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Amnesty Interntaional
DETAINED ACTIVIST HAS BEEN TRANSFERRED
On 22 January, Sudanese human rights activist Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma was transferred from Kober prison, Khartoum, into the custody of the Attorney-General. This could signify that he is either due to be released, or charged. It is therefore a crucial time to pressure the authorities.
Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma has been detained without trial in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, since his arrest on 25 June 2011. This is in spite of assurances from the Sudanese authorities last year that he would either be charged or released on 9 October 2011. The Sudanese authorities reportedly continue to deny Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma access to his lawyer on the grounds that investigations against him have not been concluded.
Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma is known to have a number of health conditions, including heart disease and a prolapsed disc that he developed while in Kober prison. He has been on hunger strike twice since September 2011 in protest against his continued detention. His family remain concerned about his poor health and the conditions in which he has been held.
Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma is an X-ray technician and founder of the Human Rights and Development Organization (HUDO) in Southern Kordofan, Sudan. Prior to this, he was the director of Sudan Social Development Organisation (SUDO) in Darfur, Sudan, and he has been a member of the Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N). He is ethnically Nuban, an ethnic group in Southern Kordofan. His arrest and detention coincided with other arrests made by the Sudanese authorities of intellectuals, activists, and other people that appeared to be Nuban. This is because authorities believe they are affiliated with the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N).
Please write immediately in English or Arabic or your own language: Call on the authorities to either charge Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma with a recognizable criminal offence or release him immediately; Call on the authorities to grant Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma immediate access to his lawyer and any medical treatment he may require; Urge the authorities to ensure that Bushra Gamar Hussein Rahma is not tortured or otherwise ill-treated.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Fighting in Southern Kordofan between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) broke out on 5 June 2011. Since then ongoing ground attacks between SAF and the Sudan Peoples Liberation Army- North (SPLA-N) and indiscriminate aerial bombardments of towns and villages by SAF, have made much of Southern Kordofan unsafe for civilians, who have fled to other parts of the country and to South Sudan.
Despite these dangerous conditions, internally displaced people have been told by the various government authorities, including the Governor of Southern Kordofan that they should return home. The Sudanese government has also restricted the ability of humanitarian agencies to move freely and carry out their work effectively.
Name: Bushra Gamar Hassein Rahma
Gender m/f: m
Further information on UA: 205/11
Index: AFR 54/004/2012
Issue Date: 31 January 2012
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