Free Suleiman Jamous!
GREAT NEWS: Suleiman Jamous was flown to Nairobi on September 14. In all, he was confined at the UN hospital in Kadugli for more than fourteen months.
Suleiman has expressed immense gratitude to everyone who signed this petition, or who otherwise supported his effort to regain his freedom. He believes that without your help he might have been held indefinitely.
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Original petition:
Suleiman Jamous, humanitarian coordinator for Darfur's largest rebel group, has been deprived of his freedom for more than a year in a United Nations hospital in Kadugli, Sudan. The Sudanese government, which has consistently put obstacles in the way of relief work in Darfur, has been refusing to permit Jamous to return to the region.
Until his detention last year, Jamous did crucial work to enable humanitarian relief to reach tens of thousands of Darfuris in rebel-controlled areas, people who would otherwise have been forced into camps for the displaced. Since he was placed in confinement, humanitarian access in Darfur has dwindled to its lowest level ever, with some one million Darfuris now out of reach of aid workers.
Fearful of retaliation by the Khartoum government, the United Nations seems to have acceded to Jamous' detention. At present, there is little ongoing pressure on the government to allow Jamous to regain his freedom. Yet Jamous needs immediate medical treatment that U.N. doctors says he cannot get in Kadugli.
The purpose of this petition is to give urgent attention to the case of Suleiman Jamous in order that he may regain his freedom. Jamous' leadership in Darfur is desperately needed, both to help bring humanitarian relief to the civilian victims of the conflict, and to facilitate peace-making efforts.
Get more info at: http://jamous.wordpress.com/
Dear Mr. Secretary-General:
We the undersigned are deeply concerned that Suleiman Jamous has been deprived of his freedom in a U.N. hospital in Kadugli, Sudan.
Until last year, when he entered the hospital, Mr. Jamous did crucial work to enable humanitarian relief to reach tens of thousands of Darfuris in rebel-controlled areas, people who would otherwise have been forced into camps for the displaced. Since he was placed in confinement in Kadugli, humanitarian access in Darfur has dwindled to its lowest level ever, with some one million Darfuris now out of reach of aid workers.
We are concerned that the United Nations, which transported Mr. Jamous to the hospital in Kadugli, seems to have acceded to Mr. Jamous' continued stay there. We believe that it is now time for the United Nations to raise the case of Suleiman Jamous with the Sudanese authorities and to call for him to be allowed to go abroad for medical treatment.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
