African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies ACJPS | المركز الافريقي لدراسات العدالة و السلام
(28 April 2017) On 9 April 2017 three civilians, including two children, were killed and nine injured when joint forces of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), Central Reserve Forces (CRF), and Rapid Support Forces, led by the Governor of El Geneina, El Tahir Abdul Rahman Bahri Eldien, fired into a crowd of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Rowgorgo market in Karandongo IDP camp in El Geneina, West Darfur. The IDPs had attempted to prevent the joint forces from setting the market on fire. The Karandongo marketplace was then burnt down by the joint forces. The attack came hours after the joint forces demolished homes and unlicensed shops in El Geneina market following a local order by the El Geneina Governor. Local orders are temporary decrees issued by local government administration; despite requirements that newly instated local orders be made public, they are often not in practice.
Demolitions of shops and homes in El Geneina market
Early on 9 April, the Governor of El Geneina issued a local order ordering the destruction of homes and shops in El Geneina market. Joint forces of the SAF, CRF, and Border Guards in twenty landcruisers raided the market and demolished the buildings, looting goods from shops after being given permission to by Governor Eldien. Traders in the market reported that they had been given no prior notice of the demolitions before the raid took place. There is no available information on whether the market has since been rebuilt.
Death of three civilians, including two children, and burning of Rowgorgo market
Later in the day, the Governor and Joint Forces moved to complete the demolitions in Rowgorgo market in Karondongo internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in El Geneina. There is no presence of armed rebels in the camp, and all residents are civilians. The Governor later reported that traders in the market had been notified previously and ordered to relocate to Elboursa Eljadeda market, approximately 2km away. This was disputed by IDP camp residents, who reported that they had not been made aware of the planned demolitions.
Traders in the market attempted to prevent the demolitions by throwing stones at the Governor and Joint Forces, forcing them to withdraw. The Governor and Joint Forces returned shortly after with additional forces, and ordered them to burn down the market. When the civilians attempted to stop them, the Joint Forces fired gunshots into the crowd, killing three civilians, including two children. Nine others were injured, with three individuals suffering serious injuries.
During the attack, the joint United Nations – African Union peacekeeping force (UNAMID) was present in Karondogo IDP camp, but did not intervene.
The names of the three civilians killed, including two children, are below.
- Fatna Mohamed Hassan, (f), 44 years of age, resident of Karondogo IDP camp, member of the Fur ethnic group.
- Hiba Ibrahim Mohamed Ahmed, (f), 16 years of age, resident of Karondongo IDP camp, member of the Masalit ethnic group.
- Alfaadil Ibrahim Mohamed Ahmed, (m), 16 years of age, resident of Karondogo IDP camp, member of the Masalit ethnic group.
The names of the injured individuals are on file with ACJPS.
The injured individuals and bodies of the deceased civilians were taken to the El Geneina hospital. Autopsies were performed on the bodies of the killed civilians. At approximately 9pm, relatives of the killed individuals buried the three deceased at the Karondongo burial grounds.
On 10 April 2017, the Deputy Governor of West Darfur, Mohamed Ibrahim Sharifeldein, ordered the formation of an investigation committee. While the promise to investigate the incident is promising, the African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS) has serious concerns regarding the independence and impartiality of the committee, which is comprised of the Police, the head of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), and the head of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS), and lack of sufficient time for the committee to conduct their investigation. The committee was given two days to report back to the Deputy Governor of West Darfur. There has been no publication for a timeline of the release of the findings to the public, and to date, there are no known criminal charges against any of the perpetrators. The findings of other investigation committees formed by the Government of Sudan have not been made public in the past. Lack of publication of findings by the investigation committee also hinders the possibility of prosecutions, as private criminal complaints and prosecutions can only move forward with the approval of the head of the respective bodies concerned, which in this case, also participated in the investigation committee. This hinders access to justice and local remedies available for the victims’ family members.
