The United Nations has criticised the Sudanese government for imprisoning journalists who wrote about the alleged rape of an opposition activist Safiya Ishaq by security forces, following an anti-government protest earlier this year.
Last week, a Khartum court sentenced Amal Habani, a journalist from the independent daily Al-Jarida, in a series of defamation prosecutions against Sudanese journalists for writing about the alleged rape.
"Regardless of the facts of the case, Sudanese journalists have a right to report on rape and other forms of sexual violence,’ Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Margot Wallström said on 3 August. "Rapists – not reporters – must face criminal charges in Sudan. Only by addressing sexual violence openly can we have any chance of […] ultimately, rooting it out," she added.
Another female journalist, Fatima Ghazali, was already imprisoned in July for writing about the same case and refusing to pay a fine, after she was found guilty of publishing lies and violating Sudan’s ethics code. At least four other journalists are awaiting trial.