access to their
families, but were kept in cramped and unsanitary conditions before their case
was filed with the court and they were moved to Al-Huda Prison in Omdurman.
The
case against the men centres on the provision of finances
for the medical treatment of Mr Ali Omer, a young man from Darfur who was
injured in a demonstration in 2013. After hearing about Mr Omer’s plight, Mr
Jašek travelled to Khartoum in December 2015 to meet him and donate $5000
toward his treatment. The meeting was facilitated by Reverend Abduraheem, who
Mr Jašek met at an international conference in November 2015, and Mr Abdumawla,
who is a friend of Mr Omer’s and had been collecting finances for his medical
treatment.
As
he was leaving Sudan, Mr Jašek was searched at Khartoum Airport by NISS agents,
who found a receipt for the $5,000 donation, signed by Reverend Abduraheem and
Mr Abdumawla. They arrested Mr Jašek and confiscated his personal belongings,
including his mobile phone, laptop and camera.
The
prosecution alleges that the $5,000 Mr Jašek donated to Mr Omer’s treatment was
in reality support for rebel movements in the South Kordofan, Blue Nile and
Darfur regions. By framing the case in this manner, NISS has attempted to
exploit the fact that Reverends Abduraheem and Shamal are originally from the
Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan and Mr Abdumawla is from Darfur.
CSW’s
Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said, “This month marks one year since Reverend
Hassan Abduraheem, Reverend Kuwa Shamal, Mr Petr Jašek and Mr Abdumonem
Abdumawla were arrested in Sudan on grave charges which they have denied, but
which have been brought against them simply for extending compassion to a man
in need of medical treatment. In Reverend Shamal’s case, being a senior
Christian leader and a member of the Nuba ethnic groups is sufficient for him
to be targeted by the security services. This unjust targeting of religious and
ethnic minorities is in contravention of article 26 and 27 of the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to which Sudan is signatory, as
well as of its own constitution and we urge the Sudanese authorities to immediately
and unconditionally release these men and to drop all charges against them.”