NEW JUSTICE MINISTER: "NO POLITICAL PRISONERS IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L KHARTOUM 000363

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR AF/SPG, DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/10/2018
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SCUL SU
SUBJECT: NEW JUSTICE MINISTER: "NO POLITICAL PRISONERS IN
SUDAN"


Classified By: CDA Alberto M. Fernandez, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) CDA Fernandez called on new Sudanese Minister of
Justice Abdel Basit Sabdarat on March 11. Sabdarat, who has
been a cabinet minister or presidential advisor for 18 of the
ruling National Congress Party's 19 years in government, said
that this was the first time he had ever met an American
diplomat (Note: this fact either speaks volumes about the
state of US-Sudanese relations for the past 19 years or about
the Minister himself). The Minister was named by President
Al-Bashir in a February cabinet reshuffle replacing his
dysfunctional predecessor.


2. (C) Sabdarat said that Sudan was ready to improve
relations with the United States and work through all points
of contention. He noted that "Sudan now has no political
prisoners and doesn't intend to have any in the future." CDA
congratulated Sabdarat on this (dubious) accomplishment but
noted that opposition politicians like Ali Mahmud Hassanain
were only released in December 2007. He also mentioned to
Sabdarat the case of SPLM university leader Yen Mathew who is
supposedly being held on trumped up murder charges. The
Minister said that his ministerial colleagues in the SPLM
have never raised this with him (this may be true since only
one SPLM official, Cabinet Affairs Minister Pagan Amun, ever
consistently raises this case with us) but he would look into
the case. In any case, someone arrested for murder is charged
with a common and not political crime.


3. (C) The Minister said that one reason he was chosen to
take up the Justice portfolio was to clean up the backlog of
reviewing current laws to make sure that they are in sync
with the CPA and the Interim Constitution. Some new laws will
be needed, but many just need revision. He praised, for
example, "Sudan's current press law, which is one of the best
in the Arab world." Charge agreed but noted that "most Arab
press laws are terrible" and it did not compare to press
freedom in some other African countries like Kenya or South
Africa. Sabdarat said that the Ministry has a special team
working on revising laws full-time to prepare them for review
by the Sudanese National Assembly when it reconvenes next
month.


4. (C) While a lot of public focus has been on the press law
(where the Press Council and Journalists Union have the lead)
and elections law (overseen by the Political Parties
Council),the Ministry was focusing on other new laws that
can really improve the quality of life of Sudanese citizens:
a new Public Health law, a law for education and higher
education, one governing the environment, and another looking
at forests and the wise use of this resource.


5. (C) Sabdarat also trumpeted recent steps taken by the
Ministry that should ensure the rights of the accused, except
in the case of those arrested in the act of violent crimes:
no arrests in the middle of the night, allowing bail, and
allowing bail that ensures the release of accused on the same
day. The Minister said that he wanted to strengthen the
presumption of innocence that is part of English common law,
which undergirds Sudan's (and America's) legal system.


6. (C) Comment: A former Communist, and political prisoner,
who threw in his lot with the current regime when it seized
power in a coup in 1989, Sabdarat is nothing if not a
survivor. He speaks in half truths: Sudan's press law is
indeed better than, say, Saudi Arabia or Syria. There are no
"political" prisoners but individuals can be easily accused
for common crimes as a form of political vendetta. The
regime does not actually respect the rule of law and will
violate any written rights guarantee if it feels its national
security interests - the survival of the regime - are
threatened. And Sudan's atrocious behavior on so many issues
over the past few years shows it to be a paranoid regime that
often feels threatened. End comment.
FERNANDEZ