In a report from the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy Website on the use of children as soldiers in the Middle East and in the North Africa region, the following description of national recruitment legislation and practice in Sudan is given:

Article 35 (1)(b) of the new Constitution adopted in June 1998 provides, "Every citizen shall defend the country and respond to the call for national defence and national service." The National Service Law of 1992 provides that all men between 18 and 33 years old are liable for military service. Military service lasts for 24 months, 18 months for high school graduates and 12 months for university and college graduates. In 1997 the government also issued a Decree by which all boys of ages 17 to 19 were obliged to do between 12 and 18 months compulsory military service to be able to receive a certificate on leaving secondary school, which is required for entry into a university (Aug. 2001).

Regarding how national service recruitment calls are made, the chairman of the Sudan Human Rights Group (SHRG) stated in correspondence that "[u]sually men eligible for the Compulsory Military Service are asked through the local [r]adio and [t]elevision to gather [at] a certain date, hour and place to start the service" (12 Nov. 2002). As well, he stated that "[i]n case of emergency, that is to say, [an] urgent need for fighters, the Military Police usually close the main highways and roads and check the passengers and arrest those who are eligible for ... service" (ibid.).

In addition, a professor of Islamic and Sudanese history at Georgetown University provided the following information:

In practice, for the areas outside of the major urban areas, I would think that the primary means for recruitment is what it was in older times - the local notables who speak for the local people when dealing with the government ("tribal" chiefs and heads of clans) would be responsible for making sure that appropriate young men reported at the right place and the right time. It is much more complex in the urban areas and among the large numbers of internal refugees and displaced peoples. For those people, there would not be a very effective administrative structure to enforce conscription (8 Nov. 2002).

Another source reported on 24 December 2001 that the "National Military Service (NMS) administration spokesman Ibrahim Yassin Shaqlawi announced in a statement carried by local newspapers that the NMS would take legal action against all graduates who have failed to report to draft notices issued since 1997. He advised them to report immediately to avoid being taken to court, adding that lists of the evaders would be published in local newspapers" (AFP). The statement also warned that those evading military service "will be liable to three years in jail before being sent to do 12 months in the army" (AFP 24 Dec. 2001).

Additional information on how recruitment calls are made could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

Although details of the 1992 National Service Law relating to exemptions from military service could not be found among the sources consulted, a comprehensive list of exemptions were found in the attached translation of a 1990 interview with the Compulsory Service Director of the Sudanese army. In addition, for detailed information on military service in Sudan, including service in the Popular Defence Forces (PDF), please consult the 1996 Human Rights Watch report Behind the Red Line, pages 268-290, available in Regional Documentation Centres.

Information on the process for reporting for military service could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Agence France Presse (AFP). 24 December 2001. "Sudan Draft Evaders Face Jail." (NEXIS)

Human Rights Watch/Africa. 1996. Behind the Red Line: Political Repression in Sudan. New York: Human Rights Watch.

Jordan Institute of Diplomacy (JID). August 2001. "The Use of Children as Soldiers in the Middle East and North Africa Region." http://www.id.gov.jo/human/activities2001/middleeast_report.html [Accessed 15 Nov. 2002]

Professor of Islamic and Sudanese history, Georgetown University, Washington. 8 November 2002. Correspondence.

Sudan Human Rights Group (SHRG). 12 November 2002. Correspondence from chairman.

Attachment

Al-Quwat al-Musalaha. (Army Newspaper) [Khartoum]. 7 February1990. "The Compulsory Service Director Calls for All Citizens to be Required to Enter Compulsory Service and Says, 'No One Should be Allowed to Travel, Work, or Attend a University or Institute until he has Obtained his Service Certificates'. Translated from Arabic to English by the Multilingual Services Division, Translation Bureau, Secretary of State, pp. 1-8.

Additional Sources Consulted

Africa Confidential

Africa Research Bulletin

IRB Databases

NEXIS

Unsuccessful attempts to contact the embassies of the Republic of the Sudan in Ottawa and in Washington, Human Rights Watch, the Sudan Human Rights Association and other oral sources.

Internet sites, including:

Amnesty International (AI)

Danish Immigration Service

IND Country Assessments

International Alert (IA)

International Crisis Group (ICG)

National Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (NARD)

Sudan Home

Sudan Human Rights Organization - Cairo Branch

Sudan Info Net

Sudan Net News

Sudan News Agency

Sudanese Human Rights Organization (SHRO)

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