Members of the joint forces responsible for unnecessary or disproportionate use of force should be held to account, and immunities in place protecting them from prosecution should be lifted by Sudanese authorities. International standards on law enforcement practice dictate that force of any kind should only be used exceptionally when it is strictly necessary and proportionate. Where a small minority turns a peaceful assembly into a violent one, law enforcement officials should use only necessary and proportionate force and not use the violent acts of the few as a pretext to restrict or impede the exercise of the fundamental rights of the others. The 1991 Criminal Procedure Act provides the superior prosecution attorney or superior officer the powers to “call on the armed forces to use military force if deemed necessary for the dispersal of an assembly.”
ACJPS further calls on the Sudanese authorities to immediately put in place measures to protect civilians in and around El Geneina. If findings from the investigation committee are not made promptly available, another independent, impartial and thorough investigation should be undertaken by authorities, with a view to including IDP camp leaders and members of civil society in the area. Additionally, the demolitions should also be investigated and reparations for destroyed property and goods provided, with a view to providing compensation for material damages, including lost property and medical expenses. This should also include compensation for loss of earnings.
ACJPS also calls on UNAMID to fulfil its mandate to protect civilians. The presence of UNAMID in Karondong camp and their inaction highlights serious concerns about their capacity to fulfill their mandate.
Background
Despite the Government of Sudan’s claims that the war is over, civilians throughout the region continue to suffer the impact of fighting and widespread human rights abuses. Immunities protecting Sudanese authorities have led to a lack of accountability for crimes committed against civilians.
In the past, the Government has stated that they do not have the capacity to quell insecurity in the region, including attacks propagated by militias affiliated with the GoS. The use of joint forces in the attack indicates that some level of control and coordination by the GoS is present, at least in West Darfur.
This incident is emblematic of attempts by Sudanese authorities to dismantle IDP camps and force returns by IDPs to indicate that the conflict in the region is over. Over the years since the outbreak of the conflict in Darfur in 2003, IDP camps in Darfur have transformed from temporary shelters to full-fledged towns replete with their own marketplaces and traders. ACJPS considers the ordered demolitions, and subsequent burning of the market place to be a form of collective punishment, and considers that there is no legitimate public interest basis for the destruction of the markets.
In 2015, the UN Panel of Experts on Sudan characterized Sudan’s strategy in Darfur as one of “collective punishment” and “induced or forced displacement” of communities from which the armed opposition groups are believed to come or operate.
The demolitions also highlight a problematic aspect of Sudanese law, in which local government officials are endowed with tremendous power to pass “local orders”, which are administrative acts which may criminalise or provide a legal basis for different actions.
In the past, ACJPS has documented several incidents of excessive use of force by Sudanese authorities in policing demonstrations. In West Darfur, at least seven people, including one child, were killed when security forces used live ammunition at a crowd of protestors outside the West Darfur state governor’s office on January 10, 2016. The crowd had gathered to demand protection after the nearby village of Mouli was looted and burned to the ground. The following day, three people were killed and seven others sustained gunshot wounds when security forces again fired live ammunition at the funeral for the deceased.
On January 31, security forces again used excessive force to disperse university students who convened to discuss the attacks on Mouli at El Geneina university. On 2 February 2016, one student, Salah al Din Gamar Ibrahim, died from a head injury following a violent raid, in which he was detained and beaten. His dead body was found outside his home and medical sources reported the cause of death was internal bleeding from a head injury caused by a sharp object.
The case is reminiscent in many ways of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Communication 368/09 concerning Abdel Hadi, Ali Radi & Others v Republic of Sudan. The case concerns the forcible relocation of thousands of residents of an IDP camp in Khartoum in 2005. In the resulting chaos and violence, 15 police officers and at least 5 IDPs were killed, and the police station in Soba Aradi camp was set on fire. Hundreds of individuals were subsequently arrested from the camp, with at least five individuals subjected to severe torture and ill-treatment.
ACJPS: Mossaad Mohamed Ali/ Emily Cody: +256 779584542/ +256 788695068 (Kampala), or info@acjps.org.
