Law enforcement in Sudan: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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{{short description|none}} <!-- "none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]] -->

[[File:Emblem of the Sudanese Police Force.svg|thumb|Sudanese Police Force Emblem.]]'''Law enforcement in Sudan''' is the law enforcement of the country of [[Sudan]].

The [[International Police]] is a functional organization made up of police officers from all over the world, serving mostly under the direction of the [[United Nations]], to help train, recruit, and field police forces in war torn countries. The force is usually deployed into a war torn country initially acting as the police, and bringing order. In the process, they recruit and train a local police force, which eventually takes on the responsibilities of enforcing the law and maintaining order, whereas the International Police then take on a supporting role. To date, International Police forces have been deployed to [[East Timor]], [[Haiti]], [[Kosovo]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia]], [[Iraq]], [[Afghanistan]], [[Sudan]], [[Liberia]], [[Croatia]], and [[Republic of Macedonia|Macedonia]], among others.

==Sources History ==

The [[British Army during the Victorian Era|British army]] assigned a captain to the central administration for [[police]] duties in 1898.<ref name="loc2015">{{Cite encyclopedia|last=Ofcansky|first=Thomas P.|title=The Sudan Police Force|editor-last=Berry|editor1-first=LaVerle|url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/cs/pdf/CS_Sudan.pdf|encyclopedia=Sudan: a country study|date=2015|publisher=[[Federal Research Division]], [[Library of Congress]]|isbn=978-0-8444-0750-0|edition=5th|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=348–350|postscript=. {{PD-notice}} Though published in 2015, this work covers events in the whole of Sudan (including present-day South Sudan) until the 2011 secession of South Sudan.}}</ref> He commanded 30 British army officers and helped to organize provincial police forces.<ref name="loc2015" /> In 1901 the authorities decentralized the police to improve efficiency.<ref name="loc2015" /> The government assumed responsibility for administrative control of the police in 1908, but provincial governors retained operational control of the forces.<ref name="loc2015" /> In 1928 the British established the Sudan Police Force (SPF) under the Ministry of Interior.<ref name="loc2015" /> Throughout the colonial period, the police lacked the resources and manpower to deploy officers throughout Sudan.<ref name="loc2015" /> Instead, the government gave tribal leaders authority to maintain order among their people and to enlist a limited number of “retainers” to help them in law-enforcement duties.<ref name="loc2015" /> This communal security system remained in effect until the early 1970s.<ref name="loc2015" />

# World Police Encyclopedia, ed. by Dilip K. Das & Michael Palmiotto published by Taylor & Francis. 2004,

# World Encyclopedia of Police Forces and Correctional Systems,second edition, Gale., 2006

# Sullivan, Larry E. Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2005.

The Sudan Police College opened in [[Khartoum]] in 1937 to train all policemen and administrators in a one- or two-year course.<ref name="loc2015" /> Graduates could transfer between the two services initially, but by 1948 training had become too specialized to allow this practice.<ref name="loc2015" /> In 1969 the authorities built a police laboratory to enhance criminal-investigation capabilities.<ref name="loc2015" />

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The SPF faced several challenges during the [[Anglo-Egyptian Sudan|colonial]] and early postcolonial periods.<ref name="loc2015" /> On June 4, 1951, a group of police officers met to discuss recent labor unrest in Khartoum, [[Khartoum North|North Khartoum]], and [[Omdurman]].<ref name="loc2015" /> The British commandant broke up the meeting.<ref name="loc2015" /> The police officers then staged a demonstration that resulted in the dismissal of the ringleaders, who refused an order to return to barracks.<ref name="loc2015" /> On June 8–9, companies from the [[Sudan Camel Corps|Camel Corps]] and the [[Eastern Arab Corps]] arrived in Khartoum from [[El-Obeid|Al-Obeid]] and [[Kassala]] to prevent further unrest while the SDF disarmed the police.<ref name="loc2015" /> A few days later, the authorities allowed 670 police officers to return to duty but sacked 222 others.<ref name="loc2015" /> The British released a report in July that blamed the unrest on incompetent British officers who commanded the police and on wretched housing conditions.<ref name="loc2015" /> In the aftermath of this report, workmen built new housing and renovated old barracks.<ref name="loc2015" />

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The SPF and army worked together from 1965 to 1969 to quell the unrest caused by the rebellion in the Southern provinces.<ref name="loc2015" /> By 1970, SPF headquarters included administration, immigration, nationality, public affairs, training, and security administration.<ref name="loc2015" /> These divisions also existed at provincial levels.<ref name="loc2015" /> Each provincial police force had about 2,000 officers.<ref name="loc2015" /> Khartoum frequently modified the command and administration of the SPF.<ref name="loc2015" />

Prior to 1977, women served in the police after learning basic administrative duties and working on criminal cases involving women as witnesses or defendants.<ref name="loc2015" /> In 1977 four women completed the two year course at the Sudan Police College and became the first females to join the ranks.<ref name="loc2015" /> A limited number of women served in the SPF and generally worked in administrative sections, on juvenile delinquency matters, or criminal cases that involved female Sudanese witnesses or defendants.<ref name="loc2015" />

