Darfur Diaspora Association: “Dagris” Prisoners at Risk as International Community Urged to Act Immediately

London – Sudanhorizon

The Darfur Diaspora Association Group in the UK said it is following with grave concern increasingly reported accounts from eyewitnesses and human rights organizations regarding the catastrophic humanitarian and human rights conditions faced by detainees at Dagris Prison in Nyala.

In a statement received by Sudanhorizon on Wednesday, the group said reports and testimonies point to serious violations inside the prison, including severe overcrowding, malnutrition, the spread of disease, lack of medical care, mistreatment and torture, as well as prolonged detention without due legal procedures or fair trials.

Human rights organizations have also documented the deaths of large numbers of detainees in recent months, while information about the fate of others remains incomplete. The statement added that dozens of detainees, including children, had been transferred to Nyala Hospital without disclosure of their medical condition or whereabouts.

The statement said the situation is made even more alarming by reports that families of detainees have been demanded to pay levies and sums of money in exchange for the release of their relatives. It described such practices as a flagrant violation of human dignity and international humanitarian law.

The group stressed that international silence over what is taking place inside Dagris Prison and other detention centers in Darfur poses an additional threat to the lives of civilians and constitutes a continuation of genocide, while giving perpetrators of violations a sense of impunity.

The Darfur Diaspora Association Group in the UK called on the international community, particularly the United Nations and international human rights organizations, to act urgently to stop the genocide and ensure that independent humanitarian and human rights monitors and organizations have access to detention facilities.

It also called for an independent and transparent investigation into all cases of torture, deaths, and enforced disappearances, and for those responsible to be held accountable.

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