UPDATE: Sadiq Ibrahim Ahmed was released on Monday 29 July, 2019.
Sadiq Rizaigi, President of the SJU and the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) was detained on 24 July – although no reason has been given to his colleagues.
Following an emergency meeting on 25th July the SJU issued the following statement:
The Sudanese Journalists Union (SJU) held an emergency meeting this Thursday morning, July 25th, 2019, to discuss the arrest of Mr. Sadiq Rizaigi, President of the SJU, President of the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), Chairman of the East African Journalists Association (EAJA), Vice President of the Federation of Arab Journalists (FAJ).
We lost contact with the President of SJU since Wednesday afternoon, July 24TH, 2019 and later it became clear that he was detained but we did not have any Information on the reason for his arrest.
- The Executive Office of the SJU demands the Transitional Military Council (TMC) to immediately release the President of the SJU and to explain the reason for his arrest and to present him with a prompt and fair trial in case that he is proved to deserve warrant arrest and trial.
- The Executive Office formed a committee for the immediate contact with the TMC and relevant authorities to know the circumstances of his arrest.
- The Executive Office will remain in constant session to follow up the matter and to provide information to the public on a timely basis.
- The Executive Office thanks the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), the East African Journalists Association (EAJA) and the Federation of Arab Journalists (FAJ) who expressed deep concern over his arrest.
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “We demand transparency about the reasons for the arrest of our colleague Sadiq. He must be immediately released and, in the event that charges are brought against him, he must have the right to a fair and transparent legal process. We will not rest until Sadiq is free and the injustice stopped”.
The Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) issued a statement saying that "the TMC must immediately and unconditionally release Sadiq Rizaigi, and guarantee his safety. FAJ and IFJ along with their affiliates all over the world will work tirelessly to secure the safety and freedom of Rizaigi".