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The police reported to the minister of interior until 1979, when that post was abolished, and various ministers became responsible for different areas of police work.<ref name="loc2015" /> This arrangement proved unwieldy, however, and the Police Act of 1979 instituted a unified command in which the head of the force reported to the president.<ref name="loc2015" /> After the overthrow of President [[Jaafar Nimeiry]] in 1985, the cabinet position of minister of interior was restored, and the director general of police was made responsible to the minister.<ref name="loc2015" />

Central police headquarters in Khartoum was organized into several divisions—such as administration, training, and security affairs—each commanded by a police major general.<ref name="loc2015" /> The main operational elements included the traffic police and the riot police.<ref name="loc2015" /> The 1979 legislation brought specialized police units, such as one for the [[Sudan Railways]], under the SPF's authority.<ref name="loc2015" /> Khartoum headquarters maintained liaison and cooperated with the [[Interpol|International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol)]] and agencies involved in combating international drug trafficking.<ref name="loc2015" />

The government's new administrative system delegated many powers to the regional level, but law enforcement outside major urban areas was organized at the state level.<ref name="loc2015" /> Thus, the SPF was subdivided into state commands, which were organized according to the same divisions found in the national headquarters.<ref name="loc2015" /> Local police directors reported to state police commissioners, who in turn were responsible to the SPF director general in Khartoum.<ref name="loc2015" /> Each provincial command had its own budget.<ref name="loc2015" />

The SPF expanded from roughly 7,500 officers and men in 1956 to about 18,000 in 1970 and 30,000 by 2005.<ref name="loc2015" />

== Police organizations ==

As of 2010, internal security was divided up among an array of organizations, including the United Police Forces (UPF), Popular Police Forces (PPF), Popular Defense Forces, and Border Intelligence Guard.<ref name="loc2015" />

=== United Police Forces ===

The United Police Forces had an estimated 30,000 personnel who were responsible for civil defense, criminal investigations, immigration and customs, passport control, traffic control, and wildlife protection.<ref name="loc2015" /> Police divisions normally operated within state commands.<ref name="loc2015" /> State police commissioners reported to the director general of police in Khartoum, who answered to the minister of interior.<ref name="loc2015" /> The UPF inventory included 40 Fahd armored fighting vehicles, 20 Panhard M3 armored fighting vehicles, and 30 armored personnel carriers.<ref name="loc2015" /> The serviceability of these vehicles was unknown.<ref name="loc2015" /> Generally, the UPF had not deployed significant numbers of officers to [[South Sudan]].<ref name="loc2015" /> After 2004, an unknown number of UPF personnel deployed to Darfur.<ref name="loc2015" /> Human-rights advocates accused the UPF of committing an array of human-rights atrocities.<ref name="loc2015" />

=== Popular Police Forces ===

The Popular Police Forces, created in 1989, were estimated to have at least 35,000 members who technically were under the supervision of the director general of police, but it operated as a politicized militia that sought to enforce “moral standards” among the country's Islamic population.<ref name="loc2015" /> The PPF had a poor human-rights record.<ref name="loc2015" /> It was dissolved by the transitional government after the [[Sudanese Revolution]].<ref>[https://unitams.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/s_2020_614_e.pdf S/2020/614 - UNITAMS]</ref>

== Border control ==

Sudan lacked a true border guard.<ref name="loc2015" /> The UPF was responsible for passport control, immigration, and customs at border-crossing points, although the SAF and the PDF might also undertake border-control duties.<ref name="loc2015" /> However, there was a Border Intelligence Guard that operated outside the SAF chain of command; it reported directly to SAF military intelligence officers in the area of operations.<ref name="loc2015" /> The Border Intelligence Guard was active during the [[South Sudanese Civil War|Southern civil war]].<ref name="loc2015" /> In 2002–3, the guard recruited sources in [[Darfur]] to gather information about political and military conditions.<ref name="loc2015" /> Some observers accused the guard of recruiting for the janjaweed.<ref name="loc2015" />

== Training ==

One researcher found no available information about training in the [[Omar al-Bashir|al-Bashir]] era, but formerly police officer cadets usually received two years of training at the Sudan Police College near Khartoum.<ref name="loc2015" /> The institution provided theoretical and practical instruction and served as a training school for military personnel who required police skills in their assignments.<ref name="loc2015" /> In addition to recruit training, the college offered courses in criminal law, general police duties, fingerprinting, clerical work, photography, and the use of small arms.<ref name="loc2015" /> Enlisted recruits usually underwent four months of training at state headquarters.<ref name="loc2015" />

== Community relations and human rights ==

State police traditionally enjoyed good relations with the local communities, but in Khartoum if not elsewhere, police treatment of arrested persons could be harsh.<ref name="loc2015" /> During the 1990s and early 2000s, public-order campaigns in Khartoum often resulted in roundups of thousands of people, who were then charged with illegal street vending or loitering.<ref name="loc2015" /> In urban areas, police abused refugees, particularly Southerners, by stealing from them or beating them for minor infractions.<ref name="loc2015" /> The police also administered floggings for drinking alcohol or for curfew violations.<ref name="loc2015" /> Refugees seldom had recourse to the legal system when attacked by the police.<ref name="loc2015" /> Partly as a result of such actions, the al-Bashir government earned a reputation for poor treatment of prisoners.<ref name="loc2015" />

== See also ==

{{Commons|Category:Police of Sudan|Police of Sudan}}

* [[Prisons in Sudan]]

== References ==

<references />

▲{{Africa topic|Law enforcement in}}

▲[[Category:Law enforcement in Sudan| ]]