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Trial the murderers
Cairo, 15 January 2006 Over three months, thousands of Sudanese refuges, who fled their country to escape war, tyranny and torture policies practised by the Sudanese regime, were camping in a park close to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Cairo to protest their situation in Egypt. The sit-in was staged after the UNHCR decided to freeze looking into their allocation applications, under the pretext that Sudan have became safe following the peace agreement signed in January 2005 between the Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement. Refuges spent months in the street with nothing to protect them from severe cold, hunger, intensive security siege and racist treatment. Instead of offering them shelter and protection, the UNHCR asked the Egyptian security apparatus to interfere to end the sit-in. The security rushed to meet the UNHCR demand through a pre-dawn raid on 30 December 2005, and the outcome was a horrific massacre that claimed the lives of dozens of asylum- seekers. This crime does not only signify the tyrannical nature of both the Egyptian and Sudanese regimes and the hypocrisy of the organisation that should support refugees' rights, but it reflects the low value the displaced are given in our world. It is truly saddening that Egyptian forces struggling for democratic change could not prevent such horrific massacre; but it shouldn't let them go with their crime. Under the slogan of "Trial the murderers", a committee for solidarity with Sudanese refugees has been founded. It is an open committee comprising civil society organisations side by side with Egyptian and Sudanese activists. The committee declared 30 December "the Egyptian Day for refugees" and formed groups for fact-finding, relief, and legal and media coverage. But we cannot confront such horrific crime alone, so we call upon the honourable people of the world to help exert pressure on the Egyptian government to hold those responsible for the massacre accountable. No doubt you can do a lot to expose the Egyptian oppressive regime. " You can demonstrate in front of the Egyptian and Sudanese Embassies in your country to protest the massacre. " You can also appeal to the UN Human Rights Commissioner Louise Arbour to: 1. Dispatch an urgent fact-finding mission to Cairo to investigate the excessive use of force and other human rights violations committed by security forces and to make the findings of this investigation public. This investigation should also include the conduct of UNHCR. 2. Take steps to ensure that the Egyptian government fulfills its obligations under international human rights law to investigate these serious human rights violations, bring their perpetrators to justice, compensate the victims and halt any deportation of any of the protestors back to Sudan. Appeals should be sent at the following address: The Honourable Louise Arbour High Commissioner for Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights United Nations CH-1211 Geneva Switzerland Via email: humanrightsandbusiness@ohchr.org " You can also send appeals in English, Arabic or your own language to the Egyptian government to investigate these serious human rights violations, bring their perpetrators to justice, compensate the victims and prevent the deportation of any of the protestors back to Sudan lest they would be tortured or humiliated there. Appeals should be sent at the following address: Mohammed Hosni Mubarak The President of Arab republic of Egypt Abdeen Palace, Cairo, Egypt. fax: +02 2 1998 390 e-mail webmaster@presidency.gov.eg Egyptian Council for Human Rights 1113 Nile Cornish Cairo Egypt Fax: +02 2 5747 670 Egyptian diplomats in your country We are all Sudanese Committee for Solidarity with the Sudanese refugees we-are-all-refugees@yahoogroups.com |
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