Thank you to everyone who joined the campaign for Petr’s release!
Update: 27.02.2017 – Released after being pardoned and freed by President Omar Bashir. Read more.
Update: 29.01.2017 – Found guilty of charges which included waging war against the state, violating restrictions in military areas, spreading rumors to defame the state, and inciting strife between communities. Sentenced to 20 years in prison. Read more.
Update: 23.01.2017 – Verdict postponed until 29 January 2017. Read more.
Case narrative for Petr Jasek
Petr Jasek, a Czech Christian aid worker, was arrested in December 2015 is currently on trial in Sudan along with two Sudanese pastors and another Sudanese man. On Monday 21st November, there will be a court hearing about his case.
He was arrested in December 2015 and held for eight months before charges were filed in August 2016. Mr. Jasek and the three others have been charged with at least seven offenses, some of which carry the potential death penalty or life imprisonment.
Mr. Jasek and the other men are accused of breaking several sections of Sudan’s criminal code: conspiring against the state, espionage against the country, entering and photographing military areas and works, calling for opposition to public authority by use of violence, provoking hatred against or amongst sects, and publishing false news. In addition, they also face charges of immigrating in illegal ways and conducting voluntary jobs without permission from the authorities under Sudan’s immigration and passport laws.
In November 2015, Mr. Jasek, Rev. Hassan Abduraheem and Rev. Kuwa Shamal attended a conference for Christian leaders where Rev. Abduraheem was a presenter. While speaking on his work as a church leader in Sudan, Rev. Abduraheem showed a picture of a young man from Darfur who had been badly injured during a demonstration. Mr. Jasek later met with the injured man in Khartoum and donated money toward the man’s medical treatment. As Mr. Jasek left Sudan, he was searched by the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), who discovered a receipt for the donation to the injured man. They then confiscated his personal belongings, including his mobile phone, laptop and camera.
Nine days after arresting Mr. Jasek, NISS officers arrested Rev. Abduraheem, who had signed the receipt, and Rev. Shamal. Charges were officially filed in August 2016. At least three court dates have been delayed because a translator failed to appear in court.
Mr. Jasek, who has much experience and training in hospital administration, has assisted a NGO in delivering aid to displaced and suffering Christians in Sudan and Nigeria. While his work has always been humanitarian in nature, the Sudanese government has sought to characterize him as a “filmmaker” who was conspiring against the Sudanese state. They claim that his donation toward medical care for the injured young man was actually support for South Sudanese rebels.
Mr. Jasek denies all the charges.
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Download PDF of case narrative