Mudawi Ibrahim Adam
Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam is a Sudanese engineer and human rights activist.
He has been involved in the design and manufacture of water supply systems as well as serving as Associate Professor in the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, University of Khartoum. [1]
He co-founded a human rights group called the Sudan Social Development Organization (SUDO) which monitors atrocities by the Sudanese Government including those in Darfur.[2]
Mudawi was arrested by the Sudanese government on 28 December 2003, after returning from a humanitarian aid mission to Darfur. He was detained in Kober prison, Khartoum, where he was allowed to see his wife and lawyer in the presence of police. Shortly after his arrest, he went on a two-day hunger strike, demanding to be charged or released. On February 8 2004 he was charged with waging war against the state, provoking hatred among religious sects, spying, releasing secret information, revealing military information and establishing a criminal organization. Some of the charges carried the death penalty.[3]The evidence adduced against him included the possession of public documents from Amnesty International.[4]His detention ultimately lasted seven months. [5]
Mudawi was re-arrested on 24 January 2005 and sent to a prison in Khartoum.
- After ten days without so much as a writ of habeas corpus, I embarked on a hunger strike. Six days into my strike, the government sent an investigator to grill me about an acquaintance who had visited my village (and who had been arrested with me), my membership in a political party, and my friendship with human rights workers and foreigners. He didn't charge me with anything, though he did inquire about crimes I was "planning to commit."[6]
Following the meeting, Mudawi ended his hunger strike, only to resume it after another eight days detention without charge.[7]He was eventually charged with crimes against the state on 1 March 2005.[8]He was released on bail on 3 March.[9]
On 27 January Richard Boucher of the US State Department had called for Moudawi's release, describing the case as "an ill-advised arrest that we think indicates a less than total commitment by the government to the humanitarian pledges it has made."[10]
Mudawi was re-arrested in May 2005, shortly before he was due to travel to Ireland to receive a human rights award from the Irish President.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tagThe Irish Seanad passed a motion calling for his relase.[11]His wife, Sabah Mohamed Adam Ali, and 10-year-old daughter Huda travelled from Sudan to accept the award on his behalf.[12]
On this occasion, Mudawi was charged with espionage against the state, a crime punishable by the death penalty or life imprisonment, along with a second charge of entering and photographing military areas and works.[13]The charge was a result of footage he had taken of street scenes in Khartoum, with the intention of showing them in Dublin. [14]He was released two days after the ceremony.[15]
In November 2005, Nicholas Kristof suggested Mudawi as a possible chief of staff for a US envoy to Sudan.[16]
In December 2005, Mudawi was honoured by Human Rights First at its 2005 human rights awards dinner alongside Ludmilla Alexeeva.[17]
Mudawi spent two weeks in the US in March 2006 taking part in a conference on Sudan at Harvard University in Boston and meeting US officials in Washington.[18]He had a personal meeting with President George W. Bush on 8 March.[19]
In a March 2006 article in the Washington Times, Mudawi and Jill Savitt of Human Rights First called for the appointment of a US envoy to Sudan.[20]In an interview with Fareed Zakaria that month, Mudawi said military intervention would only have a limited effect in Sudan:
- "Simply putting more troops, or better troops in, is not much of a solution," he says. "They will have some effect in lessening the violence, but only for a while. Look at what has happened with the African Union peacekeepers. At first they seemed effective, and within a few months they were being ambushed, having their jeeps stolen, and security got much worse."[21]
Mudawi told Zakaria he held the Sudanese Government directly responsible for the atrocities in Darfur:
- "The government of Sudan has taken advantage of political divisions . . . and is perpetrating crimes against humanity."
- Nevertheless, he adds, there's no choice but to negotiate with the perpetrators: "The solution will have to be a political solution that addresses those divisions and, most important, that includes all the parties in Darfur." Mudawi holds scant hope for the current peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria. "The parties from Darfur are not really represented," he says.[22]
On 20 March 2006, the State Department said it was 'greatly concerned' at the closure of SUDO offices in Darfur.
