Dear Friends,

Greetings from all of us here at Isis-WICCE, Kampala, Uganda!

We have received information from one of our networks requesting us to support 37 Sudanese women who were arrested and beaten by the Sudanese police in Khartoum on 1st December 1997.

It is indicated that on 1st December 1997 in Khartoum, the Sudanese Women's Association and the mothers of the Sudanese Students Union organised a march to UN headquarters in Khartoum, protesting against forcible conscription of the students and to deliver a memorandum to the UN representative (Mr. Christopher Jaeger from Germany). He however refused to meet them or to receive the memorandum and instead called the police informing them of the presence of a women's gathering in front of his office.

The arrested women were brought before a summary court and the judge, Muhammed sir elkhatim Gharabawi, sentenced them to 10 lashes and 25 sudanese pound fine. Mr. Mustafa Abdelghadir, one of the defenders of the women was also sentenced to 500 thousand fine or six months imprisonment for exciting the court and expelled another defender Mr. Hashim Awad Abdelmajeed from the courtroom for the same reason. The judge refused to accept this fine and insisted on his spending his night in prison.

It is further indicated that Sarah Hamd is currently in a very critical situation and is suffering from internal bleeding.

Given this background and that 1998 is a special year in the human rights of women, we request you to support these women to ensure that women's human rights are not abused.

Regards.
Ruth Ochieng

Action required:

i) guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of all the 37 mentioned women and their defenders
ii) order their immediate release in the absence of valid charges and assure that their sentences as well as the sentences of their defender will not be carried out
iii) take all necessary measures to bring an end to the practice of corporal punishment
iv) guarantee an impartial and exhaustive inquiry into these facts, identify those responsible, bring them before a civil competent and impartial tribunal and apply the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions provided by law;
v) ensure in all circumstances the full respect of human beings and fundamental freedoms in accordance with national and international standards.

Addresses:

His Excellency
Lieutenant General Omar Hassan al-Bashir
President of the Republic of Sudan
People's Palace
P.O.Box 281
Khartoum, Sudan
Telex: 22385 PEPLC SD or 22411 KAID SD
Fax: 249 - 11-74063

Brigadier Bakri Hassan Salih
Minister of Interior
People's Palace
P.O.Box 281
Khartoum, Sudan

Telex: 22842 WZARA SD or 22604 IPOL SD
Fax; 249 - 11 - 71724/76554/77900/73046/70186

Mr. Abdel Basset Sabdrat
Minister of Justice and Attorney General
Ministry of Justice
Khartoum, Sudan

Telex: 22459 KHRJA SD or 22461 KHRJA SD
Fax: 249-11-74063

Mr. Ali Osman Mohammad Taha
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
P.O.Box 873
Khartoum
Sudan

Telex: 22459 KHRJA SD or 22461 KHRJA SD
Fax: 249-11-74063