Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy has received information from jailed Darfurian refugees in Malta who are seeking help. These refugees are in danger of forced repatriation to the Sudan unless they receive international assistance.

Refugees Abdalla Adam Ishmael, Mustafa Adam Lameldin, and Muhammed Guma Yagoub are being detained in Malta 's Floriana Camp. These refugees have spoken directly to Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy on behalf of themselves and other Darfurians in Malta. Currently, there are hundreds of Sudanese refugees being detained in Floriana and other Maltese facilities, including Safi Camps, TaKandjia Camp, and Halfar Camp.
A large number of Sudanese refugees have arrived in Malta after escaping Sudan through Libya and other countries. Malta has granted them neither acceptance nor recognition. Instead, the Maltese jailed the refugees in the above-named detention camps. The UN office in Malta has failed to provide assistance. Damanga is greatly concerned about the incarceration of those refugees who successfully fled the ongoing genocide in Darfur. The refugees arrived in Malta seeking protection, but the Maltese have provided none and have rejected petitions for protection from the local UN office. Not only have Maltese authorities denied Sudanese refugees asylum, they have also prohibited the refugees from contacting other European nations to seek asylum.

The Maltese authorities are not adequately feeding the detained refugees, nor are they supplying them with sufficient medical treatment. Some refugees are without shoes or enough clothes to cover themselves. The Darfurians are innocent civilians, yet Malta is treating them as though they are criminals, allowing them to languish in jails for approximately 10 months without any movement. Refugees requiring hospitalization have even been transported to hospitals in shackles.

Malta has not brought UN personnel to see the refugees in the detention camps. The Maltese have, however, permitted representatives from the Sudanese consulate, sent by the Sudanese ambassador in Libya, to visit these camps in an attempt to force the refugees to repatriate to Sudan. Understandably, the refugees have refused to return to Sudan due to the lack of security there. The Sudanese consul, accompanied by Maltese police, has demanded the return of the refugees, by force if necessary.

Malta insists that the Sudanese refugees must return in accordance with the demands of the Sudanese embassy. Maltese authorities have informed the refugees that they are entitled to no protection and have pressured them to sign agreements, issued by the Sudanese embassy, to return to Sudan . The refugees have refused to do so and have alerted Damanga that their Maltese jailers have been sedating them with drugs. There is great fear that the Maltese could use these drugs to incapacitate the refugees and then return them to Sudan while unconscious or otherwise unable to resist. The plight of the refugees is dire and they need immediate protection to prevent a forced return to Sudan where they would face terrible danger.

Damanga is certain that the situation in Sudan is extremely hazardous for returning refugees. Those who arrive back in Sudan are immediately jailed and then tortured by the Sudanese government which considers all returning refugees to be supporters of the rebellion. Even Darfurians living in other regions of Sudan are subject to such harsh treatment. Damanga has learned of refugees who were repatriated from Egypt, other Arab nations, and Europe who did not reach their destinations and have not been heard from. Sources report that the refugees are captured and tortured immediately upon arrival. For this reason, it is not safe for refugees to return to any location in Sudan.

We ask the United Nations to protect these refugees and we call upon the European Union to provide protection and assistance to Sudanese refugees who have made it to European soil. Malta has refused to provide any such protection, and we ask the EU and the UN to intervene. Malta must release the refugees from detention and allow them an opportunity to resettle in Europe or elsewhere in the world. They must not be forced to return to Sudan