Press Release

April 12, 2004

Sudanese Intellectuals Ask Sudan Government to Insure the Freedom of Press and Publication

The Sudan Human Rights Organization Cairo received the attached statement, which is addressed to the Sudan Government by more than 100 Sudanese intellectuals asking the government to cancel all legal provisions restricting the freedom of publication and expression to guarantee the right to produce creative work. As it says, "the statement is open for signature of Sudanese artists all over the world. It will be delivered by the last week of April to all concerned parties in and outside Sudan."

Criticizing the government censorial laws of the press and publication, the Artists' Statement calls on 1) abrogation of all restrictive laws; 2) guarantees of the right to cultural production, including papers, periodicals, and artistic works; and 3) adoption of non-censorial professional responsibility of artists for their cultural works before the law.

SHRO-Cairo strongly supports the Sudanese Artists' important call: Sudan Government is obliged by international law to abide-by the International Declaration of Human Rights that clearly asks State Parties to insure "the right to freedom of opinion and expression [which] includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers' (Article 19), as well as Declaration to Enjoy Culture; International Cultural Development and Co-operation, and the other human rights instruments.

• The Organization reiterates continuous calls for the government to abrogate the Press and Publication Act and Council as well as the presidency press censorial office and to stop all intrusions by the State Security Department and police forces in intellectuals' works, NGOs, or centers.
• The Sudan Government must immediately release Islam Salih, the Jazeera journalist, and others from security/court criminal proceedings, which are solely based on censorial provisions against the Freedom of Press and Publication.