- The United States is greatly concerned about the Sudanese government's closure of Sudan Social Development Organization (SUDO) offices in El Geneina and Zalingei on March 11, 2006. The commission also closed the organization's health clinic and food distribution center in West Darfur and froze its local bank accounts. The Sudan Social Development Organization is supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development. The head of SUDO, Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim Adam, met with President Bush last week. The United States calls on the Government of National Unity to reverse its decision and permit the Sudan Social Development Organization to resume its essential work in West Darfur.[23]
In an April 2006 interview, Mudawi told Nicholas Kristof that militias operating in Sudan were supported by the Sudanese government.[24]
In a May 2006 interview with Voice of America Mudawi called for sanctions against Sudan to be reconsidered because they were creating an opening for Chinese investment in the country.[25]
In June 2007, Mudawi attended the Democracy & Security International Conference in Prague.[26]Speaking at the meeting, he said:
- "democracy is a universal human value, not a Western construct; U.N. handling of the Sudanese government has legitimized it regardless of the fact this government is killing its own people. Western states are sending the wrong message -- that democracy is primarily about elections, whereas it requires much more -- good governance, a free press, the rule of law..."[27]
While at the conference, Mudawi gave an interview to the Wall Street Journal. He told Bret Stephens that there should be an oil embargo against Sudan, and offered a positive assessment of President Bush::
- Also making appearances are Sen. Joe Lieberman and George W. Bush, who in his speech Wednesday described himself as a "dissident president." Mr. Mudawi does not begrudge him the label. "I have a different view of Bush," he says, having twice met the president privately. "People say he's crap. I see him as a very intelligent person. Not that I'm in favor of his positions, but he's focused and he knows what he's talking about. It's his advisers who are the problem."[28]
In November 2007, Mudawi said the Sudanese detention of British teacher Gillian Gibbons as "an opportunity for the government to distract people from the main issues in Sudan: the problems between the authorities in the north and south of the country, the conflict in Darfur and the question of letting in United Nations peacekeepers."[29]
In May 2008, Mudawi criticised a Darfur rebel faction which attacked Khartoum. "They want power -- they don't care for people," he said.[30]
Affiliations
- Sudan Social Development Organization - co-founder
- Democracy & Security International Conference - participant
Dr Mudawi Ibrahim Adam is a Sudanese engineer and human rights activist.
He has been involved in the design and manufacture of water supply systems as well as serving as Associate Professor in the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, University of Khartoum. [31]
He co-founded a human rights group called the Sudan Social Development Organization (SUDO) which monitors atrocities by the Sudanese Government including those in Darfur.[32]
Mudawi was arrested by the Sudanese government on 28 December 2003, after returning from a humanitarian aid mission to Darfur. He was detained in Kober prison, Khartoum, where he was allowed to see his wife and lawyer in the presence of police. Shortly after his arrest, he went on a two-day hunger strike, demanding to be charged or released. On February 8 2004 he was charged with waging war against the state, provoking hatred among religious sects, spying, releasing secret information, revealing military information and establishing a criminal organization. Some of the charges carried the death penalty.[33]The evidence adduced against him included the possession of public documents from Amnesty International.[34]His detention ultimately lasted seven months. [35]
Mudawi was re-arrested on 24 January 2005 and sent to a prison in Khartoum.
