Sudan’s al-Bashir pardons jailed human rights advocate

By Mohammed Amin

KHARTOUM

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has issued a presidential decree pardoning Mudawi Ibrahim, a prominent rights activist arrested last year for alleged spying.

Last December, Ibrahim was detained -- and held without trial -- after being accused of conducting “espionage” against the Sudanese government at the behest of foreign entities.

A court accused the activist of “fabricating” information that was later used in an Amnesty International report about Khartoum’s alleged use of chemical weapons in the restive Darfur region.

Along with a handful of his colleagues, Ibrahim had also faced accusations of attempting to undermine the Sudanese state, making unauthorized contact with foreign embassies, and treason -- all offenses that can potentially carry the death penalty.

Ibrahim’s lawyers hailed the presidential pardon, which was issued late Tuesday.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency on Wednesday morning, Nabil Adeeb, head of Ibrahim’s defense team, said the move served to confirm his client’s innocence.

“We welcome the presidential decree pardoning Mr. Ibrahim,” Adeeb said, going on to call for the reform of Sudan’s entire judicial system with a view to making it “more transparent”.

Effective immediately, al-Bashir’s presidential decree calls for the release of Ibrahim and five detained colleagues.

A mechanics professor at Khartoum University, Ibrahim founded the Sudan Social Development Organization, a rights NGO, which was closed by the authorities in 2009 after the International Criminal Court indicted al-Bashir for alleged war crimes in Darfur.