Sudan: UN expert to visit to assess human rights

GENEVA (10 April 2018) – The UN Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Sudan, Aristide Nononsi, is visiting the country from 14 to 24 April to assess the implementation of recommendations made to the Government by human rights mechanisms.

“My fifth mission to Sudan aims to examine the steps undertaken by the Government to comply with its international human rights obligations, and to discuss possible areas for technical cooperation,” noted Mr. Nononsi.

The independent expert said he also wanted to see what action had been taken to reform the current legal framework, which infringes on the exercise of political and civil rights and fundamental freedoms, in response to the recommendations made in his previous reports.

Mr. Nononsi will meet Sudanese officials, representatives of civil society, community leaders, members of the diplomatic corps, and UN agencies in Khartoum and Darfur. In the Darfur region, he will visit the Shallah Federal Prison.

The Independent Expert will hold a news conference on Monday 23 April at 14:00 local time, at the United Nations Development Programme Office (UNDP) in Khartoum, to share with the media his preliminary observations on the visit. Access to the news conference is strictly limited to journalists.

The Independent Expert will present his findings and recommendations to the UN Human Rights Council in September 2018.

ENDS

Mr. Aristide Nononsi (Benin) was designated as the new Independent Expert on the human rights situation in Sudan by the UN Human Rights Council in 2014. Mr. Nononsi has a doctorate in law and is a specialist in international law, human rights and development, with extensive experience in international and African organizations. Mr. Nononsi was executive director of the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA), and worked for the Centre for Development Area Studies at Mc Gill University, the African Development Bank and the International Labour Organization.

The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

UN Human Rights, Country Page – Sudan

For more information and press inquiries, please contact:
In Khartoum (during the visit): Mr. Ayman Suliman (+2419 (0) 912 179 766/ suliman37@un.org) and Mr. Khaled Moualem (+249 (0) 912 100 501/ khaled.moualem@one.un.org)
In Geneva (before and after the visit): Mr. Dieudonne Munyinga (+41 22 928 9231 / dmunyinga@ohchr.org) or write to ie-sudan@ohchr.org

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts:
Jeremy Laurence, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+41 22 917 9383 / jlaurence@ohchr.org)

This year, 2018, is the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the UN on 10 December 1948. The Universal Declaration – translated into a world record 500 languages – is rooted in the principle that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” It remains relevant to everyone, every day. In honour of the 70th anniversary of this extraordinarily influential document, and to prevent its vital principles from being eroded, we are urging people everywhere to Stand Up for Human Rights: www.standup4humanrights.org.