- After ten days without so much as a writ of habeas corpus, I embarked on a hunger strike. Six days into my strike, the government sent an investigator to grill me about an acquaintance who had visited my village (and who had been arrested with me), my membership in a political party, and my friendship with human rights workers and foreigners. He didn't charge me with anything, though he did inquire about crimes I was "planning to commit."[36]
Following the meeting, Mudawi ended his hunger strike, only to resume it after another eight days detention without charge.[37]He was eventually charged with crimes against the state on 1 March 2005.[38]He was released on bail on 3 March.[39]
On 27 January Richard Boucher of the US State Department had called for Moudawi's release, describing the case as "an ill-advised arrest that we think indicates a less than total commitment by the government to the humanitarian pledges it has made."[40]
Mudawi was re-arrested in May 2005, shortly before he was due to travel to Ireland to receive a human rights award from the Irish President.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tagThe Irish Seanad passed a motion calling for his relase.[41]His wife, Sabah Mohamed Adam Ali, and 10-year-old daughter Huda travelled from Sudan to accept the award on his behalf.[42]
On this occasion, Mudawi was charged with espionage against the state, a crime punishable by the death penalty or life imprisonment, along with a second charge of entering and photographing military areas and works.[43]The charge was a result of footage he had taken of street scenes in Khartoum, with the intention of showing them in Dublin. [44]He was released two days after the ceremony.[45]
In November 2005, Nicholas Kristof suggested Mudawi as a possible chief of staff for a US envoy to Sudan.[46]
In December 2005, Mudawi was honoured by Human Rights First at its 2005 human rights awards dinner alongside Ludmilla Alexeeva.[47]
Mudawi spent two weeks in the US in March 2006 taking part in a conference on Sudan at Harvard University in Boston and meeting US officials in Washington.[48]He had a personal meeting with President George W. Bush on 8 March.[49]
In a March 2006 article in the Washington Times, Mudawi and Jill Savitt of Human Rights First called for the appointment of a US envoy to Sudan.[50]In an interview with Fareed Zakaria that month, Mudawi said military intervention would only have a limited effect in Sudan:
- "Simply putting more troops, or better troops in, is not much of a solution," he says. "They will have some effect in lessening the violence, but only for a while. Look at what has happened with the African Union peacekeepers. At first they seemed effective, and within a few months they were being ambushed, having their jeeps stolen, and security got much worse."[51]
Mudawi told Zakaria he held the Sudanese Government directly responsible for the atrocities in Darfur:
- "The government of Sudan has taken advantage of political divisions . . . and is perpetrating crimes against humanity."
- Nevertheless, he adds, there's no choice but to negotiate with the perpetrators: "The solution will have to be a political solution that addresses those divisions and, most important, that includes all the parties in Darfur." Mudawi holds scant hope for the current peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria. "The parties from Darfur are not really represented," he says.[52]
On 20 March 2006, the State Department said it was 'greatly concerned' at the closure of SUDO offices in Darfur.
- The United States is greatly concerned about the Sudanese government's closure of Sudan Social Development Organization (SUDO) offices in El Geneina and Zalingei on March 11, 2006. The commission also closed the organization's health clinic and food distribution center in West Darfur and froze its local bank accounts. The Sudan Social Development Organization is supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development. The head of SUDO, Dr. Mudawi Ibrahim Adam, met with President Bush last week. The United States calls on the Government of National Unity to reverse its decision and permit the Sudan Social Development Organization to resume its essential work in West Darfur.[53]
In an April 2006 interview, Mudawi told Nicholas Kristof that militias operating in Sudan were supported by the Sudanese government.[54]
In a May 2006 interview with Voice of America Mudawi called for sanctions against Sudan to be reconsidered because they were creating an opening for Chinese investment in the country.[55]
In June 2007, Mudawi attended the Democracy & Security International Conference in Prague.[56]Speaking at the meeting, he said:
- "democracy is a universal human value, not a Western construct; U.N. handling of the Sudanese government has legitimized it regardless of the fact this government is killing its own people. Western states are sending the wrong message -- that democracy is primarily about elections, whereas it requires much more -- good governance, a free press, the rule of law..."[57]
While at the conference, Mudawi gave an interview to the Wall Street Journal. He told Bret Stephens that there should be an oil embargo against Sudan, and offered a positive assessment of President Bush::
- Also making appearances are Sen. Joe Lieberman and George W. Bush, who in his speech Wednesday described himself as a "dissident president." Mr. Mudawi does not begrudge him the label. "I have a different view of Bush," he says, having twice met the president privately. "People say he's crap. I see him as a very intelligent person. Not that I'm in favor of his positions, but he's focused and he knows what he's talking about. It's his advisers who are the problem."[58]
In November 2007, Mudawi said the Sudanese detention of British teacher Gillian Gibbons as "an opportunity for the government to distract people from the main issues in Sudan: the problems between the authorities in the north and south of the country, the conflict in Darfur and the question of letting in United Nations peacekeepers."[59]
In May 2008, Mudawi criticised a Darfur rebel faction which attacked Khartoum. "They want power -- they don't care for people," he said.[60]
Affiliations
- Sudan Social Development Organization - co-founder
- Democracy & Security International Conference - participant
