Law enforcement in Sudan: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia
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| date = October 2020 }}{{Underlinked}}{{Cleanup|date=October 2020|reason=Clarify relationship between SPF and UPF}}[[File:Emblem of the Sudanese Police Force.svg|thumb|Sudanese Police Force Emblem.]]This article discusses '''law enforcement in Sudan'''. == History == The 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]]|others=|year=|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" /> Line 16 ⟶ 20: 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 == 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" /> ▼ 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 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.<ref name="loc2015" /> In fact, the PPF was little more than an Islamist vigilante group that supposedly assisted the UPF.<ref name="loc2015" /> It operated as a politicized militia that sought to enforce “moral standards” among the country’s Islamic population.<ref name="loc2015" /> The PPF, not surprisingly, had a poor human-rights record.<ref name="loc2015" /> ▼ ▲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 === 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 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" /> ▼ ▲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.<ref name="loc2015" /> In fact, the PPF was little more than an Islamist vigilante group that supposedly assisted the UPF.<ref name="loc2015" /> It operated as a politicized militia that sought to enforce “moral standards” among the country’s Islamic population.<ref name="loc2015" /> The PPF, not surprisingly, had a poor human-rights record.<ref name="loc2015" /> == Border control == No information was available about training in the 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" /> ▼ ▲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 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 == ▲ == 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 == * [[Prisons in Sudan]] == References == | |||