International Leaders: Protect Darfur students from the Sudanese Security Forces NOW!

Letter To:

The White House

United States Congress

European Union

African Union

Arab League

U.N. Human Rights Council

UNESCO

Association of African Universities

Dear all,

We, the undersigned Sudanese American citizens, human rights activists and humanitarian organizations would like to draw your attention on the violations of basic human rights by the Sudanese totalitarian regime. Once again the government committed more crimes against the people of Darfur despite the ongoing calls from the international community to end such violations.

ON April 2017, students form Bakht Alruda launched a peaceful demonstration inside the University campus for discrimination allegations against students from Darfur region that committed by University Administration. In one of these demonstration, Police entered campus and arrested more than 75 students all of them from Darfur region. Students felt that the arrests were racially motivated. The Darfur Lawyers' Organization (DLO) nonprofit pro bono lawyers representing students demanded immediate release of 75 students because the arrests were baseless and are racially motivated. Eventually, Sudanese authorities released 66 students and kept 9 students. Since April, these students still in prison and there is no court schedule date.

On July 17th, 2017, and due to systematically racial discriminations carried out by the University Administration, constantly police harassments in and outside of the campus against students from Darfur region over twelve hundred students originally from Darfur were forced to submitted their resignations to the University of Bakht Alruda, in Ed Dueim, White Nile State. Students wanted to solve these issues with University Administration, but their efforts were turned down, Sudanese president who is wanted by International Criminal Court (ICC) took University said and stated that those 1200 students are Darfur Rebels sympathizers and they must be treated as rebels. 

Failure of negotiations and the decision that made by the University and White Nile governor  to unwelcome students back to University of the State have forces students  to return back to their region of Darfur. However, on their way back, the Sudanese security forces have seriously put their safety and security in grave danger by committing these actions:-

• Prevented them from getting public transportation to travel to their destinations including the capital Khartoum and forced them to walk for miles.
• The Sudanese regime used starvation as a tool to force students to go back to school without having the students to negotiate their rights and concerns.
• The security forces denied the sick students to seek any medical attention from neighboring medical facilities. 
• The Sudanese president publicly called to cancel all negotiations with students' body and compared students to rebels and that the security forces should treat them accordingly.

Up to this moment, Four-Hundred and fifty (450) made their way back to Darfur after arduous trip that was escorted by security forces. Upon their arrival to North Darfur State, Sudanese Council of Ministers issued a statement accusing students by trying to destabilize the Darfur region and that the security forces must stop them. Security forces acted as were ordered and they denied students right to assemble and forced students to disperse into groups. We believe that the lives of the students in great danger. We also believe that all sufferings, hardships, and sorrows of the students, are the real face of the ongoing genocide, and it should be stopped as soon as possible.

Furthermore, if the United States government and the international community let the regime slip away with these serious human rights violations, we will see more crimes and this will encourage a bad behavior and will destabilize the region in general.

Therefore, we as the United States citizens and human rights activists around the world call upon and demand the international community to put more pressure on the fascist government to stop the violence against the students, and respect their basic human rights.

Our immediate demands for the displaced students are as follow:-

1. To ensure that the University Administration must re-enroll all the nineteen (19) students who    were arbitrarily dismissed and without any clear causes.
2. To ensure the rights of students must be protected under the law.
3. Ensure the safety of the students and prevent any method of retaliation from the security forces.
4. To ensure fair and equal treatment of all students regardless of their color, religion, ethnic or any background. And they must be treated with dignity and without any discrimination.
5. To ensure general security and safety within the walls of the university those secure their rights to establish intellectual and cultural activities within the rules and regulations that don't distinguish between all students and faculty.

We are extremely concerned, and looking forward to the international community to put more pressure on the government, and take a serious action to protect those students, who are victimized racially.

Thank you.

07/25/2017

Emergency Relief Task Force for Darfur Students at Bakht Ruda University

USA