Sudan – Asylum Seekers are entitled to Protection not Detention

Fear of Torture and Deportation, HRLHA Appeal and Urgent Action | March 18, 2012

His Excellency Lieutenant General Omar Hasan Al-Bashir
President of the Republic Sudan,
President’s Palace,
PO Box 281,
Khartoum, Sudan
Fax: (00 249) 11 771651, (00 249) 11 787676, (00 249) 11 783223

Dear Honorable President,

First of all, Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) would like to express its appreciation to the people of the Republic of Sudan and to its government for their hospitality and kindness over so many years towards thousands of refugees who have fled their homes to escape government persecutions in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and other neighboring countries at different times and now living in Sudan.

Ethiopia: Human rights work crippled by restrictive law

March 12, 2012 (Amnesty International) – A law in Ethiopia is crippling human rights work in the country, forcing organizations to cut programmes, close offices and lay off staff, according to an Amnesty International report published today.

“Stifling human rights work: the impact of Ethiopia’s civil society legislation” describes how the 2009 Charities and Societies Proclamation puts in place restrictions on organizations working on human rights and allows for excessive government interference. The result is that people in the country have less access to independent human rights assistance.

“Rather than creating an enabling environment for human rights defenders to work in, the government has implemented a law which has crippled human rights work in Ethiopia” said Michelle Kagari, Amnesty International’s deputy Africa director.

“The space to make legitimate criticism is more restricted than ever.”

The law places severe funding restrictions on organizations working on human rights which are at the same time vaguely worded and therefore open to interpretation. Human rights defenders risk imprisonment if they violate these vaguely defined provisions. They are afraid to speak out, and often resort to self-censorship, in order to avoid repercussions.