Yasir Arman

(asked on 11th June 2019) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has plans to make representations to the Sudanese authorities on allowing Yassir Arman to return to Sudan from his exile in South Sudan.


Answered by
Harriett Baldwin Portrait
Harriett Baldwin
This question was answered on 17th June 2019

The British Government condemns the arrest and detention of Yasir Arman by the Sudanese security forces. We are aware that Yasir Arman has been deported to South Sudan. We call for his immediate release and for the legitimate demands of Sudanese people to be respected. Violence must not be used, including against opponents. Sudanese people should not be faced with the threat of arbitrary detention or deportation. We consistently made clear to the former Government of Sudan our expectation that all detainees should be treated in accordance with international standards; we continue to call upon the Sudanese authorities to do so.

On 6 June, I summoned the Sudanese Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to express the grave concerns of the United Kingdom at the use of violence against civilians by the Sudanese authorities. Our Embassy in Khartoum calls on members of the Transitional Military Council both in public and directly the steps that needed to be taken to improve the situation in Sudan, including the release of all political detainees. We also engage regularly with civil society groups on the issue of detainee treatment.

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