The Sudanese Human Rights Quarterly, Issue No. 3, April 1996

The Quarterly Editorial Board has been honored by a meeting held with the late General Fathi Ahmed Ali, the Legitimate Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAFs) since 1987 until 1989. Also Vice President of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and Head of the NDA High Political and Military Committee since 1995 until his next position as Coordinator General of the NDA’s Joint Military Command, positions he honorably held until his death in Alexandria in April 1998.

Quarterly asked about the commitment of SAFs to international human rights norms, in general, and the international human rights norms, in particular.

General Ali: Before occurrence of the NIF military dictatorship, all Sudanese army officers had been taught prior to graduation at the Military College to respect international norms. This included the Geneva Conventions and Protocols that emphasized the treatment of civilians in a war zone and the protection of prisoners of war. Mindful of the fact that the largest sections of the National Army had been composed of Muslims, SAFs High Command was always concerned about the insurance of a righteous course on the teachings of Islam on war and the treatment of war prisoners.

These teachings are harmonious with those of the International Humanitarian Law and the other religious and international rules as they all prohibit transgression and encourage peace. SAFs has never been engaged in any internal armed conflict on the basis of ethnic or religious grounds, let alone an overall Jihad holy war as the NIF militias advocated. Our National Army has always been acting within limits of national security concerns. With the in-service promotion of officers, many advanced studies were usually provided modern educational and training programs for staff.

From the early 1970s, many specialized units of SAFs were concerned for such training by profession. Several programs were regularly implemented at military academies inside and outside Sudan for an increasing number of officers. For example, the Navy and Air Forces were required to respect certain international and regional agreements, the Medical Corps was closely guided by International Humanitarian Law, etc.

Quarterly: How did the National Army function under democratic rule?

General Ali: During the democratic rule (1986-89), the interest of Sudanese people was remarkably developed with respect to the human rights of victims of war whose number had been enormously swollen by the ongoing war. This situation motivated SAFs’ High Command to have a special act legislated to observe the rights of army officers and soldiers who were killed in the battlefield, i.e., the Martyrs Law. I have been receiving messages from Amnesty International during that period of time requesting information on killings, disappearances or the whereabouts of the war zone. I would be personally responding to such appeals for their important implications to the commitment of SAFs to human rights law and NGOs.

The availability of public freedoms in the Third Democratic Rule allowed SAFs’ High Command to handle human rights matters with an increasing care. When the democratic government decided to establish a new state security department, I advised the new department to seek assistance of scholars and experts of human rights and international law to train its staff. Another important step involving the adoption of human rights by SAFs included the approval of criminal regulations to insure legal consultation of civilian lawyers before military courts.

SAFs applied many provisions of International Humanitarian Law in collaboration with the SPLA to release prisoners of war. The two warring parties agreed to carry out a permanent cease-fire following the scheduled endorsement of the Sudanese Peace Agreement. All these vital steps as undertaken by SAFs High Command to realize international norms were harshly terminated by the NIF military coup since June 1989 to the present time.

Quarterly: There are many criticisms concerning atrocities previously committed by both SAFs and SPLA in the war zone. There are reports on extra-judicial killings or disappearance, arbitrary arrest and tortures of women, children, and elderly, destruction of schools and hospitals, pollution of the environment, etc. SHRO-Cairo believes that many crimes amounted to acts of genocide of the innocent indigenous population. Hence what intentions SAFs has for criminals of war if political power would be regained for democratic rule?

General Ali: Our reference is international human rights norms and the International Humanitarian Law. The military objectives of the NDA High Political and Military Committee ascertained the establishment of a democratic system of rule, prompt stoppage of the brutal war of the Sudan as a whole with immediate emphasis on the Southern frontier. The objectives also ascertained the rebuilding SAFs and the other regular forces of Sudan, i.e., the police, prisons, and security forces.

Objectives equally stressed dismantling tribal militias and all other NIF paramilitary fundamentalist organizations, and assuring the security of all citizens of the Sudan by taking necessary measures to maintain the national stability of the country. The political legitimacy needed to enhance the application of the program has been fully realized by the NDA Agreement on Fundamental Issues at Asmara (Eritrea) in June 1995.

The NDA called on the International Community to impose a ban on supply of arms and fuel, accompanied by all penalties needed to stop the aggression of the NIF regime on the People of Sudan and the neighboring countries. Also, friendly governments were called upon to ban access their countries by the political and military leadership of the regime in the same manner applied to other repressive regimes.

The New Sudan we are aspiring to establish will continue to entrench the good neighborly relations our people always had before NIF rule with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Uganda, and all of the other sister States.

The NIF government had been deeply involved in so many acts of terrorism that were crowned with the assassination attempt on the life of His Excellency Mohamed Hosni Mubarak, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, during his visit to Addis Ababa in June 1995. The NIF leadership has systematically abused the Sudan intelligence and security. We are committed in SAFS in the strongest terms possible to stop all these shameful acts for the good of the country and the whole region.

As Chairperson of the NDA High Political and Military Committee, I ascertain that the NDA guarantees fair trial to all those involved in the NIF military rule in accordance with international norms. The NDA Program aims to rebuild SAFs and the other Sudanese regular forces as professional military, police and security forces that respect civil authority under the rule of law and the full enjoyment of huamn rights. All members of the Sudanese military and police forces who have been unlawfully dismissed by NIF rule will be repositioned. All martyrs of SAFs and their families will be treated in the manner they deserve.

Quarterly: What is your position regarding human rights violations in the war zone?

General Ali: As earlier announced in the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAFs) Legitimate Command’s and the SHRO-Cairo’s Press Release (Asmara, January 1996), the NDA High Political and Military Committee strongly condemns all human rights violations in the country, most particularly those committed in the war zone.

The placement of international observers to monitor human rights violations in the Sudan, the condemnation of the ruling regime for its engagement in slavery practices constituted a great solidarity with the People of Sudan in the striving to achieve peace, democracy, and human rights. Here, the reference is made to the United Nations General Assembly Resolutions with the other resolutions of the Security Council that all condemned terrorism and required Sudan Government to surrender terrorists.